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Tuesday, March 01, 2011

Ind. Courts - Responsibility of IndyStar and Ind.Bus.Journal to provide identities of readers who posted comments?

Jeff Swiatek has just posted an interesting story on the Indianapolis Star website. Some quotes:

The former chief executive of Junior Achievement of Central Indiana is broadening a defamation lawsuit he filed last year to include people who criticized him anonymously on news media-run websites.

A Marion County judge has ruled that Jeffrey Miller must be given names or other information that would help him to identify the writers of online comments posted last year anonymously on the Web sites of The Indianapolis Star and Indianapolis Business Journal.

The two news organizations had resisted Miller’s legal efforts to force them to turn over information, such as the internet protocol address, that would help Miller identify the posters.

The rulings this week and last week by Superior Court Judge S.K. Reid are the first time an Indiana judge has ruled on the issue of whether the state journalism shield law protects media outlets from being forced to disclose names, or other identifying information they hold, of anonymous posters on their Web sites, said Kevin Betz, an attorney for Miller. * * *

Betz said Miller has a right to seek the names of people if they defamed him with online comments, even if done anonymously.

The online statements that Miller considers defamatory include the accusation that he committed “most likely a criminal act,” a description of him as “the most greedy man I’ve ever known,” and a comment saying “somebody needs to call the state’s attorney general and investigate him,” according to the lawsuit.

Dennis Ryerson, editor and vice president of The Star, wouldn’t comment on the judge’s ruling beyond saying: “We now are reviewing our legal options.”

The ILB would like to post copies of Judge Reid's opinions - let me know if you can help.

[More] It appears that this is not a case asking that the newspapers be held liable for comments posted by third parties, but rather a case where the newspapers are being sued to give up the identities of the third party posters. For background take a look at this ILB entry from April 28, 2010, this entry from March 22, 2010, and and also at this list of entries (read these in reverse order).

Posted by Marcia Oddi on March 1, 2011 02:00 PM
Posted to Ind. Trial Ct. Decisions