COURT: BLOGGERS HAVE FIRST AMENDMENT PROTECTIONS
A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that us spineless "bloggers and the public have the same First Amendment protections as journalists when sued for defamation: If the issue is of public concern, plaintiffs have to prove negligence to win damages."
Gregg Leslie of the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press said the ruling affirms what many have long argued: Standards set by a 1974 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Gertz v. Robert Welch Inc., apply to everyone, not just journalists.
"It's not a special right to the news media," he said. "So it's a good thing for bloggers and citizen journalists and others."
Citizen journalists. Hmm. I like the sound of that. So much better than "spineless bloggers," don't you think? From now on, people who write in here are to be called "Citizen Journalists."
Not good news for the person who commented anonymously on December 8, 2013 at 1:17 PM.