From a legal standpoint, this is simply fascinating. A UK Premier League footballer is suing Twitter for slander. His argument? That users have been reporting slanderous and false accusations about him.
Which brings up the questions – is Twitter a publication? And are we all journalists? After all, if a prominent London newspaper wrote a slanderous article, the person in question would definitely have a case.
Is this the same situation? It’s fascinating. Regardless of whether the user truly defamed the person or was telling the truth, they certainly believed they were reporting under some guise of anonymity. But, of course they’re not. They’re responsible for their actions. And in most countries, free speech laws don’t protect yelling fire in a movie theater when there isn’t one, or slander. Can you yell fire via social media? Can you slander?