Watch what you blog
Perhaps many of you read about this teacher who was arrested for a comment he made anonymously on a blog about the Columbine killings. Please don't come arrest me; I am not condoning what he did or wrote. However, it has gotten me thinking about the adage that, "On the Internet no one knows you're a dog." They may not know that you are a dog, but they do know how to get to you through your IP address. Is it illegal to be sarcastic or facetious in a post that a person makes on a blog? Do authorities track down the IP addresses and go after people who make violent threats on blogs to people of color or to other groups who may be victimized?
I am wondering about the ramifications of this for the teacher's job as well as his legal issues. Are we who use Web 2.0 and all the social networking opportunities responsible for what we post or also for what others post on our blogs, facebook pages, etc? What are the laws about this? How are we to use these technologies if we are constantly in fear?
In the article above, the police captain is quoted as saying "What happens when you say 'bomb' in an airport? That's free speech, isn't it?" he said. "And people are taken into custody for that all the time." This makes me wonder though about the perception of who can actually do harm. I cannot help but recall the many many many times that I have heard people make a comment along the lines of, "Things would just be better if we [presumable the US] bombed [a certain part of the world] and then just started over." I do not believe this and I have never said this. I have, unfortunately, heard many people express this sentiment dating back to my childhood. Why is this teacher arrested for making a statement (sarcastic, facetious, or otherwise) about Columbine and others make comments like what I wrote above and there are no consequences? I am not taking sides on this, but pointing out where and how we may need to be careful in our blog posts.
What do you think about this? Are blog posts more likely to get us "in trouble" because they are there in writing? Is there room in contemporary society in the US for this type of dialogue and discourse? Should we save our unpopular comments for oral conversations only? Do you think I'll get in trouble for writing this?
Comments
I think there's a difference between participatory and democratic.
More later...
Posted by: katie | December 6, 2007 5:51 PM
Maybe it's me and the way that I think of blogging. For me, this is a place to get my idas out in a raw state. I don't edit what I write in the way that I do for a "real" paper publication. Perhaps I need to rethink how and what I blog. But, the reason that I like to blog is that I can put out these raw ideas and get some feedback. Since blogs are searchable, it makes other concerns.
Posted by: Melanie | December 10, 2007 3:48 PM
Just before our Christmas break I gave my classes a lesson on online etiquette and the correct use of the internet. One of the NetSmartz charters is called "Hot Head" and it uses rude or mean language on the internet.
Unfortunately Mr. Buss choose the wrong format to use sarcasm and questionable humor. I'm sure that could have gotten his point across without mean or rude language but I guess that like the teachers he was speaking about he was just too lazy.
Posted by: Chan Bliss | December 27, 2007 9:49 PM
Recently on NPR I heard about a child who committed suicide due to MySpace bullying. The parent of another child got online pretending to be a 16 year old boy and told her the world would be better off without her.
Now they are trying to enact legislation against online bullying.
Posted by: Laura | January 16, 2008 5:49 PM
That's a pretty good article for a free website
Posted by: Adam Barger | November 11, 2008 10:45 PM