Bart Lazar Quoted in TechNewsWorld and E-Commerce Times
"Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf (Huntress)?"

Bart Lazar was quoted in the article, "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf (Huntress)?," which appeared July 20, 2009 in TechNewsWorld and July 21, 2009 in E-Commerce Times. The article discussed some of the difficulties associated with winning libel cases against bloggers, as the law requires proof that any false or damaging statements were made with deliberate malice. The article also outlined certain limitations in terms of what the law permits, for instance, one may be held liable if they maliciously or carelessly state a falsehood that is damaging. According to the article, however, it is not illegal to publicize rumors as long as statements are couched with appropriate qualifiers such as "alleged," "reportedly," etc., or clearly are written as opinions.

The article mentioned that, ever since the birth of Web 2.0, questions about what it is permissible to say and do online continue to mount as individuals and companies sue or threaten legal action in an effort to tamp down negative gossip, even though they likely do not stand a chance to win. Bart noted, "In general, most defamation cases brought against bloggers have not been successful, because the standard of libel is very difficult to meet." The article also noted that essentially the law requires that one must prove that the person knowingly stated a falsehood. Bart further explained, "In fact, the standard of libel is so hard to meet here that something called libel tourism has started, where lawsuits are brought overseas for blog/Internet libel cases."