I'm sort of here. Still dealing with stuff, but I was floored today by the idiocy of the legal system. I spent the afternoon when I got home reading about the Trial of the Missing Pants. (That sounds like a Nancy Drew mystery.) I love that the Washington Post liveblogged this mind-blowing event.
Then there's this lawsuit:
The president of Steelback Brewery, based in Tiverton, Ont., has filed a $2-million lawsuit against an Ottawa-based blogger he claims repeatedly libeled him on his popular sports website. Filed late last week in court in Newmarket, Ont., Frank D’Angelo alleges Neate Sager damaged his reputation and his image in comments posted on Sager’s blog between August, 2006 and January of this year.
In his statement of claim, D’Angelo argues that Sager’s comments—which described D’Angelo as a “huckster” and a “two-bit shyster”—are derogatory in that they paint a picture of him as a “peddler,” a “con man,” and an “irritant.” The claim also says Sager called D’Angelo a “professional nuisance” and described his interest in acquiring the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins franchise as a “charade.”
And this guy wants to own a professional sports team? Can you imagine if Dan Snyder or Peter Angelos shared this level of outrage? I'd love to be on their legal teams; maybe then I could afford decent seats in the Nats' new stadium.
The very patient Mr. Sager recently posted a blog entry about the situation. The comments were mostly supportive, as they should be. However, I found this one interesting, from "Anonymous," of course:
I don't like D'Angelo either, but I like even less people who disregard the consequences of what they write. It's called journalistic responsibility. There's laws that protect against those who slander and libel, as some have discovered the hard way. That's when the tough talk ends, and the big talker tries to appease, backpeddle and apologize without losing face or appearing too much like the pant-soiling chickenschitt he has been reduced to.
How is it that bloggers aren't considered journalists when they apply for press credentials, but suddenly they're journalists when they write blog entries? Oh, the world of double standards!
Also, how exactly this is slander and/or libel? It's not like Neate's blog posts said anything particularly malicious or spiteful, and the posts certainly didn't "severely damage [D'Angelo's] credit, character, and reputation;" the reasonable person could argue that D'Angelo did that himself through the filing of the lawsuit and other actions.
In one post, Neate refers to D'Angelo as a "publicity monger." An Ottawa Citizen article last year referred to D'Angelo as "flamboyant" and that he's earned "the publicity he unabashedly seeks." But I haven't heard of any lawsuits against the Ottawa Citizen. How is Neate's comment different or worse than the Citizen's? Yes, that's only one example, but Neate's comments are not unique. In fact, I'm sure many others have said far worse about D'Angelo.
Anyway, I hope all bloggers are following this, even though it's happening in Canada. If a $54 million lawsuit can go to trial because the guy lost his pants, who's to say that lawsuits against bloggers for "derogatory comments" can't happen here? So many questions, so little time.
