Stats: Traditional Journalists vs Online Journalists

This is something of a postscript to yesterday’s piece, New Jersey court says blogger is not a journalist … something I remembered reading and finally re-discovered online that adds a bit to the discussion.

Earlier this year, PRWeek and PRNewswire conducted a study of 3,000+ “traditional and non-traditional media” and PR practicioners in the U.S. and Canada. Some of the survey questions focused on this dichotomy (which I hope will go away someday) over who’s a journalist and who’s a blogger. Let me highlight below some of the study’s findings:

The majority of bloggers now view themselves as journalists – 52%. This is a marked increase from 2009 when just one in three had the same opinion. Yet, despite viewing themselves as professional, only 20% derive the majority of their income from their blog work; a 4% increase from 2009.
…a striking change occurred in the second-most selected measure of success: “Break news and chronicle events as they happen.” Selected by 20% of respondents, the result was significantly greater than 2009 (5%) which indicates a growing premium on being first with news, likely driven by the growth of online reporting and the 24/7 news cycle.

There are also some interesting numbers about the use of social networking/media sites as research sources. Bloggers and online journalists do so a lot more frequently than traditional media reporters. Here’s a chart that I made to collect the various survey stats.

As you can see, bloggers and online journalists use blogs and Twitter for research a lot more often than newspaper and magazine reporters do.

So, while I’m all in favor of breaking down the barrier that seems to still exist between whether bloggers are journalists in the so-called traditional sense, this study suggests there are definitely differences in how these groups go about their work.

April 27, 2010 | Filed Under Industry, Legal Issues | 1 Comment

New Jersey court says blogger is not a journalist

Here’s one to bookmark for the legal files: A New Jersey court has ruled that a blogger who was sued for defamation is not a journalist and not protected by the state’s “shield law.” Here’s the crux of the story from the Newark Star-Ledger:

In a decision that attempts to better define who is protected by New Jersey’s shield law, the court said Shellee Hale’s writings about Too Much Media LLC, which supplies software to online pornography websites, amounted to nothing more than a letter-to-the-editor in a newspaper.

Hale, a former Microsoft employee and a mother of five from Washington state, contended she was acting as a journalist when she posted comments to a message board about a security breach at TMM and allegations that its owners had threatened her. She argued the postings were part of her research into a larger story about the online pornography industry.

The wording of that is actually a bit confusing; but later in the article there’s some clarity. The defendant first posted comments on a message board to research and get information that she planned to later post on her own site. The article paraphrases the judge’s decision this way:

Locascio ruled Hale, who said she intended to publish her findings on her own website, was not a member of the news media because she was not affiliated with a media organization and had not performed roles of a journalist, such as fact-checking.

That first part is quite troublesome: You’re not a journalist if you’re not affiliated with a media organization? Someone needs to define “media organization” and fast, I’d say.

April 26, 2010 | Filed Under Legal Issues | 4 Comments

Boston-area Blogger Threatened by Town Officials

The elected leaders of Southborough, Massachusetts, are up in arms over comments left on Susan Fitzgerald’s hyperlocal blog, MySouthborough.com. How up in arms? Well, according to the local paper, one “selectman” (similar to a councilperson, I gather) has contacted the state attorney general’s office for legal advice.

This all dates back to last summer, when someone using the name “Marty” left comments on MySouthborough.com (I believe in this post) that were critical of how the town was conducting its search for a new police chief. The town’s lawyer sent Susan a letter saying they “expect” her to reveal Marty’s identity. In the newspaper article, Selectman Sal Giorlandino had this to say about the person leaving the comments:

“What the individual does not appreciate is that one day he will have to answer in a legal forum and it will have financial consequences,” he said. “I’m not looking to get wealthy, I’m looking to make a statement. This is about promoting civil discourse and this is not the way to behave.”

For her part, Susan wrote a blog post on Friday saying, “I have not revealed the identity of any of the commenters on this blog, nor do I intend to.”

My Thoughts

I’m obviously not a lawyer, but the newspaper article does mention recent court cases that would appear to protect Susan and the commenter on her blog. More than that, though, is the bigger picture:

As hyperlocal blogging/news grows, we’ll continue to see episodes like this — and similar things — that epitomize a growing friction between new forms of journalism and conversation, and local agencies that aren’t used to them.

It wasn’t too long ago that I wrote about the UK blogger who was kicked out of court and an Oregon blogger who also faced a legal threat. Get ready for more of this going forward. (In fact, I’ve decided to start a legal issues category here on Hyperlocal Blogger.)

I’m reminded of Dan Slee’s blog post from last year that talked about the relationship between local bloggers and local government. Though Dan is UK-based, what he writes rings true for local bloggers anywhere, I’d bet.

March 22, 2010 | Filed Under Legal Issues | 3 Comments

Do Bloggers Deserve Press Credentials?

Following quickly on the heels of the UK episode in which a blogger was kicked out of court comes the case of Jay Liner and his Baltimore Organ local blog/site. As the Maryland Daily Record reports, Liner is suing the state governor’s office for denying him a press credential to report on state government news.

Liner has no desire to become a trailblazer in the blogosphere, but he acknowledges the lawsuit reflects how the Internet has forever changed the way people consume news.

“This is the modern delivery system,” he said. “Why should this be treated differently?”

It’s a question government officials, media lawyers and even reporters themselves struggle to answer.

To be frank, the article itself wanders and is a bit of a mess, but this is a legitimate issue for local bloggers, and something we should all be paying attention to – but especially those of you who are news bloggers in your hometown.

My take: Local governments (and state governments, for that matter) need to wake up to the realities of modern journalism and reconsider their requirements for defining who is and isn’t a reporter.

(Found this via MediaGazer)

March 8, 2010 | Filed Under Industry, Legal Issues | 8 Comments

UK blogger kicked out of court; NUJ fights back

This is a slap in the face to citizen journalists and local bloggers everywhere: In the UK, a local news blogger was kicked out of coroner’s court this past week, with the coroner saying the blogger wasn’t allowed to attend either as a journalist or as a regular citizen. Meanwhile, the local newspaper reporter was allowed to stay inside.

The blogger, Simon Perry of the Ventnor Blog, has been blogging for four years and is a 9-year member of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ). Now, the NUJ is speaking up on Perry’s behalf. You can get the whole story from these two posts on Journalism.co.uk:

February 27, 2010 | Filed Under Legal Issues | 2 Comments

Legal Resources for Bloggers

It was just a month ago that Dan Slee made this prediction about bloggers and the law:

“At some point I’m convinced someone will lose their house in the not too distant future over an internet blog post. It’s potentially that serious.”

With that in mind, I’m compiling this list of Legal Resources for Bloggers. My hope is that it’ll be a living document, and I’ll gladly update this with new links as I discover them, or as you send them to me. (Use the contact form or just leave a comment below.) I also hope this is beneficial for all bloggers, not just our hyperlocal crowd.

Legal Resources for U.S. Bloggers

EFF: Blogger’s Legal Guide
Based on my somewhat limited research, this is the pre-eminent resource for bloggers about the law. Lots of read and research.

Citizen Media Law Project (CMLP)
Its mission is “to provide legal assistance, education, and resources for individuals and organizations involved in online and citizen media.” It offers a searchable legal guide.

Online Media Legal Network
A project of the CMLP (above), it “connects lawyers from across the country with online journalists and digital media creators who need legal help.” Participating lawyers will “provide qualifying online publishers with pro bono and reduced fee legal assistance.”

Media Bloggers Association (MBA)
Founded in 2004 by several well-known bloggers. Since its creation, the MBA “has provided a wide range of legal support services to hundreds of bloggers facing legal threats related to their blogs.”

Center for Internet and Society (CIS)
Information resource from Stanford University

CyberSLAPP.org
Created by “a coalition of civil liberties and privacy groups (listed below) who have come together to protect the right to speak freely and anonymously on the internet.”

Media Law Resource Center (MLRC)
The MLRC is a non-profit that was formed “to monitor developments and promote First Amendment rights in the libel, privacy and related legal fields.” See below for related links.

MLRC: Libel and Related Lawsuits Against Bloggers
The MLRC offers a list of cases (with links) in which bloggers have been sued.

MLRC: Legal Actions Against Bloggers
This is a blog from the MLRC that seems to serve the same purpose as the link above. It may be a replacement for that link.

Chilling Effects
A project that “aims to help you understand the protections that the First Amendment and intellectual property laws give to your online activities.”

100 Free DIY Legal Resources on the Web
A big list of links.

Legal Resources for U.K. Bloggers

U.K. bloggers are invited to send in links for this section. For now, I’ll link to a few blog posts I’ve found that address legal issues for bloggers.

Talk About Local: Libel, defamation – keeping it legal

Philip John: Getting serious about hyperlocal, part 1: Legal issues and MA Online Journalism: Law for bloggers and journalists with Paul Bradshaw

Dan Slee: BE LEGAL: Six things a hyperlocal blogger really should know about the law

Paul Bradshaw: Presentation: Law for bloggers and journalists (UK)