If this guy wasn't posting under his real name, it seems the damage to his reputation wasn't done until he filed a frivolous lawsuit and his name became public.
LOL and WoW... :D
Someone needs to get a life. A real life life.
One, if AOL moderates its chat rooms, then it is by definition a 'publisher'. By allowing some content and not others it is setting itself up as an arbiter, 'blessing' some material.
Second, AOL has the power to unplug any of its subscribers and thus has an obligation to all of its members.
I'm not so sure that AOL's user agreement is sufficient to cover its liability
I fail to see how internet chat humiliation differs from real life humiliation in, say, a bar.
If I was in a bar, I could tease anyone I want. The bar is not responsible for it.
There is no law saying you have the right to not be offended or humiliated.
This case should be thrown out of court.
Good thing no teasing ever goes on around here.
doude~~~~~~~ 1 OWN J00!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1 whAt ever ahpepnedd to just hitting a7t f4???????? ololololololol....
I have now "heard it all".
It's AOL's fault I have no life, no love, no money, no self esteem. /sarcasm
But I might also add, in the interim, I've gotten a real life, and I like it much better.
Speaking of chat rooms...I love to get on the discussion boards every once in a while on the Yahoo news articles and read how many idiots troll there. The article could be about taking vitamin C and they turn it into a sexual perverted thing or a Bush bashing thread. What losers....it always makes me feel good that I'm on the right side after reading the crap those losers put out there.
I hope this guy wins big.
The plaintiff, George Gillespie of Medina County, Ohio, is suing America Online for allegedly failing to do anything about the abuse he endured in the chat room, and the two chat room participants who allegedly caused him emotional distress by teasing him. Gillespie v. America Online, No. 05CIV1255 (Medina Co., Ohio, Ct. C.P.).
Internet For Dummies alert!
Heh-heh! FLAME THE NOOB!!!!
You're finding all sorts of good stuff this morning, BM. Walgreens, Spanish-speaking, this. I miss any?
If he thought that the teasing from two people was humiliating, he has opened a whole new can of worms for himself now.
From what I see of this, he deserves any additional humiliation he receives.
Also, wannabe freepers be warned: Freeping is a full contact sport here....no blood, no foul.
...and just yesterday, another lawsuit has emerged challenging bloggers this time from a former Clinton staffer: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1552346/posts
It seems that legal pressures are being brought to bear on internet freedoms...
TORT REFORM NOW! ! !
My tag line says it all..........
Up until about 18 months ago, I was an AOL political chatroom moderator.
(insert various appalled comments here)
Some of the behavior in the chatrooms was, to put it mildly, appalling. Shortly before all moderators were put out to pasture, AOL "dumbed down" the standards in the chat to an "everything goes" policy. Short of sexually explicit words and obvious personal threats you could say anything you wanted. AOL's philosophy was "individuals are responsible for their own chat" and were expected to use the Ignore tool, etc. Nobody did, of course.
I'm surprised this lawsuit didn't happen sooner. Things got uglier than you would believe and make both FR AND DU (not that I'm putting them in the same class) look like a ladies' Bible retreat.
There are better cases out there than the one posted, of that I'm sure. I should know, I was the victim of one myself.
Oh, I have since done the Donald to AOL. "You're FIRED!"