First, I think blogs could be considered authentic journalistic sources; not forums.
Second, I just want to say that I don't represent or speak for TooMuchMedia, despite Shellee's own confused references to "2 Much Media" and "2Much media". I'm just following the case since I was there and posted in the initial thread,
http://www.oprano.com/msgboard/showthread.php?t=89612.
In my opinion, evoking the shield law is a stalling tactic... there are other charges in contention that can't be addressed until this point of law is settled, unfortunately.
The main question is, basically, should the shield laws regarding Hale's sources stating that TMM John had physically threatened someone's life apply?
Initially she had flatly stated that TMM had threatened someone's life (
http://www.oprano.com/msgboard/showp...45&postcount=2). Hale later amended her statement, and that "a reliable source" had made this claim (
http://www.oprano.com/msgboard/showp...92&postcount=3).
TMM, beyond the slander charges, want to know who (if it wasn't Hale), began propagating what they claim is a false threat.
This wasn't in a journalistic context, nor a credibly referenced blog context (Hale wasn't blogging at the time, nor writing a book about our industry and organized crime; these came after, maybe to bolster her shield law requests, though I think her soccer-mom-investigates-porn idea came about to make something out of her abject failure in our field).
The claim wasn't anywhere that could be referred to as a source of objective or subjective reporting. It was on this board (among others).
This and any other public forum or BBS or whatever you want to call it can't be considered a journalistic context. The only one here who could be covered under the journalist or reporter umbrella would be Gonzo, and any other who moderates the information disseminated here.
A blog, though, isn't a public arena, and neither is a news site/source/paper whatever.
Here, you stand or fall on your statements. The only journalist, or "editor", would be Gonzo or whoever is moderator of the forum where she made the claims. Not that Gonzo or anyone here is responsible; allowing people to stick their own foots in their mouths is their decision.
I thought Shellee had made some sort of apology since her post was a reactionary, ill-informed prophecy of the end of affiliate marketing, inspired by a combination of two out-of-date issues or actual news stories which had been settled or were in process at the time of her post.
Maybe that she's being sued for slander means her apologies weren't found or produced, or that they were lost?
What's up with that?