It’s made big news and big waves all over the ether. Preoccupied in my own private little hell, it almost passed me over, though I suspect the aftershocks of the legal action against Jeff Ooi and Rocky’s Bru will continue to reverberate for some weeks. It was quite a shock, therefore, to finally load my web-browser and read about the suit against these bloggers all over the internet.
Can I just say this? I don’t like the way Jeff Ooi’s carried out his clear and obvious vendetta against the NST. I’ve said so before, a few months ago. I might even go so far as to say that this suit is unsurprising: Jeff Ooi has been relentless in waging his one-man war against the nation’s supposed spin-doctors. So much so that there are times when his posts have been less about uncovering political shenanigans than uncovering the failings of the top men in the NST.
I suppose this is called ‘attacking the man’ rather than ‘attacking the corporate entity’ responsible for obvious holes in news reporting.
What I would be interested to read are the 40+ posts the lawyers representing the NST have found to be defamatory. From what I can remember, Jeff Ooi’s been careful about not making overt assertions or claims except in very few instances – such as that Mitch Albom/Brendan Pereira fiasco. Do innuendos qualify as defamatory?
Any lawyers out there willing to chime in? I suppose logically, at the very least, that if an innuendo leaves in the minds of readers the intended meaning of the author, however obtuse the reference, then if the intended meaning has the potential to ridicule or demean the subject of the innuendo (possibly in the context of the rest of the blog post?), it is suitably defamatory.
Or not. I’m no legal expert.
I don’t think I want to talk about the… what’s the word for it? Technicalities?… of taking legal action against bloggers, because this point is really well argued over at old man Lim’s blog, here. Sure, NST as a legal corporate entity has every right to defend its good name, just as anyone else does. And yes, bloggers do not operate in a legal vacuum. That’s the reality of the situation.
Much has been said, instead, about the ‘chilling effect’ of such suits viz. freedom of expression and censorship on the internet. I don’t know. What do you think about it? I’ve said quite a bit over here, in my old blog. I won’t repeat (the irony..) arguments made previously. But the recent reaction from bloggers has been encouraging, although I’d like to point out that while these Jeff Ooi and Rocky Bru are ostensibly fighting the Man, it’s important to know if what you’re fighting for has any relevance.
Presumably the legal action against these two are in the interests of freedom of speech and upholding the right to fair comment; the NST’s top brass are claiming that both Jeff Ooi and Rocky Bru have not made fair comments… isn’t that the point?
As for self-censorship: most people don’t talk politics on their blogs, not because they are afraid but because they just have no interest in politics. Putting an explicit barrier to discussing politics, however, just reinforces for me the idea that politics is off-topic. Silencing through the threat of financially debilitating legal actions is a well-used tool in Singapore, from what I understand.
To see it in Malaysia, full-blown, is disheartening but potentially useful: putting such explicit barriers forces attention on the subjects being restricted… and which in turn reinforces, I hope, in bloggers the importance of being politically aware - and active.
Comments (6)
hey dude,
came across your post on PPC :D
i can’t agree more about jeff - i believe he crossed the line when he got personal in attacking individuals vs NST itself esp tagging them as ’sporean operatives’. he better has hard proof for this.
it was just a matter of time and i don’t see how he could prove that.
regarding inuendos, yes they can be defamatory.
read my post here for more.
re jeff’s accusation of plagiarism, it’s v hard to prove plagiarism in court and mostly it’s about stolen CONTENT not style. as brendan’s article was stylistic similar to mitch albom’s article but not content-wise, i believe that it is likely that the courts will rule that it’s not plagiarism. because most creative writing stems from some inspiration eg an author that u like maybe, or an article you’ve read recently.
i think this is a good lesson for bloggers to learn that although we have freedom of speech, we don’t have the right to destroy other people’s reputation with lies or unfounded rumours.
rocky on the other hand has a more solid defence as his posts are generally non-libelous, in my view. but the comments on his blog may be.
hi :)
well, jeff ooi’s got his work cut out for him. i know there are many out there who support him, and i do too because he’s a blogger like one of us, but he’s crossed the line sometimes in pursuing his own agenda. maybe he has his own, perfectly reasonable explanation for his actions, who knows - either way, NST big shots are forcing him to put his money where his mouth is.
i was reading your recent post regarding Anwar Ibrahim’s denial of charges RPK has leveled against him, and it struck me that in many ways, the conspiracy theories that find their way on the internet have less basis in fact and more in a lucky coincidence of factoids given a personal interpretation.
let’s hope this isn’t the case with those postings of Jeff’s singled out by NST.
Do not fools yourself by scratching the surface. Especially in Asian country with immature civil right awareness and quasi kangaroo court.
Avoid using 1st world country standard to sampling the case.
hey moo_t,
it appears we meet everywhere. :D
well, civil cases are a bit different. there are occassions when NST was sued and they had to pay damages.
i think we must not be intimidated yet we must respect freedom - not only ours but others too.
i take the view that if PM really wanted to clamp down, KMUnet would be the first to go….:D
@moo_t: I understand where you’re coming from - using legal action to silence opposition is not new, and even worse for normal folks like you and me who blog.
That’s not to say that there isn’t, at least, some basis for the legal action. I suppose the question is: is legal action a flimsy excuse for silencing bloggers? I’m pretty sure it is to anyone who’s followed the dire warnings spouted by Internal Security ministers and such - it’s no coincidence.
Even jeff ooi admits: the internet does not exist in a legal vacuum. He must’ve known what he was getting himself into, and he must’ve known what steps the people in power would eventually take. There were many times when he insisted that there were no two ways about what he was doing: if you write something that’s libelous, you must be willing to face the consequences.
dear hoRst minus da d:
Pls indulge me if I mainly C&P, but it’s important since thy
…after much rumination, I declare that I agree mostly with the writings and thoughts well put forth by three of my regular discourse mates, namely johnleemk, 2020freelunch and xpyred whom I often tease “minus da d”.
Herewith, without his permit which I unabashedly assume is granted — because we are agreed we exchange mentor-mentee roles since we “befriended” each other over several G7 meetings — I reprise in FULL this Y&A seventeen-year-old’s insightful article. Just one dimwitnitpicking — Please spell the ‘internet’ thus “Internet”, willya, mentor mind!johnLeeMK
Taking A Stand Against Defamation and For Freedom of Speech
The New Straits Times Press has sued Jeff Ooi and Ahirudin bin Atan (Rocky) for defamation. Although I believe Jeff and Rocky should fight this case, and will stand with them, I will not be supporting the Bloggers United movement - because I believe in the importance of defamation laws.
Written by johnleemk on 11:07:24 am Jan 21, 2007.
Taking A Stand Against Defamation and For Freedom of Speech
The recent spate of lawsuits by the New Straits Times Press against two bloggers - namely Jeff Ooi and Rocky - have caused much consternation in the blogosphere. After all, these are the first lawsuits of their kind in Malaysia. The general response has, justifiably, been that these lawsuits will only stifle criticism and dissent. While agreeing with this sentiment, I feel that a broader and more objective view should be taken - one based more on reasoning than on a kneejerk reaction.
I will not be placing that ubiqitious “Bloggers United” tag on this site. This is not because I fear government reprisal, or because I am going to back down from taking a definite stand on Malaysian politics and governance. It is not even because I oppose free speech - if anything, I am in strong agreement with the stand taken by Bloggers United for greater freedom of speech, particularly on the internet. The main reason I will be avoiding joining this campaign is simply because:
*Like the recent opposition decision to boycott the Batu Talam by-election, this campaign will be completely ineffective and useless - we all know from past experience how the government will ignore any attempts to point out its errors.
**I believe that the possibility should remain open for people to take legal action against defamatory statements made on the internet - something that Bloggers United has been rather ambiguous about (at first glance, they seem to actually want this possibility to be cut off).
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reduced and recycled: NST brings out the big guns: intehweb reacts It’s made big news and big waves all over the ether. Preoccupied in my own private little hell, it almost passed me over, though I suspect the aftershocks of the … [Link]
åšå®¢æŠ¥ï¼š 马æ¥åšå®¢æå«ç½‘络言论自由 预约幸ç¦ï¼š 言论自由|Bloggers United 维记： å¶å…¬å¥½é¾™ -Cherry, Plum, Peach and Damson blossoms-: Freedom of Speech? æ‚ æ‚ æˆ‘å¿ƒï¼š Defind OUR Right to Free Speech! reduced and recycled: NST brings out the big guns: intehweb reacts the__earthinc: [1055] Of Tak Nak NST The Scribe A Kadir Jasin: Blogger Lwn NSTP: Terima Kasih Atas Simpati The Blogging Journalist: Malaysian Bloggers Jeff Ooi And Ahirudin bin Atan Sued Life’s Happenings: Bloggers United
~~ é 約幸ç¦ã€‚。**: 言论自由 | Bloggers United ç»´è®°: å¶å…¬å¥½é¾™ Cherry, Plum, Peach and Damson blossoms-: Freedom of speech? The Scribe A Kadir Jasin: Blogger Lwn NSTP: Terima Kasih Atas Simpati Life’s Happenings: Bloggers United reduced and recycled: NST brings out the big guns: intehweb reacts æ‚ æ‚ æˆ‘å¿ƒ: Defend OUR Right to Free Speech! Lone: you are not alone Rojak and Cocktail: Defend your right to free speech! Aliran: Blocking bloggers Kuala Lumpur is Home: Malaysian bloggers sued… the first in history.
åšå®¢æŠ¥ï¼š 马æ¥åšå®¢æå«ç½‘络言论自由 预约幸ç¦ï¼š 言论自由Bloggers United 维记： å¶å…¬å¥½é¾™ -Cherry, Plum, Peach and Damson blossoms-: Freedom of Speech? æ‚ æ‚ æˆ‘å¿ƒï¼š Defind OUR Right to Free Speech! reduced and recycled: NST brings out the big guns: intehweb reacts the__earthinc: [1055] Of Tak Nak NST The Scribe A Kadir Jasin: Blogger Lwn NSTP: Terima Kasih Atas Simpati The Blogging Journalist: Malaysian Bloggers Jeff Ooi And Ahirudin bin Atan Sued Life’s Happenings: Bloggers United
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~~ é 約幸ç¦ã€‚。**: 言论自由 | Bloggers Unitedç»´è®°: å¶å…¬å¥½é¾™Cherry, Plum, Peach and Damson blossoms-: Freedom of speech?The Scribe A Kadir Jasin: Blogger Lwn NSTP: Terima Kasih Atas SimpatiLife’s Happenings: Bloggers Unitedreduced and recycled: NST brings out the big guns: intehweb reactsæ‚ æ‚ æˆ‘å¿ƒ: Defend OUR Right to Free Speech!Lone: you are not aloneRojak and Cocktail: Defend your right to free speech!Aliran: Blocking bloggersKuala Lumpur is Home: Malaysian bloggers sued… the first in history.
åšå®¢æŠ¥ï¼š 马æ¥åšå®¢æå«ç½‘络言论自由 预约幸ç¦ï¼š 言论自由Bloggers United 维记： å¶å…¬å¥½é¾™ -Cherry, Plum, Peach and Damson blossoms-: Freedom of Speech? æ‚ æ‚ æˆ‘å¿ƒï¼š Defind OUR Right to Free Speech! reduced and recycled: NST brings out the big guns: intehweb reacts the__earthinc: [1055] Of Tak Nak NST The Scribe A Kadir Jasin: Blogger Lwn NSTP: Terima Kasih Atas Simpati The Blogging Journalist: Malaysian Bloggers Jeff Ooi And Ahirudin bin Atan Sued Life’s Happenings: Bloggers United
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