Hmmm this is a difficult one. I actually agree that people should face legal action for spreading untrue or defamatory information about people, whether it be in a newspaper or a website.

However, what I disagree with wholeheartedly in is that website administrators, and even more the ISPs hosting them should be held responsible. Any legal action should be against the perpetrators, not the people who merely host the medium they posted it on. How the hell can an ISP be held responsible for the content that flows over it? They are an information carrier, a provider of a medium, they have no effective way of policing the views or material carried over their medium.

Heh, if I organise a bombing of a public building via a conference call on BT, should they be held responsible??! Because they didnt tap our conference call and listen for potentially illegal behaviour? Get real!

Just a quick warning to say if any of the actual "rumours" are repeated here, they'll have to be immediately removed for legal reasons, and approriate action may be taken with regards to the person posting them.

Just be sure to keep the thread libel-free folks!

---

by Sydney
Or is it yet another sign of American style blame and sue culture taking hold over here?

---

.. i noticed today that the hostages in the russian opera house are now going to sue the city.
[minirant]Perhaps it would have been cheaper to let them all get killed. [/minirant]