The new disruptor in technology and academia has been ChatGPT and similar AI. The programs provide answers to any question asked by users and as new models have come out, they have become more accurate. As a user, ChatGPT provides a one-stop solution to answers as opposed to pouring through links on the Google or… Read more »
Clark Kent Problem Revisited
Applying only the Restatement (Second) of Torts (excerpted in the text), prior to the passage of Section 230. A reporter, Clark Kent, writes a false and injurious article accusing businessman Lex Luthor of involvement in criminal activity. The Daily Planet newspaper prints the article on its front page. Olsen Newsstands sells the papers to the… Read more »
Interpreting Section 230
Interpreting Section 230: Before you read further, what do you think Section 230 means? What kinds of entities qualify for the immunity, from what kinds of liability, and under what circumstances? Does it adopt the Restatement’s rules, or change them? Section 230 means that interactive websites can not be held liable for third party content…. Read more »
Zeran Case
Zeran is one of the most important texts in all of Internet law. It rewards careful reading. State the post-Zeran rule of Section 230 in your own words, in one sentence. Explain the distinction between “publisher” and “distributor” liability at common law. Then explain Zeran’s holding in terms of these categories. Now test yourself: After… Read more »
Clark Kent Problem
A reporter, Clark Kent, writes a false and injurious article accusing businessman Lex Luthor of involvement in criminal activity. The Daily Planet newspaper prints the article on its front page. Olsen Newsstands sells the papers to the public. Slow Lane Coffee has several copies set out for its patrons. At common law, which of them… Read more »
Media Reflection
The internet is famously capable of behaving like all sorts of different media: you can get movies, television, radio, newspapers, magazines, party invitations, and personal letters online. Does Twitter seem more like a letter, a telephone conversation, a newspaper, a public speech, or a television broadcast? What about email? The Web? Twitter seems more like… Read more »
Wikipedia and The New Yorker
The Editor’s Note at the end of the article updates the facts to show that Essjay, a Wikipedia site administrator and contributor, was actually a twenty-four year old and holds no advanced degrees, and he has never taught. However, originally, the article stated that he was “a tenured professor of religion at a private university”… Read more »
The Friday Problem
Rebecca Black’s music video for “Friday” has been viewed over 120 million times on YouTube. But in June 2011, the official version of the video was removed from YouTube. Fans promptly rushed in to fill the gap. One of them, with a username of PinkDressGirl, uploaded a copy to YouTube, describing it as “Friday (Totally… Read more »
Choose Your Adventure: Amazon MP3s
In 2012, the British tabloid The Sun (falsely) reported that actor Bruce Willis was planning to sue to establish his right to give his MP3 collection to his daughters in his will. If Bruce Willis buys a CD from Amazon, can he give it to his daughter Rumer? What if he rips the CD to… Read more »
Morel v. AFP
Photographer Daniel Morel uploaded to Twitpic his photographs of the devastation in Haiti following the January 2010 earthquake. Agence France-Presse (AFP), a news agency, distributed copies of the photographs to CBS, CNN, and other news outlets. Morel claims copyright infringement; AFP’s defense is that Morel’s act of uploading the photographs resulted in a license that… Read more »