Re: Techie's List
It isn't libel if it is true, also the list owner can disclaim any responsibility for the opinion of others, unless the opinion seems false and outrageous. Or something like that. There are man-hater web sites that get sued for false statements, but it seems to me that the statements need to be really, really bad before plaintiffs get a chance to make a case. But the truth is still an absolute defense for libel. So I've heard, but I am not attempting to give or imply legal advice here.
I don't know about Ken's "Law of the Press" class at
Kent State, but in the similar course at the U of Florida
even longer than 10 years ago, we were taught that truth
is *not* an absolute defense in every state. While it might
be at the federal level, costs would be involved with appealing.
I just went trawling through the net and found a few small
snippets here and there that seem to support this: that
intention is in some states considered along with truth.
For example, according to http://gammillaw.com/Intentional.shtml,
"Under Florida law, truth alone is not a sufficient defense to a
defamatory statement made with improper motives."
And according to http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=us&vol=343&invol=250
"Since the Illinois Supreme Court construed this
statute as a form of criminal libel law, and truth
of the utterance is not a defense to a charge of
criminal libel under Illinois law unless the
publication is also made "with good motives and for
justifiable ends,"[...] "As to the defense of truth,
Illinois in common with many States requires a
showing not only that the utterance state the facts,
but also that the publication be made "with good
motives and for justifiable ends.""
And it's not necessarily an umbrella defense in other
countries. According to http://medialibel.org/libel/other.html:
"Although truth is a good defense, it is not always a
complete defense. Legitimate public interest is a
defense which applies solely to statements of fact.
German courts look favorably on defense pleas where
public interest issues are at stake."
-- Janice
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References:
Techie's List: From: James Barrow
Re: Techie's List: From: Dick Margulis
RE: Techie's List: From: Tariel, Lauren R
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