Dear Politician Mike Doogan:
I was going to start an anonymous blog about issues relating to mental health, parenting, and politics. But now I see my concerns about being outed and therefore at risk to lose my job, relationships, and my good standing in my community are well-founded.
Anonymity is a double-edged sword. Astro-turfing is unethical. Trying to discuss high-risk issues while wearing a scarf to protect my identity is not. By publicizing the name of the AK Mudflats author, you have guaranteed this woman will suffer. You had the legitimacy and sanctioning of the Anchorate Daily News to share your opinions and get paid to do it. You made that contract with the public from a position of privilege and safety. Many of us don’t enjoy those same luxuries.
I could lose my job for writing about volatile issues. So, I stay silent as do so many others. AK Mudlflats just didn’t want to be a target in a conservative, let’s-throw-water-on-war-protesting-old-ladies-in-Soldotna world. Congratulations. What a legacy you leave. Creating fear for those who would share an opinion in an environment guaranteed to be hostile.
Should a woman protesting the Taliban be forced to put her face, name, and phone number on her subversive blog? I guess that would be ethical and prove she wasn’t an astro-turfing minion. But then, the debate would be short-lived, as she would be killed by her family in the most brutal, incomprehensible way possible.
Your morals are self-serving and your perspective narcissistic. Your ethics are fluid according to your politics of the moment.
Anonymous voices of opposition save lives and encourage discussion. It is one of the most democratic (and safe) ways of overturning cruelty and injustice. Thanks for shutting the door. I am sure our own Alaskan politico-jihadists who feel that targeting a dissenting opinion with prejudice is a God-given right are very happy with your point of view.
Anonymous – Not anymore. And I am sure [this email] will come back to haunt me. Make sure you save all these emails and keep a log of who to attack next.
One of my pet peeves is when a private citizen claims to "know" things that "others" may not have access to, intimating the access is special and privileged, and yet expects those "others" to refrain from inquiring as to their qualifications; especially if the information these people claim to have access to and are propagating is false, misleading and libelous.
ReplyDeleteThere IS a Constitutional right to anonymity; but it's a little fuzzy when the anonymous party is spreading lies. There is also no law that says you can't out someone on the net, unless you obtain the information regarding their identity by illegal means. If you already know who "Joe" is, you can shout it from the virtual roof-top. And evidently there is no law against "guessing" bloggers' identities.
I think there is a larger question here. The Internet is full of "experts" who really aren't. And those "experts" are often crossing the line of "opinion" and approaching the line of "libel". Some are running right up to that libel line and stopping, others are continually sticking their toes of ignorance over that line.
Bloggers are not journalists protecting a “source” and needing a "shield law". Blogging is not “reporting”; no matter how many Bloggers pretend they are reporters.
(Is "muckraking" reporting? I'm not sure. Look at the scumbag National Enquirer -- they have broken quite a few big political stories -- see the John Edwards' love-child fiasco.)
When a Blogger - and many do - crosses the line from opinion to stating supposed fact based on claims of privileged information, the reality is that the Blogger has lost any expectation of keeping their identity secret.
If you claim special access, privilege and expertise not available to the general public, expect to get outed. If you go after somebody -- this is teh internetz, remember -- especially if you claim insider information, you should expect them to fire back. Don't get all uptight and offended when they call you out. Expect it.
If you cross the line from Opining to Muckraking (especially if your screen name is "Muckraker") or Reporting, don't count on your target to sit still and do nothing.