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RISK: Online.
Bloggers beware of libel trials
Simon Donohue24/ 3/2006
"BLOGGERS beware" is the warning circulating cyberspace since Oldham lecturer Tracy Williams was ordered to pay '10,000 in damages to a man she'd libelled on an internet message board.
Michael Keith-Smith sued after Ms Williams began an online campaign of name-calling which started by describing him as "lard brain" and culminated in falsely labelling him a "Nazi" and "racist bigot".
The former Conservative party member, who stood for UKIP in the Portsmouth North constituency at the last election, also claims to have settled with another internet poster for a sum "in the region of '30,000".
Mr Keith-Smith said after the case: "It's a matter of principle I had no proof that anyone who read this took it seriously.
"I just didn't see why she should be allowed to get away with it."
The case has massive ramifications for the millions of people, called bloggers, who now correspond online in message rooms, chat sites and web logs - online diaries which can be read by anyone with access to the internet.
Online
A recent survey by web monitors Technorati calculated that 80,000 new blogs go online every day, with the total number of blogs doubling every five months.
And that all adds up to a lot of potential libel actions against individuals.
Libel occurs when when a false and defamatory statement about an individual is published in a form which allows it to be read by a third party.
In recent history it has been mainly newspaper proprietors who have fallen foul of the law of libel, with potentially expensive repercussions.
Sue Hall, a partner at the Cobbetts legal firm in Manchester, is a specialist in information and technology law and says that the Keith-Smith case demonstrates perfectly that it is a law which also applies to individuals who use the internet.
She says: "People who use blogs and message boards are publishing statements in a public forum and the same rules apply as they would if these statements were published in a newspaper.
"If a statement is likely to provoke hatred, ridicule or contempt, and the blogger is not able to prove that it is either true or a fair comment based on fact, then a libel has been committed."
Defamation
Until the Keith-Smith case, many bloggers assumed that the responsibility for any libellous remark lay with the people who host internet chatrooms - as is the case with the publisher of a newspaper. However, that isn't so. Internet service providers - companies like BT, Tesco and AOL - have no responsibility for defamatory material if they simply act as a conduit for information, in much the same way as the Royal Mail is not responsible for the content of letters.
Those who host chatrooms and weblogs - including Yahoo - are not liable for libellous remarks if they accept certain responsibilities.
Ms Hall adds: "So long as they didn't know the information to be libellous, didn't select the recipient of the information and they remove defamatory information as soon as they have been made aware of it, then they are not liable."
People who do edit and monitor posts on their sites would not have this defence but would be more likely to spot libellous statements themselves.
There are other pitfalls for people who either blog or use message rooms.
"People must be aware that the internet cuts across many different territories, each of which will have their own laws.
"It is unlikely that an ordinary person would sue somebody overseas for libel - but a celebrity might," Ms Hall says.
Equally, bloggers need to be aware of more than just the libel laws.
Ms Hall adds: "An American woman received a visit from the FBI after posting a message which suggested she couldn't wait for President George Bush to breathe his last.
Pseudonym
"That might sound over the top, but with the glorification of the terrorism bill around the corner, it provides serious food for thought."
Tracy Williams had used a pseudonym and it is understood that Yahoo provided the information which enabled Mr Keith-Smith to identify her.
Ms Hall believes that companies like Yahoo are unlikely to block future attempts to identify the people who post libellous blogs.
Some people also believe that the Human Rights Act affords total freedom of expression.
However, even that right ceases the moment that a libel is committed against a person who has just as much right to protect their reputation.
Ultimately, Ms Hall suggests that people who use internet chatrooms need to be aware of their own actions.
"There is a phrase which I use when I'm lecturing on the global village which is the world wide web and that is that there are an awful lot of global village idiots out there.
"A lot of people use message rooms after they've been to the pub - or with a bottle of wine at their side," she says.
"That perhaps isn't wise."
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Do stores make it too easy to get credit?
Much ado about nothing!
18/04/2006 at 13:06
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