Judge orders anonymous Internet commenter's name revealed - Polidicks

[url]http://articles.philly.com/2014-03-09/news/48032619_1_dougherty-pmn-poster[/url] [url]http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/03/10/philly-com-ordered-to-provide-identity-of-anonymous-commenter-sued-for-defamation/[/url] [QUOTE]A warning to people who post comments online: Anonymous is not forever. A Philadelphia judge has ordered the owners of Philly.com - who also own The Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News - to disclose the identity of a person who posted a comment online. The ruling came in a defamation suit filed by John J. Dougherty, the powerful head of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. In October 2012, Dougherty sued over a comment posted two months earlier on a Daily News blog that described a public feud involving Dougherty. The comment identified Dougherty by his well-known nickname, "Johnny Doc," and called him "the pedophile." Dougherty sued the anonymous poster, and his lawyers subpoenaed Philadelphia Media Network, Philly.com's parent company, to supply the person's identity. Mark Block, a spokesman for Interstate General Media, corporate parent of PMN, referred all questions to Eli Segal, an attorney for the company. Segal said that after receiving the subpoena, the company contacted the anonymous poster to make sure he or she got notice of the lawsuit and hired a lawyer. He said lawyers for Dougherty and the person who posted the comment presented their arguments to Common Pleas Court Judge Jacqueline F. Allen. On Feb. 26, Allen ordered the news company to disclose the poster's identity, along with any comments he or she posted from Aug. 10, 2012, through this January.[/QUOTE]

I don't know if its sadder that they were forced to give up anonymity, or if its sadder that a man went to court over an internet comment.

[QUOTE=cxcxxxxx;44255017]I don't know if its sadder that they were forced to give up anonymity, or if its sadder that a man went to court over an internet comment.[/QUOTE] Definitely the internet comment part. Anonymity goes out the window if someone finds a solid legal backing to counteract their hurt feelings. And has the pockets to hire suit monkeys to properly frame it. Freedom of speech is actually an extremely limited concept with things like hate speech, defamation, and libel. Say the wrong thing against the people with the right lawyers and you're likely to get sued to Timbuktu.

rights shouldnt end where your feels begin

I hope the suit ends up costing that douchebag(Dougherty) more than he'll be rewarded

This is going to probably end in a bunch of users creating accounts to call him a pedophile just to spite the system.

[QUOTE=Snickerdoodle;44255154]This is going to probably end in a bunch of users creating accounts to call him a pedophile just to spite the system.[/QUOTE] And than its discovered that he actually is one and that the anon did his research.

[QUOTE=Stroma;44255110]rights shouldnt end where your feels begin[/QUOTE] I am sorry but since when is it a right to anonymously and publicly call somebody a pedophile? It's not like to writing that he has an ugly face or his taste in cars sucks (and I am pretty sure the jury would tell the guy to fuck off if that was the case), calling somebody a pedophile is a pretty serious matter. If somebody went around and hung up posters with "[name] is a pedophile" I am pretty sure a lot of people would call the police as well. Untruthful defamation is a crime in most places as far as I know. [editline]16th March 2014[/editline] [QUOTE=Rangergxi;44255230]And than its discovered that he actually is one and that the anon did his research.[/QUOTE] Or it turns out it was a completely false claim and an internet mob just ruined a guy's life while feeling entitled to their ~anonymous opinion~

The problem is that internet commentary is akin to having a chat with a stranger in a coffee-shop. You vent your current thoughts and listen to those of others, only the internet saves it.

[QUOTE=Awesomecaek;44255503]I am sorry but since when is it a right to anonymously and publicly call somebody a pedophile? It's not like to writing that he has an ugly face or his taste in cars sucks (and I am pretty sure the jury would tell the guy to fuck off if that was the case), calling somebody a pedophile is a pretty serious matter. [B]If somebody went around and hung up posters with "[name] is a pedophile" I am pretty sure a lot of people would call the police as well. Untruthful defamation is a crime in most places as far as I know.[/B] [/QUOTE] I wasn't aware the anonymous poster on a random website was doing that.

[QUOTE=Canuhearme?;44256539]I wasn't aware the anonymous poster on a random website was doing that.[/QUOTE] Actually it happens all the time, the police rely on tips. Its why we have SWAT teams and such suddenly going through normal homes. Its why we have things like subreddits that do jailbait, revenge porn, and a host of other problems. Anonymity is great if you want to be a whistleblower, but most people use it to be complete and total assholes.

so then what happens if one of these cases comes up and it turns out the commenter they want to identify was using proxies/VPN/Tor and they're simply unable to identify who it was?

Shitposters beware, now we can get you banned IRL

[QUOTE=Stroma;44255110]rights shouldnt end where your feels begin[/QUOTE] feels end where defamation begins

[QUOTE=BLOODGA$M;44257312]so then what happens if one of these cases comes up and it turns out the commenter they want to identify was using proxies/VPN/Tor and they're simply unable to identify who it was?[/QUOTE] Then either guy with money runs out of money, backs off, or tries to get literally every proxy imaginable torn down in some kind of temper tantrum.

[QUOTE=Zeke129;44257407]feels end where defamation begins[/QUOTE] Freedom of speech ends where "restricted free speech" begins

[QUOTE=Zeke129;44257407]feels end where defamation begins[/QUOTE] It's like if someone dug up something from a two year old article on Sensationalist headlines and demanded to know said and said persons identity. News sites don't mean anything in the comments section and they're buried fast.

[QUOTE=zakedodead;44263594]Freedom of speech ends where "restricted free speech" begins[/QUOTE] Freedom of speech only applies to the government, not corporations or random people. The government can't throw you in jail for calling somebody an idiot, but the person can sue you for it, etc.

good, anonymity turns a lot of people into dickholes so what better way to screw with them than taking them to court

i'm wondering more about the people who would take this random anonymous internet comment seriously and believe, from this one source, that John J. Dougherty is a pedophile

Hope Mr. Dougherty enjoys pizza. In seriousness, I doubt this can even be enforced. An anonymous poster tends to be anonymous. You'd have to push through company after company and it'd end up costing way too much by the end of it to even be worth it.

[QUOTE=Ninja Gnome;44267039]i'm wondering more about the people who would take this random anonymous internet comment seriously and believe, from this one source, that John J. Dougherty is a pedophile[/QUOTE] Well, we know he's a pedophile now. Who would get so upset at some internet mongrel calling you a pedo unless it was true?

[QUOTE=Ninja Gnome;44267039]i'm wondering more about the people who would take this random anonymous internet comment seriously and believe, from this one source, that John J. Dougherty is a pedophile[/QUOTE] they wouldnt post it on the internet if it wasnt true

[QUOTE=reedbo;44271342]Well, we know he's a pedophile now. Who would get so upset at some internet mongrel calling you a pedo unless it was true?[/QUOTE] Imagine being called a pedophile on the internet. It is defamation though.

good thing i make all around great posts so i will never get sued

People should be held accountable for what they do online.