Marshall wrote:

Re the first amendment, and the authors failure to edit his own article, etc. The Wikipedia project itself bears some responsibility here. If you are going to provide a soapbox for folks to stand on and exercise their first amendment rights, you are in part responsible for what

they say.

Pawel responded:

...

Many Wikipedians live in countries with no "first amendment".

And that, we all agree, is a shame. Free speech should be protected everywhere, period. But it also needs to be used responsibly everywhere, period.

So the point is the same: if you are going broadcast someone's speech (free or not), you are in part responsible for what they say. I'm not a lawyer, but Wikipedia *seems* to be acting as a publisher and perhaps editor. What will Wikipedia (or the Wikimedia Foundation) do if it is sued for libel? Could this happen?

All the Best,

Marshall Poe The Atlantic Monthly www.memorywiki.org