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A Federal appeals court ruled this week
that a
"Like" on Facebook is protected by the First Amendment.
After a group of employees were fired for supporting their boss' political
opponent on Facebook, one of them filed suit. The first court ruled that a
like action on social media was not sufficient enough to be considered free
speech.
However, an appeals court overturned
it. First amendment freedoms online have
been debated since their inception, and as more users participate in social
media and Facebook becomes a more powerful company, it seems that the first
amendment will rule in Internet user favor.
The case was brought forth originally in 2009, and the Internet
landscape has changed significantly in the last four years.
When in comes to threats of violence,
posts are also being taken more seriously.
Earlier this year a new law in Florida began allowing prosecutors to
charge people for making threats online.
Judges in Florida determined that Facebook’s purpose is a form of
communication and should be treated the same as verbal threats or notes. In the case in Florida, the threat was not
directly sent, which is why the defense protested.
Kendall
Coffey has written about the use of social media in his book, Spinning the Law. He calls internet interactions and
misinformation “e-contamination” and can often make for sticky legal
situations. Everything from juror
information spilling to online bullying has created a gray area for
courts. Sometimes online interference
causes a case to be lost, but it is still far from definitive.
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