Blogging Libel

Blogging is an amazing, inexpensive tool allowing people to connect directly with their consumers but occasionally, another individual may choose to write something libelous about you. This is a very rare event, but just know that with the right preparation, you don’t have to be a victim. You have two choices depending on who is writing the material against you- ignore it or fight.

What is Libel?

First and foremost, this is not legal advice, I’m not a lawyer nor do I play one on tv, nor does anyone at New Media Lab. There are thousands of places to learn about libel and this article simply highlights what we’ve learned over time from our own experiences and from those around us.

So what exactly is libel? In the US and most places globally, true statements are legal to publish but anything that is a blatant lie or is written with the intent to defame or injure your reputation is NOT legal. Lawsuits can be costly and drawn out, so if you’re looking for a less expensive way to fight, you can try fighting it yourself first. Keep detailed notes on any communication between you and the other writer and try to remain logical, not emotional.

Fight or Flight?

It’s not always how you feel that you have to take into account, it is WHO has written something libelous against you. If it’s a nobody that no one reads and isn’t a competitor and they wrote vaguely enough that Google won’t bring your name up in a search with negative connotations, you may choose to ignore it. If the person against you is a direct competitor, is in the same networking circles (on or offline) as you OR is a large blog (compare your blog against theirs on Alexa for a taste of size), you may choose to fight.

Step One: Be Nice

The first step is to be nice. Email the person who published against you and politely inform them that their information is false- sometimes these situations come from simple misunderstanding and immediate contact with the writer that isn’t abrasive can potentially clear up the problem. Sometimes the other writer may be willing to remove the hurtful information, so sprinkle some sugar on it!

The harsh reality is that your sweet email might go ignored or you might even get a nasty response or a refusal to cooperate, so you may have to move to step two.

Step Two: Investigate ‘Em

Before you put a bag of flaming poo on their doorstep, learn a little bit about them. First, enter their website into a WhoIs search and check out the details of who registered the site. If it isn’t registered to a third party that masks the registrant, you’ll see the name, address, and phone number of the person who owns the domain. What you need however is the “admin email” which is who you’ll be contacting.

Step Three: Tattle Tell to Their Web Host

Once you see the name of the web hosting company, go to their site, check out their contact info and read their terms & conditions page. Take time to meticulously list all of the terms that you can determine the libelous writer has broken on his or her website. You have the host’s contact information and now you report violations to them. Most of them have conditions against libel or copyright infringement, so they take reported violations seriously.

So what happens is the web host provides a form, often called an “Unauthorized Personal Material” claim form and typically when the host sees one of those, they immediately remove or disable access to the personal material that’s claimed to be unauthorized. Now, find any place on the site that the author uses your name, personal info or personal material without your permission and provide that to their web host as well.

These forms are often done through the mail, so get it out asap. After a week, follow up over email to verify they received it and remind them you are serious and anticipate a quick response. The end result is the offender’s website will be taken down by their host and although it may be THE fastest way to remove libelous material about you, be sure that you really have exhausted your options before taking this harsh step.

Step Four: Get Them Delisted on Google

Another possible outlet you have is to notify Google and have the offender’s site delisted from Google’s search engines. In certain situations, Google willingly removes sites from their listings, and in most cases you can use Google’s web page removal request tool to submit your request to Google. Reasons Google willingly removes info is when a site publishes any of the following:

• Your social security or government ID number
• Your bank account, credit card number or financial details
• Your name or business published on an adult content site spamming Google’s search listings
• An image of your handwritten signature
• Infringement of copyrighted content

If the offender hasn’t broken privacy rules listed above, if you can find a case of abuse related to Google’s terms and conditions, you still might be able to have them removed from Google. Try to see if the offending site buys or sells links, is just spam or is infected with malicious software (or malware) and report to Google using the Spam Reporting Tool.

Final Word

Keep on keepin’ on if it’s important to you. It’s not fun and it’s discouraging, but if it’s important to you, don’t let them win. If you want libelous content about you removed, be persistent. If the steps above don’t get you where you want to be and you have the time, money and wherewithal to fight, call your lawyer. Libel is not common, but now you’re strong because you’re armed for the fight if it ever comes to your door and hopefully you’ll never have to move past step one!