Online legal and ethical issues

What is libel?

Online legal and ethical issues

Libel is a defamatory statement (harms the reputation of the other person) that has been published to at least one other person. The statement alleged to be defamatory must also be a false statement of fact. Burden of proof is on the plaintiff

Can I be sued for something I put on the Internet?

Can I Be Sued for Something I Put on the Internet?

Yes.  The laws regarding defamation apply to the Internet as they do to more traditional media.  However, federal law protects Internet service providers (ISPs) and other interactive computer services from many lawsuits.  The Communications Decency Act section 230, which

was part of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, immunizes computer service providers.

Discussion forums

Several courts have extended the protection of ISPs under section 30 of the CDA to media organizations. Unless the website is the author of the posting, the site is not liable for the content.

Discussion Forums

How journalistic websites police postings Registration with a valid e-mail address User policing – flagging offensive posts Ban certain words Disclaimer

We encourage you to share your thoughts about our stories. However, comments that are obscene, overly personal, racist or otherwise inappropriate will be removed. Because the messages are posted instantly and anonymously, Courant.com cannot vouch for their accuracy or authenticity. Report abusive posts by clicking the link found at the upper right of each item. -- Courant.com

Crossing the line

Your post will be removed if it falls under one of these categories: Spam Personal info Vulgar/Hate speech Attorney/legal Quote of deleted post Off-topic Non-English

Copyright

What is copyright?

Copyright

Copyright provides the owner the right to control how a creative work is used. A copyright is comprised of a number of exclusive rights, including the right to make copies, authorize others to make copies, make derivative works, sell and market the work and perform the work.

Copyright & the Internet

Copyright protects web pages, e-mails and postings to discussion groups. A website’s HTML is copyrightable.

You should always assume that anything you encounter on the Internet is copyrighted– images, cartoons, video, etc.

Fair Use

An exception to copyright is a provision called fair use. Copyright law recognizes the right of educators, journalists and others to use some portion of copyrighted works for the purposes of education, scholarship, research, criticism and comment. There are four “tests” in the fair use provision that you can use to help assess whether you can use a copyrighted work without permission. The purpose and character of the use The nature of copyrighted work The amount and substantiality of the portion used The effect of the use on the potential market for or value of

the copyrighted work

Images and Creative Commons

U.S. copyright law does apply to ALL IMAGES you see on the Web, on any Web page. So it is absolutely NOT okay to copy an image (photo or otherwise) from somewhere online and use it.

The image does NOT need to have a copyright symbol or a copyright notice to enjoy this protection. All published works are automatically protected by this law — and that includes ALL images online.

Some people have chosen to allow limited use of their Web-published work — that is, they have given you permission in advance. They do this by posting a Creative Commons license; on Flickr, for example, you’ll see tags on the right side of an individual photo page.

Ethics

Guidelines from the Online Journalism Review: The old rule: You can't cover something in which

you are personally involved. The new rule: Tell your readers how you are

involved and how that's shaped your reporting. The old rule: You must present all sides of a story,

being fair to each. The new rule: Report the truth and debunk the

lies. The old rule: There must be a wall between

advertising and editorial. The new rule: Sell ads into ad space and report

news in editorial space. And make sure to show the reader the difference.

Use of music

You can’t use music unless it is expressly offered for public domain use.

You must get express permission from the copyright holder.

Pushing the envelope?

Sun Sentinel mug shots; Orlando Sentinel mug shots

Courant Infamous Pageant Mishaps