In January, Canadian-born model Liskula Cohen filed a lawsuit against Google demanding to know the identity of a blogger who wrote defamatory content about her. At the time, many blogs reporting on the story assumed that, despite the obviously unsavory content of the blog, Cohen would never get the chance to find out who called her a “psychotic, lying, whoring, still going to clubs at her age, skank” because of Google’s considerable legal tools. Turns out, they were wrong.
According to Mashable and the Huffington Post, among many other sources, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Joan Madden has ruled in favor of Cohen saying that because “the thrust of the blog is that [Cohen] is a sexually promiscuous woman,” the content is defamatory and Cohen has the right to know who was writing about her. In other words, Google must back down and reveal the identity of the blogger so that Cohen can move forward and file a lawsuit against the individual.
While it may seem obvious that the content was defamatory to a layperson, there were a number of factors working against Cohen in this case. First, calling someone a “skank,” while certainly distasteful, is not automatically considered slander. Technically, it is an opinion. By attaching the adjectives “lying” and “whoring,” however, the blogger crossed a line into criticizing Cohen’s sexual conduct (something which has traditionally drawn the ire of the courts). Second, as a model, Cohen can be considered something of a public figure. Traditionally, public figures are not afforded the same level of protection against slander as private individuals.
Does this ruling mean the end of anonymous bashing online? Probably not. However, considering the long odds Cohen faced in this case, Judge Madden’s affirmative ruling could play an important part in the future of Internet privacy and defamation law. At the very least, the ruling should encourage individuals to use better judgment about what they post online. As this story develops, Reputation.com will continue to provide coverage and analysis of the decision. For the full text of the court ruling, follow this link.
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[...] ← Model Wins Defamation Suit, Google Forced to Reveal Anonymous Blogger [...]
[...] months ago, New York model Liskula Cohen made headlines when she won a lawsuit against Google, compelling the company to reveal the identity of the anonymous blogger that had called her a [...]
[...] months ago, New York model Liskula Cohen made headlines when she won a lawsuit against Google, compelling the company to reveal the identity of the anonymous blogger that had called her a [...]
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