Welcome to the Citizen Media Law Brief, a weekly newsletter highlighting recent blog posts, media law news, legal threat entries, and other new content on the Citizen Media Law Project's website. You are receiving this email because you have expressed interest in the CMLP or registered on our site, www.citmedialaw.org. If you do not wish to receive this newsletter, you can unsubscribe by following the link at the bottom of this email or by going to http://www.citmedialaw.org/newsletter/subscriptions.

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The latest from the Citizen Media Law Project blog...

Arthur Bright thinks Missouri's criminal cyberbullying law should stay out of the school yard.
Showing Cyberbullying No Mercy in the Show Me State

David Ardia reports on the jury verdict that ended a troubling defamation case.
Case That Upended Truth Defense in Libel Actions Ends With Jury Verdict for Defendant

Andrew Moshirnia dreams of a digital whipping post for miscreant corporations.
Cyber-Bully Pulpit: Government Sponsored Online Shaming

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Recent threats added to the CMLP database...

Kerr v. Smith
Posted  Oct. 16, 2009

Bennoti, Inc. v. Complaintsboard.com
Posted Oct. 14, 2009

Coweta County v. Newnan Times-Herald
Posted Oct. 14, 2009

Aquino v. Electriciti
Posted Oct. 14, 2009

Polo Ralph Lauren v. Boing Boing
Posted Oct 14, 2009

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Other citizen media law news...

3rd Circuit Rejects Online Activists' Free-Speech Defense of Attacks on Animal Testing Firm
Law.com - Fri. 10/16/09

N.J. high court studies fair-report privilege in libel case
First Amendment Center - Thurs. 10/15/09

FTC Reassures Bloggers - Big Brother Isn't Watching
The Blog of LegalTimes - Wed. 10/14/09

Is Arnold's new anti-paparazzi law unconstitutional?
THR, Esq. - Tues. 10/13/09

Cuba won't let blogger go to US to receive award
The Washington Post - Mon. 10/12/09

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The full(er) Brief...

"On the broad grade-school spectrum of the bullies and the bullied, I tended to fall closer to the bullied side of things.  Fortunately, I quickly proved taller than average — thus harder to intimidate — and smarter than average — thus more useful as a source for homework help than as a target for abuse — so the bullies moved on to other targets.  Still, although not subjected to it much myself, I got to see a fair amount of bullying in my youth. That's why I'm surprised that I can't think of a similar, non-Internet parallel for this Wired story about a new case of cyberbullying in Missouri.  Apparently a ninth-grade girl at the Troy Buchanan Ninth Grade Center put together a 'disparaging' website attacking a fellow student, posting photos of her and calling her a 'slut,' among other 'very troublesome' things. . . .  Naturally, this is the sort of thing that schools crack down on.  Unfortunately for the spiteful girl in question here, it's now also the sort of thing that Missouri district attorneys crack down on — she was arrested by the local sheriff's department.  According to Wired, her case has been turned over to juvenile court prosecutors who will determine whether she will be charged with a crime. . . ."
Arthur Bright, Showing Cyberbullying No Mercy in the Show Me State

"In a closely watched case that challenged (at least in Massachusetts) our long held understanding that truth is an absolute defense to a defamation claim, the jury has returned a verdict for the defendant, finding that it acted without actual malice when it sent an email to its employees stating -- truthfully -- that one of its salesman had been terminated because he violated the company's travel and expense policies. The case, Noonan v. Staples, Inc., D. Mass, No. 06-10716, involved Staples, the office supply chain, and one of its former employees, Alan Noonan. Back in February, we reported that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit had held that Noonan could hold Staples liable for defamation based on a truthful email a superior sent to employees explaining the reason for Noonan's termination, so long as he could prove that the email was sent with 'actual malevolent intent or ill will.' Not surprisingly, the First Circuit's decision sent shock waves through the media defense bar. . . . After remand, the case proceeded to a jury trial in Boston. While it's not clear from the case docket how the judge charged the jury with regard to the question of actual malice, it appears that the parties fought over the definition, as evidenced by the objections Staples filed at the start of the trial in which they argued that ''actual malice' under the Statute has a narrow and distinct meaning: actual malevolent intent, hatred, or ill will toward the plaintiff.' . . ." 
David Ardia, Case That Upended Truth Defense in Libel Actions Ends With Jury Verdict for Defendant

"While a number of businesses and organizations are initiating public service campaigns to combat cyberbullying, governments are realizing the utility of online shaming. In response to a rash of recent suicides, the French Labor Minister, Xavier Darcos, has directed over two thousand French firms to craft anti-stress strategies with the aid of unions by 2010. Companies who do not have a plan in place by the deadline will be named publicly on a dedicated government website. Now right off the bat, let’s acknowledge that this approach to suicide is fairly awesome. First, the government is aggressively addressing an insidious problem. Second, a public listing seems to be the only sanction for those companies that fail to comply.  We’re bringin’ shaming back! . . . Now, it looks like at least some governments are harnessing the powerful forces of shame in the name of corporate regulation. And just as in Olympic fencing, France seems to be in the lead. While the United States currently has some lists of corporate offenders (think toxic waste dumping), these catalogues of misdeeds are not widely effective. But maybe, with the advent of Twitter and other social media tools, consumers can quickly find out who to boycott and why. . . ."  
Andrew Moshirnia, Cyber-Bully Pulpit: Government Sponsored Online Shaming 

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