Legal Issues of Blogging

Via ProBlogger an informative article in ComputerWorld on the legal issues of corporate blogging. This is a good article for business bloggers and those interested in further understanding the legalities of blogging. The article explains, “as weblogs have multiplied, a number of legal issues have arisen, and regardless of whether your company sponsors its bloggers, it may be opening itself up to hidden liabilities.”
For example:

Danger: Libel and trade libel. Bloggers who write anything negative or defamatory about a corporation or an individual are opening themselves and their companies up to the possibility of libel suits, says David Carr, an attorney and partner at London-based consulting firm Big Blog Co.

Precaution: Do your homework. If the blogger is going to make negative statements about a company’s or individual’s business activities, Carr says, “he’s really got to do his research and make sure what he’s saying can be proven to be true and not just believed to be true….”