[Foundation-l] Wikinews - not so much a state of the wiki

[Andrew Whitworth]

> That would suggest that, say, The New York Times would not be liable
> for libel in any article on their website submitted electronically by
> a member of the public. That's a hell of an interpretation. If it's
> correct, then it's excellent for us. Not so great for anyone libelled
> about by an anonymous contributor using a public computer whose
> reputation is ruined by people trusting the reputability of The New
> York Times.

The courts have already ruled that what an anonymous contributors
posts to an online message board is not the responsibility of the
owners of that message board. An online version of the New York Times,
if it's open for anonymous submissions, would fall under the same
category.

Now, the New York Times paper, the printed edition, is not open for
anonymous editing, and so is probably held to different standards.

--Andrew Whitworth