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---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Wikileaks Press Release press@wikileaks.org Date: Sat, May 17, 2008 at 2:18 PM Subject: [WL-News] Wikimedia Foundation in danger of losing immunity under the Communications Decency Act To: newsmarkie@gmail.com Cc: Wikileaks News Releases news@lists.sunshinepress.org

Wikileaks Press Release Sat May 17 14:09:38 GMT 2008

Wikileaks has revealed that the Wikimedia Foundation Board (which legally controls Wikipedia.org and Wikinews.org) has killed off a Wikinews report into the Barabara Bauer vs. Wikimedia Foundation case.

Wikinews.org is a collaborative general news site that often produces quality original reportage and is meant to be editorially independent from the WMF.

The WMF board also suppressed, prior to publication, a Wikinews investigation into child and other pornography on Wikipedia, which was subsequently and independently covered by Valley Wag and other media outlets this week.

The US Communications Deceny Act (CDA) section 230 grants providers of internet services (such as the Wikipedia and Wikinews) immunity from legal action related to their user generated content provided they do not exercise pre-publication control.

In deleting articles articles unfavourable to the WMF prior to publication, Wikileaks states that the WMF control of Wikinews not only appears to lack journalistic integrity but that "The Wikimedia Foundation may have set a dangerous precedent that could see it lose its CDA section 230 immunity."

The EFF and Sheppard Mullin are using CDA section 230 as the primary defense of the WMF in the Barbara Bauer defamation case.

WikiLeaks is an international union of organizations and individuals and is unrelated to the WMF.

Links:

* http://wikileaks.org/wiki/Wikinews_suppressed_article_on_Barbara_Bauer_vs._W... * http://wikileaks.org/wiki/Wikinews_suppressed_Wikipedia_pornography_investig... * EFF and Sheppard Mullin Defend Wikipedia in Defamation Case http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2008/05/02 _______________________________________________ News mailing list News@lists.sunshinepress.org https://lists.wikileaks.org/mailman/listinfo/news http://wikileaks.be/wiki/Contact