In something of a round-up story about bloggers and courts, the Washington Post today discusses bloggers as journalists, the possibility of liable suits against bloggers and other matters. The lede for the article reports a first, as bloggers will have two reserved seats at the Libby trial that starts next week:
When the trial of Vice President Cheney’s former chief of staff on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice opens next week, scores of journalists are expected to throng the federal courtroom in Washington, far too many for the 100 seats set aside for the media.But for the first time in a federal court, two of these seats will be reserved for bloggers. After two years of negotiations with judicial officials across the country, the Media Bloggers Association, a nonpartisan group with about 1,000 members working to extend the powers of the press to bloggers, has won credentials to rotate among his members. The trial of I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, the highest-ranking Bush administration official to face criminal charges, could “catalyze” the association’s efforts to win respect and access for bloggers in federal and state courthouses, said Robert Cox, the association’s president.
Comments
@ 12:52
I have been made aware that Robert Cox is planning to arrange a seat at the Libby trial for one of his bloggers - a Lance Dutson of
HTTP://mainewebreport.com
I have been following Mr Dutson’s blog for some time, and have come to find that most of his accusations are blatantly untrue - untruths about which he has repeatedly been made aware. He has even admitted to knowing this a few times, but these admissions eventually disappear… and off he goes again…
Robert Cox informs me and others that he has never even read Dutson’s blog. I find this, if true, to be an act of extreme negligience.
If you do read Dutson’s blog, you will see that the headlines are never corroborated by fact, but rather, the links point only to more of his own accusations, or even to documents which actually CONTRADICT his accusations.
Apparently, people only read the headlines. And they believe them.
He appears to get the most gratification out of making searingly vicious personal attacks on total strangers whom he somehow perceives as being enemies.
He behaves as a web troll, and nothing else but. I find it very difficult to believe that anyone would assign a seat at the Libby trial, and its resultant journalistic credibility, to someone without ever having checked his credentials.
Web trolls should be eliminated - not elevated.
@ 19:23
I must make a small correction - as the concerned citizen. Cox did not read the blog after May of 2006, more than 3/4 of the material.
I have emails proving this on my site- (click my name)
Since that time, Cox has twice threatened me for exercising my own First Amendment rights.
(There are emails proving some of this as well.)
Thank you very much for your time.
Linda Hutchins