Get Sued for Blogging (Part - 2)
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When I wrote the first installment of this series titled "Get fired for writing blogs", I had not thought that I would be making it a series. However, when some of you contacted me personally, I thought I would dig some more and present some other adverse consequences of blogging. I will try to include best practices to avoid these consequences in each of the installment but I request other fellow bloggers to add more out of their own experiences.
Part - 2: Liability suits on bloggers for defamation and others: Some real incidents
ISPs are immune from liability for information originating from associates (read third party information providers). However, it seems that the third parties and their associates can be sued for defamation or vandalism. I have presented below some incidents of bloggers being sued for defamation.
1. Delaware: A blogger, who was apparently a mayor of some town was sued for defamation through blogging by his political rival in Delaware. The mayor was blogging anonymously, so initially the case was dismissed. It is a different story altogether how the identity of mayor was somehow obtained by the rival at a later stage and the case was settled out of court between the two parties.
2. Malaysia: In the first case of its kind, some bloggers in Malaysia were sued by a prominent local newspaper for defamation. Even the government was in support of the newspaper. After the trial, the government even issued a directive to register all the bloggers in Malaysia to better control the parties mouthing against it.
3. UK: A lecturer was successfully sued by a politician for defaming him on a blog. Both of them used to write on the same blog. When the lecturer referred to this politician using objectionable names (including 'a Nazi'), the politician obtained her identity via the ISP and won a approximately $20,000 in damage.
4. The Traffic Power story: A US search engine optimization consultant was sued by a company called Traffic Power. A quote in a famed tech magazine said that the company was banned by Google because it used to rig search results. Apparently, this consultant was behind "exposing" the company on his blogs in a bid to what he claimed social service. He ended up facing a defamation suite.
Apparently, all these parties who faced trials, were just voicing their thougts. We normally call it freedom of expression. Although we can not really say if defamation or mischief was their actual motive, they had to face the trial - successfully or unsuccessfully. Like it or not, there is nothing called "an absolute freedom of expression." Why take risks? We are too busy to get involved in legal troubles and still maintain the sancity of our opinions. Here are what I consider some best practices which can help you avoid the trouble. Please contribute generously to the list.
Part - 2: Liability suits on bloggers for defamation and others: How to play safe
1. Don't write unless you know: Do not write just for writing's sake. Unless you are 100% sure about a thought or a person, please avoid writing. If you write something which is not true of a person, he or she has every right to sue you.
2. Don't misuse a blog: Blogs are not to get you personal or political mileage. If you misuse them for your self motive, it would be only you to blame for what you face at the end. (And believe me, you would know when are actually misusing a blog).
3. Avoid calling names and cursing people: A blogger can express well enough without hurling abuses and calling names. Remember the above example of a lecturer calling someone a Nazi. She could well have used a more politically correct expression. Using politically correct expressions are not curbing your freedom. They, in fact are one of the best medium of getting your points across without taking out the accusation. Best part is, they save you $20,000 or so.
4. Do not directly comment on a governemnt establishment if you are not in USA: USA is probably one of the most tolerable society in terms of political blogging (unless you do not make it too personal). But if you are in some other country (most of the Europe, South America, Africa and Asia), please do not directly launch an accusation on a government establishment or politically very sensitive topic. Again, use politically correct words, present facts and leave the blog open ended. You can also use the technique of asking questions instead of giving answers. (Example, Instead of saying "govt is cutting down thousands of trees and selling the land to retail sharks", you can ask "Why thousands of trees were cut in an area where retail sharks are roaming to grab every inch of the land?"
5. Beware of the corporates: Bloggers getting sued by corporates is and will be the most common type of suits in blogsphere. These guys have shrewd lawyers on their payrolls and their only job is to find an opportunity to make a quick buck for their employer. It is fine to write a product review, but you should mention that you are writing a product review. Be fair, be factual and keep a non accusing and suggestive style. Believe me, you do not want to take chances with these guys.
At the end, I just want to say that I am not the one to favour curbing our freedom of expression. Its just that if we all remain alert and beware of the things going on in blogsphere, we may avoid a major trouble. If you don't, you may not even realize what hit you via that manilla envelop lying in your mailbox.
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Another hub that would relate to your sensibilities has also been one of the hottest hubs and joined together a lot of hubbers for a common cause. Must read Online Photo Galleries are Overshadowing Serious Writers
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Comments
Hey there. Thanks for your comment. I completely agree with you on the position of govt. However, I can only wish that govt in all countries could really maintain the sancity. Ask any Chinese or Russian if he can openly criticize his govt on a public forum without a hint of fear. Friend, I think we should start seeing government and politics as two different things. By definition, govt can't really touch you for voicing your opinion but a political set up can.
Stooge, you are more than right. You can loose your freedom or even your life in some countries for criticizing.
Government and politics are one and the same thing. Political leaders are the leaders of the government, no matter the west or the east.
I was thinking a lot about this topic today. I was thinking, how much more freedom of mind and its expression there is in England in comparison with some other countries. I can say a lot about the Prime Minister Gordon Brown, because of the freedom here and I could only dream to say something similar in Russia or China or in many other countries, where freedom is only a word...
You are so right, Stooge.
All I can say Thank God I live in Australia where we are able to express ourselves openly and rightly so - obviously blogging about someone in a derogoratory slanderous way invites the other "slandered" person to take action via the legal system better this than the good old days when it was pistols at 40 paces and some one invariably died! Commonsense should prevail and if you are really pee'd off write it,then sleep on it before publishing - read it - then read again and if necessary take out the pointed possibly "open to legal challenge " remarks while leaving in your factual,even emotional commentary. Safer that way.
This is such an important issue to think about when blogging, thank you for covering it so well. Many people write things that they would never say if they knew they would be held accountable for it. Great hub!
Thanks ajcor for commenting. You are so correct. Maintaining a factual style is pretty. I like to add one more line next to it, which is "Keep a blog on a controversial topic open ended. Don't really come out with a conclusion but keep pointing towards it." Guess, we are on the same page here.
Amy, Thanks for your encouragement. By the way, I went through your hubs and really liked them. Specially "online memorial" and "Power of Words". Don't ask me why? :-)
We are not really anonymous on the www. Better be responsible just as we are dealing with people face ro face, or as careful as we usually are when we put things down in writing.
Great hub, thanks!
Stooge, an excellent Hub here and very important to cover and have people be aware of these issues. Defamation is usually only a concern for people that are not famous (it is harder to prove when you are a "public figure") under US laws, but nonetheless, with politics and people watching things very carefully it is important for us to measure our words before "speaking" through Blogs.
Pretty much boils down to using common sense---have all your facts straight, don't call each other names, if you try too hard to buck the "big guys" you could get stomped, there's really no where to hide in this information age and beware throwing mud---some of it could stick to you.
Very good Hub, Stooge! Nice writing!
Kenny, Many thanks for responding. Truly said - be as responsible as you are when talking face-to-face.
p.s. - I really enjoyed the story on Sage Agastya (the one where he digests a demon). Hindu mythology is really full of great stories - humorous as well as insightful.
Stephhicks,
You made a great point around public figures, which unfortunately, I left out from the hub. Is it a normal practice among hubbers to edit their hub if a brainwave comes later. I would really include this particular point. Thanks so much for responding.
Thank you for reading one of my 'ancient' hubs, Stooge!
Ruthie,
Thanks for responding. I would have loved to cover the "Big guys" angle separately and dedicate a full paragraph to it. Unfortunately, it did not strike me at the time of writing this hub. May be I will edit the hub to include it. Hope to hear from you again.
Another thing that people should be aware of is that just because they write a blog in a country that may have favorable defemation laws and they may be safe where they are, many other countries, such as Britain, allow residents of their country to sue there on the theory that the blog was published everywhere it can be accessed. So, while you may be complying with the laws of your onw country you may get sued in another. This would cause you enormous expense in defending the claim overseas, and even if lose or if you ignore the claim and they get a judgment against you there are ways that the plaintiff can then enforce their judgment against you where you live. I have read many blogs and even some hubs here on hubpages that I think are defamatory; their authors may be in for a nasty surprise some day.
Quotations, this is a great point and probably the costliest impact of a defamatory blog. Although, chances of being sued by a foreigner are pretty less, a little cautiousness does not really harm anybody. Thanks for commenting and enriching the horizon of my hub. I will surely edit this hub based on the additional information I have received so far. Just waiting for some more thoughts to reach me.
This was a very informative hub and it really open the eyes of who are misusing the hubs in many ways. All I can say is that this hub was really eye opening and we should all be aware from now on.
Thanks for your hub!!!
Aeman,
Glad you liked it. Sometimes we ignore very small things in life but when they explode in our face, we dont have anywhere to hide.
I will be editing this hub in a couple of days based on the comments and emails I received from fellow hubbers. So watch this space. I will also be writing sequels to this hub next week (on other potential impacts of blogging we need to be careful of). So keep visiting. Thanks for joining my fan club.
Very informative hub and I can tell you did your research. I enjoyed reading this.
Sweetiepie, appreciate your encouragement. Will be writing more on the same lines. So keep visiting.
Stooge, look at this video. It shows, that the level of democracy in US is still sky high in comparison with Russia or China, for example. For such a statement on the national TV a person would have been terminated in very many countries over the world.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24632990/
(Press on the little camera button)
Hey...I see what you are talking about. Just be glad that we are in USA :)
Stooge,
Great hub. Its great to see such a well researched article. I have never been one to talk about others no less write about others, but this article really make me want to watch what I say even more. I will keep writing about things I know for a fact won't land my butt in court-myself and my kids! God Bless.
Cheryl, it is a priviledge to have your comments on my hub. Could not agree more that weighing words before publishing can keep ourselves out of trouble. I am in the process of writing the next installment. Make sure to read it.
Nice hub!i once got fired for blogging! =[ Hopefuly idont get sued =D
Cheers, TeenZoned http://hubpages.com/hub/Bum-Marketing-tips
You can never be too careful these days I suppose...I am not surprised, but it still makes me sad. Good pointers on keeping out of trouble with a blog!
this is a great idea for an article...
You'd be surprised how stupid/foolish/ignorant people are when it comes to internet etiquette.
Teenzoned, there are many people who commented that they have heard about such a things for the first time. It is good that now I can give an example of a fellow hubber. Thanks for letting us know.
Chelle, Dutch.. thnaks for visiting by and commenting. Dutch, I liked your fan mail. And I will leave you guessing if that is actually me or not :)
Two comments which you might find useful for your follow-up hubs on this topic...
First, writers have an obligation to understand the terms libel, slander, and defamation. There are two ways to gain this understanding: be the perpetrator of these actions and suffer the consequences in a court of law, or, look these terms up in a dictionary and memorize them before your fingers touch the keypad.
Second, more related to your Part 1, Stooge, those who work for others are often bound by a confidentiality agreement. If, when you write, you step out of compliance with that agreement, you are setting yourself up for trouble. I am guessing that the friend of a friend you referred to failed to take his company's confidentiality policy and code of conduct seriously, whether the policy and code were written or implied.
Thumbs up on both of these hubs!
Sally, good points. Before we discuss the legal things, we should have a hang of what we are talking about. Even those who did not really discuss anything here, they should do a quick learning on legal parlance.
Company confidentiality and code of conduct has been abused and misunderstood a lot. Not many people take it seriously. There are many cases when violating company code of conduct has landed an employee is severe trouble. I just highlighted that careless blogging can well be one reason why an employee may get into trouble.
I believe that it is vitally important for the safety of our citizens, our future success, and our ability for society to function to protect derogatory and negative posters. If someone calls me a nazi, or a pedophile, or a racist, or any other similarly damaging remarks, I will still defend to my dying breath his or her ability to do so. If someone <i>lies</i> about me, I will defend their legal right to even as I challenge their statements, as long as it does not impede my own ability to tell the truth; or as long as they are not contractually or legally bound (for example, by being on the witness stand) to tell the truth. Negativity, and even liars, are part of the human condition.
Not only is the world not perfect, it will never be perfect. There will always be mistakes, always be different opinions on what is 'offensive' and what is not, and always be reasons to disagree with each other. If we legislate away our ability to insult each other openly and without sophistry, then we cripple our ability to grow and prosper as a society.
See that? That's my real name. I very frequently post anonomously, as I represent my company online professionally so a misstep can be costly, especially with personal comments and not company comments; but this topic is close to my heart, so here I am. And who knows the future? Our company may find some reason to sue a blogger in the future, and I might have to choose between my principles and my job. If it ever comes to that, I honestly do not know what I would choose.
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solarshingles says:
2 years ago
Very nice hub! Yet, if we are going to be too much afraid of writing about facts, in what kind of a democracy do we live, then?
Government is just a public service - an agreed institutional form, which is there for citizens and it is entirely paid by them. It is entirely responsible for its activities.
This was my comment today on hub pages about London park going for a new property development:
http://hubpages.com/hub/Another-London-Institution
'Example, Instead of saying "govt is cutting down thousands of trees and selling the land to retail sharks", you can ask "Why thousands of trees were cut in an area where retail sharks are roaming to grab every inch of the land?'
And I am not afraid to point that out, because it is a plain fact. They lost local election, because of such a behaviour a few weeks ago.