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PSYCHOLOGISTS WILL TELL US NOT TO WORRY ABOUT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE SAY: STICKS AND STONES, THEY SAY. DON’T BE INSECURE. ITS NOT YOUR MOTHER’S FAULT. BUT IN TODAY’S WORLD, PERCEPTION IS REALITY. NO LONGER IS IT JUST A PERSON’S CHARACTER THAT IS IMPORTANT.

More so than ever before, it is about what other people perceive of that person’s character. And like it or not, perception can be manipulated by publication, and if that consists of a bunch of lies, well that is the new reality.

The internet is the greatest human invention of our age. It has become a defining force that binds the planet. In two short decades, ordinary people have assumed publication power beyond the dreams of the most powerful kings. Eighty percent of the population of North America are on the internet, sixty percent of Australia and sixty percent of Europe.

This year, users went past two billion. The internet is more popular than cheese.

Two billion people now have access to everything on the internet, at any time. Any person can search for whatever they like without opening a book, asking a professor or leaving their front door. Then they can publish whatever to whoever whenever. So while the Fourth Estate engage lawyers to vet their material before it is broadcast on tv or written in newspapers, on the internet, this just doesn’t happen.

The web is an information jungle and this means a defamation minefield. And who is it a minefield for?

Well, the internet opens up a whole array of potential new defamation defendants: Internet Service Providers, operators of chatrooms, and strange and obsessive people whose opinions would not have otherwise seen the light of day. In 2005, Uniform Defamation Acts were passed into law throughout Australia. It was claimed that this meant the end of defamation trials. The changes were friendly for the media and the damages were capped.

Back then, Mark Zuckerberg was a smart kid at Harvard who was pretty good at programming. But now, social media has taken over, Zuckerberg is richer than the Queen and lawyers are spending days trying to identify authors of anonymous blogs who use lots of exclamation marks.

The first Australian Twitter case has been issued and Courtney Love has been sued twice for tweets. The first cost her $430,000, the second is still to come.

This site relates largely to Australian defamation law, but will also touch on cases from elsewhere. It is hoped to be a useful tool for those who practice in defamation, those who work in the media, those who study the media and those who live in chatrooms. Good luck, feel free to comment and please, don’t call anyone a liar unless you can prove it.