Whether you’re a newly minted blogger or a relative old-timer, you’ve been seeing more and more stories pop up every day about bloggers getting in trouble for what they post.
Like all journalists and publishers, bloggers sometimes publish information that other people don’t want published. You might, for example, publish something that someone considers defamatory, republish an AP news story that’s under copyright, or write a lengthy piece detailing the alleged crimes of a candidate for public office.
The difference between you and the reporter at your local newspaper is that in many cases, you may not have the benefit of training or resources to help you determine whether what you’re doing is legal. And on top of that, sometimes knowing the law doesn’t help – in many cases it was written for traditional journalists, and the courts haven’t yet decided how it applies to bloggers.
But here’s the important part: None of this should stop you from blogging. Freedom of speech is the foundation of a functioning democracy, and Internet bullies shouldn’t use the law to stifle legitimate free expression. That’s why EFF created this guide, compiling a number of FAQs designed to help you understand your rights and, if necessary, defend your freedom.
Nick Hornby takes on challenging subject matter in new book
“A Long Way Down” (Riverhead) puts misery front and center. It starts with an unusual premise for a comic novel: four people meet atop a tall London apartment building on New Year’s Eve, all there to kill themselves.
Instead they distract one another and set up an impromptu support network to keep each other from committing suicide.
(I’m an Amazon associate now. Check it :>)
Apple’s Jobs Tells Graduates About Dropout (via Drudge)
Apple Computer Inc.’s CEO Steve Jobs told Stanford University graduates Sunday that dropping out of college was one of the best decisions he ever made because it forced him to be innovative – even when it came to finding enough money for dinner.
Metaphor (an awesome ad for Viagra in the Middle East, via Global Voices Online)
Spielberg: No movie yet for Japan PM despite looks
“Your prime minister has movie star good looks,” Spielberg told reporters after meeting Koizumi for a chat about cinema.
But asked whether Koizumi might star in a future Spielberg movie, he replied: “You know, I would hate to take him away from you and bring him to Hollywood.
“Doesn’t he do better work here in Japan?”
Koizumi, one of Japan’s most media savvy leaders, has a penchant for photo ops with celebrities. In March, he turned a chat with actor Richard Gere into an impromptu dance session, and he once crooned an Elvis Presley tune with Cruise.
And remember, Koizumi was going to be a rock-n-roll singer. (I was searching for where I linked an article about that, but I can’t find the reference ;P I did, however, come across a CNN piece about how much he loves Elvis.)
Yeesh, 13 road construction projects in Augusta this summer, including on Bobby Jones. Looking forward to dealing with that, with no air conditioning in my car…oh yes. :P
Japanese Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (whew) Minister Nariaki Nakayama made a faux pas concerning comfort women, and then passed it off as an issue of semantics. Read about it here and here.
Company drops commercial featuring chimpanzee mimicking black actors
Err.
In response to cries of racism, cosmetics maker Mandom Corp. has pulled TV and magazine advertisements featuring a chimpanzee in dreadlocks and Rastafarian clothing pretending to be a black person.
In the commercial, several black actors use a cleaning product to wipe the sweat from their faces. The chimpanzee, dressed in a costume of gold, red and green, imitates their movements.
“We thought it would be a good scene to have a chimpanzee in a party,” a company spokesman said. “We never intended it to be prejudiced, but we concluded that the ad would be taboo based on an international point of view.”
Yeah, good job, guys…
Drop in female hormones attributed to hair loss in women
Badly worded headline! They meant to say “Hair loss in women attributed to drop in female hormones”, or “Drop in female hormones can cause hair loss in women”. The only reason I clicked on the link was to see if they really made that mistake!
The mechanisms that cause thinning of hair are different for men and women, with a reduction in women’s hormones during menopause a major cause of female hair loss, cosmetics and toiletries manufacturer Lion Corp. has found.
A team of researchers from the company confirmed in tests that female hormones were able to increase levels of a hair growth substance produced in hair papilla cells.
You see?!?!?