Is Twitter a newspaper, or is it the phone company?

[Ringo]

Saw this link from my G+ stream. So it seems someone is trying to sue Twitter for defamation from a single tweet. It also looks like this is after the person sued the author of the tweet.

My opinion: From what I understand, Twitter only steps in when there is a complaint. So Twitter is more like a moderator to help keep the servers running and make sure no one is abusing the system.

Link 1: Is Twitter a newspaper, or is it the phone company?

Link 2: Twitter Sued in Australia for Defamation

Link 3: Man sues Twitter over hate blog

What are your thoughts on this?

[HYHYBT]

Definitely more like the phone company.

[Hyena Dandy]

If he thinks he's got a leg to stand on, there's gotta be a hell of a lot more than I thought going on...

[Rapscallion]

There was a similar case some years ago over here - a UK ISP by the name of Demon got into hot water.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/364261.stm for the end result.

In short, someone posted defamatory statements on a usenet group that Demon hosted. The law treated Demon as a publisher, someone with the ability to monitor every item put up there. However, the real reason they failed in their attempt to throw it out was they had been notified on more than one occasion about how the posts were defamatory and should be removed, and the appelant had proof of this, so they simply didn't act.

If a libellous post were put on CS.com or here, for example, and the person who felt aggrieved contacted us and didn't remove it, we'd be held partially liable for the libel resulting if anything were proved in court as being libellous.

Some UK-based legal background. I think the law may have changed since then over here to take on board the way the Internet works.

Rapscallion

[jackfaire]

God that's going to be difficult because then it brings in "opinion versus stated fact" argument too.

Simple way to get around Libel.

Don't state something as fact state it as your opinion and then the person can lose their leg to stand on.

[Rapscallion]

"It's my opinion that you fucked a sheep in the middle of Harrod's front window yesterday evening."

Any competent judge would say that's no defence at all.

I'm also worried that the first thing that came to mind was sheep fucking.

Rapscallion

[Andara Bledin]

I'm not sure about Australian law, but in the US, things such as forums, blogs with comments, etc, are protected by 'safe harbor' laws as long as it can be determined that they have no control over the content.

I imagine, what with Twitter being essentially a peer to peer comment network, they'd have zero control over the content of tweets and thus zero liability for the content of tweets.

It's the same thing that protects eBay from being successfully sued over Feedback comments, and why they're very specific about what it takes to get a comment removed.

^-.-^

[Gravekeeper]

Frankly, sounds like he didn't get as much money as he wanted from the original Tweeter so he's going after bigger game.

[jackfaire]

"It's my opinion that you fucked a sheep in the middle of Harrod's front window yesterday evening."
Rapscallion

That's not an opinion at all.

I am talking something like, "You are a dishonest douchebag" libel

"I feel like you are a dishonest douchebag" Opinion

If you state an event that is always fact but if you state an interpretation of the person as an opinion then it wasn't "definitively" declaring them to be that you were just expressing your point of view and since you made that clear to your readers well it was up to them to make up their own minds.

[Rapscallion]

That's not an opinion at all.

It's stated as an opinion.

Rapscallion

[jackfaire]

It's stated as an opinion.

Rapscallion

No it's not. Putting the words "It's an opinion" in front of something doesn't make it stated as an opinion.

It's only stated as an opinion if it is a proven fact that someone fucked a sheep in the middle of Harrod's front window yesterday afternoon then your saying in your opinion it was this guy is an opinion.

[Rapscallion]

No it's not. Putting the words "It's an opinion" in front of something doesn't make it stated as an opinion.

Oh. Right.

Don't state something as fact state it as your opinion and then the person can lose their leg to stand on.

Rapscallion

[jackfaire]

I am sorry let me break it down.

When I say state something as an opinion instead of stating it as a fact I mean that a fact cannot be an opinion period.

You cannot say that Bob is a lying asshole douchebag, or Bob stole the Maltese Falcon, or Bob was the killer.

Now saying that you think bob is a lying asshole douchebag well that's an opinion because it isn't a statement of fact.

Saying, "I think Bob stole the Maltese Falcon" isn't an opinion it's an accusation, "It's my opinion that Bob stole the Maltese Falcon" isn't an opinion it's an accusation

An accusation is along the lines of a fact because it is step one of establishing something as fact.

But like I said you can restate something as an opinion that isn't strictly a fact.

Saying that Bob is a lying asshole douchebag is stating it as a fact but if you say that's what you think of Bob then your admitting it isn't a fact and that there is the possibility your wrong.

You can't make an accusation, saying you think a fact is true, an opinion because you can't make an accusation and say your possibly wrong at the same time.

You can if you make it conjecture and in the same breath admit, "But I could also be wrong and if I am I apologize" By stating something as fact and not adding on layers of "why I could be wrong" if you turn out to be wrong then it's libel or slander given the medium.

[Rapscallion]

I am sorry let me break it down.

My apologies also for doing exactly what you said to do.

Rapscallion

[Andara Bledin]

Is it really so hard to have a discussion on what legally qualifies as opinion in cases of alleged slander without devolving into juvenile taunts?

This isn't the first thread that's dropped to schoolyard-level antics, either, which really brings down the forum as a whole.

Anyway...

Jackfaire's point is valid: You can't say something like, "It's my opinion that you fucked a sheep in the middle of Harrod's front window yesterday evening," and expect the "it's my opinion" disclaimer to get you out of charges of slander. You either have to make a statement supported by facts, or make a statement of opinion that is not something that can be proven true or false. Something that is provable as true or false isn't a valid opinion statement.

Now, if you said, "It's my opinion that you would fuck a sheep in the middle of Harrod's front window," you would be protected. You aren't saying that the person is or is not a exhibitionist sheep-fucker, merely that you think the person is the type who would be inclined to fuck sheep in public.

^-.-^