Tag search result

A bill filed today would specify that blogs can be libelous.

Sen. Steve Goss said he wrote the bill over concern that "fast-moving Internet technology" may be outstripping existing libel laws. He wants the law to specifically say that blogs and other online media can be considered libelous.

"We need to make sure that we're keeping up with technology," he said. "I believe these blogs are getting out of control."

Legal experts say blogs are already covered under common law, though they may not have as many protections in state statutes in North Carolina as newspapers and magazines.

Mike Tadych, a First Amendment lawyer with the N.C. Press Association, said that there have been a number of cases of people suing for libel over things published online. But he was not aware of any cases where bloggers used the state's libel laws to protect themselves.

"We would make that argument, but I don't know that it's been tested in North Carolina," he said.

One statute forces the potential plaintiff to first notify the publication. If it issues a "full and fair correction" within 10 days, any fine is limited to one penny.

A second statute puts a one-year statute of limitations on libel and slander suits.

The title of the bill currently says that Internet libel would also be considered a criminal offense, something that's not been true in the United States since colonial times. Goss said that was a mistake.

Update: The text of the bill is now available, and it calls for making libel conveyed through the Internet, a blog, a bulletin board, news group or e-mail a Class 2 misdemeanor criminal offense.

Goss earlier told Dome that he intended the bill to focus on civil cases and not criminal law. He said the inclusion of criminal penalties was "an oversight."