Sen. Steve Goss says libel on blogs needs more study.
The Boone Democrat said that he has pulled a bill that would have put civil and criminal penalties on libel published on blogs and other online publications.
Instead, he's asked a Senate committee to substitute a bill that would study the issue to see if future legislation is needed.
The bill drew heated controversy online, especially for its criminal provisions, which Goss said after he filed the bill were unintentional. He added today that bloggers and others pointed out other problems with the wording of the bill.
"I'll be the first to admit when I'm wrong," he said.
He said he's still concerned about the speed of online news and gossip and hopes that a future bill will help resolve some of the problem, though he noted that he views the First Amendment as "sacred."
Fittingly, news of the change surfaced first on Watauga Watch, a blog run by Jerry Williamson in Goss' area.
Blog RSS feed
