Wikipedia v literary agent Barbara Bauer
p2pnet news | Freedom:- A Wikipedia post cited literary agent Barbara Bauer as one the “dumbest of the twenty worst” agents.
Now Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton and the EFF (Electronic Frontier Foundation) have filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit lodged against the Wikipedia arguing, ” federal law immunizes it against suits over statements made by its users”.
Bauer filed against Wikipedia posters and the site, but, Wikimedia argues under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, operators of “interactive computer services” can’t be held liable for users’ comments,” says the EFF
“In addition, Wikimedia argues that the statements are protected speech under the First Amendment and New Jersey law,” it goes on.
“The ability to utilize the collaborative input of its users without fear of costly lawsuits is essential to Wikipedia’s ongoing success, said Wikimedia Foundation General Counsel Mike Godwin.
“We provide a platform through Wikipedia for smart citizens to give their knowledge back to a larger culture,” Godwin said.
“Our ability to offer citizens that platform is what’s at stake in this case.”
Among other things, “There have been a number of complaints on internet message boards about the fees that Bauer charges,” says the Wikipedia, going on >>>
Bauer is also alleged to have made legal threats in order to suppress discussion of her business’s activities, especially on web sites. Reports of this behaviour are usually found on sites maintained by people who claim to have received such threats. She is also alleged to have caused the popular website, Absolute Write, to lose its Internet hosting service in May, 2006.
Courts across the country have consistently applied the protections of Section 230 broadly, fulfilling Congress’ intent to, “preserve the vibrant and competitive free market that presently exists for the Internet and other interactive computer services, unfettered by Federal or State regulation,” says the EFF, adding:
Section 230’s blanket protection of sites such as Wikipedia doesn’t mean alleged online defamation can’t be challenged in court, says the foundation, adding:
Instead, “the law requires that litigants direct their efforts at the speakers themselves and not the forums where statements were made.”
Bauer also features on the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writer’s Association “official list of the 20 worst literary agents“.
“This is my response to an urgent call to arms across the net and blogosphere regarding Barbara Bauer, Ph.D. the literary agent and the (very temporary) downing of AbsoluteWrite.com,” says the SFWA post.
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.Stumble It!
EFF – EFF and Sheppard Mullin Defend Wikipedia in Defamation Case, May 2, 2008
SFWA post – Barbara Bauer Literary Agency, Inc: the scam, and the biggest mistake of her career, May 6, 2007
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