When I first heard that a U.S. court ruling had forced Google to reveal the identity of an anonymous blogger to the aggrieved party that blogger had dissed – the now famous “skankblogger” case – I was thrilled.
I’m constantly on the receiving end of some very nasty trash talk, courtesy of anonymous bloggers and commenters, and outraged by it. Why should online commentators get away with saying whatever they feel like without being made accountable, while those of us who use a byline to offer unpopular opinions have to take the heat?
But now that my heart rate has returned to normal, I realize that giving away the identity of Rosemary Port to Liskula Cohen, whom Port called a skank and a ‘ho (is that all? I ask), sets a really bad precedent.
What about all those people who tipped us on George Bush’s rendition policies and newfangled torture techniques? No way they want to use their own names to discuss that kind of material. Governments have all kinds of ways to pressure people – think tax audits – to keep their mouths shut.
And what about all those whistle blowers that can be silenced if litigious individuals and corporations find out who’s giving out the goods?
In both these cases, the blogger has much less power and money than the institutions being talked about and the crucial commentary could be shut down in a heartbeat.
Just as Cohen insisted that Port’s invective could have a negative impact on her modelling career (and, by the way, since when have models been the paragons of virtue?), corporations could argue that bloggers are making it difficult to do business. And governments might weigh in with the argument that pointed criticism is making it difficult to govern.
As a perpetual target myself, I’m hoping that users will adjust to online excess and learn which comments to take seriously and which to reject.
Frankly, except for whistle blowers and those offering scandalous tidbits probing government incompetence or corruption, I assume anonymous bloggers and commentators either have an axe to grind or are simply craven cowards. You should, too.[rssbreak]
