Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!swrinde!ucsd!ucbvax!unisoft!fai!sequent!jimp
From: jimp@sequent.UUCP (James Pilcher)
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Re: Evidence (was Re: Musing on Constitutionality)
Message-ID: <43541@sequent.UUCP>
Date: 4 Oct 90 19:35:08 GMT
References: <8306@helios.TAMU.EDU> <26938:Sep1814:48:2390@kramden.acf.nyu.edu> <4572@qip.UUCP> <1990Sep20.221955.10879@spectrum.CMC.COM> <6657@sugar.hackercorp.com>
Reply-To: jimp@crg1.UUCP (James Pilcher)
Organization: Sequent Computer Systems, Inc
Lines: 32

In article <6657@sugar.hackercorp.com> karl@sugar.hackercorp.com (Karl Lehenbauer) writes:
>In article <1990Sep20.221955.10879@spectrum.CMC.COM> lars@spectrum.CMC.COM (Lars Poulsen) writes:
>>By analogy, it may not be unreasonable to hold the "publisher" (i.e. the
>>owner/SYSOP) jointly liable with the poster for whatever appears on the
>>bulletin board.
>
>>Indeed, this may require that the SYSOP not allow unmoderated discussion
>>except within closed user groups whose members have all signed a pledge
>>of responsible behaviour and are all known to the SYSOP.
>
>>Seems pretty reasonable to me ...
>
>If this were the case, it would be the end of Usenet.  Further, it would
>have a chilling effect on free speech via bulletin boards.  As a sysop,
>I would have to be very careful to never allow anything out that was
>in the least bit controversial, and would always want to err on the side of 
>not allowing a message to go out unless I was really sure there was no chance
>of me getting in trouble for it.  
>
>Shouldn't the poster of the message be accountable for its contents?  
>
>Or by your reasoning, shouldn't the phone company have to listen to *all* the 
>phone conversations going on at any time to make sure nothing illicit was
>being said, done or planned?  They tried this in Eastern Europe, you know.
>

While I agree with you that holding sysop responsible for everything would
be a disaster, you should note that a phone line is SUPPOSED to be private,
whereas a net is assumed to be public. Bulletin boards have been misused in 
all kinds of ways; should a sysop who runs a board for child molesters
be free of all responsibility? This has happened, here in Portland, by
the way.