Comments on Experience: The Blog: Can Your Tweet Defame? The Law Behind Horizon and ...

2009-12-18T23:44:07.274-06:00

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Thanks for the comment, Nicholas. There is no dou...

2009-08-03T22:45:56.187-05:00

Thanks for the comment, Nicholas.

There is no doubt litigation will always be part of the landscape of Social Media, where people feel free to share their criticisms and are encouraged to rate brands and products.

That said, each time a lawsuit is filed againts a consumer, it demonstrates the risks to brands of managing their reputations via legal actions. The negative attention is harsh of this sort of action, and even though the wave of bad PR never kills brands, it does leave them on the defensive.

I think smart brands will make smart decisions--ignoring harsh critics, engaging displeased consumers, and being part of the Social Media landscape are MUCH better approaches than lawsuits!

It's sad that one would have to watch their co...

2009-08-03T01:10:36.650-05:00

It's sad that one would have to watch their comments geared towards friends so carefully, no matter how large the audience. People use hyperbole all the time, and why not in a tweet? It's true that the Horizon Realty case is a special case given the context, but it still makes me wonder about negative reviews on websites, etc. where the comments are admittedly excessively harsh but are harsh to prove a point or to discourage someone from a product or service. Even if you could prove that what you're saying is true, do you really want a court battle to prove your point?

Deb, that was the most brilliant blog comment ever...

2009-07-31T13:58:43.202-05:00

Deb, that was the most brilliant blog comment ever!

(What, you think I'm going to criticize and defame an attorney online? Are you crazy?!?)

Seriously, thanks for the great blog content!

I'm still tweeting! I think we need to take th...

2009-07-31T12:31:22.775-05:00

I'm still tweeting! I think we need to take the Horizon suit in its full context - Amanda Bonnen filed a class action suit against Horizon in June. My guess is that this is Horizon's way of getting some leverage in settlement negotiations. I wouldn't be surprised if this case got dropped before it even gets to summary judgment.

The reality of it is, most companies are not going to sue people for tweets complaining about their product or service. And as Augie points out in his post on this topic, there is a learning opportunity here for companies to better manage their brands and engage with their customers, rather than sue them.

And don't forget, if what you say is true (and can be proven to be true), it's the best defense against defamation.

IMVADO, Jeff Larche is brilliant. (I wasn't s...

2009-07-31T08:23:10.547-05:00

IMVADO, Jeff Larche is brilliant. (I wasn't sure who I might be defaming, but now Deb has me nervous!)

Hmmm. I've often tweeted the acronym, "IM...

2009-07-31T08:02:32.539-05:00

Hmmm. I've often tweeted the acronym, "IMHO" (In My Humble Opinion). Perhaps I'll need to modify that to "IMVADO" - In My Vigorously Anti-Defamatory Opinion.

It couldn't hurt, IMVADO. ;-)

Mark, No kidding! I think I keep it pretty posit...

2009-07-30T20:35:41.928-05:00

Mark, No kidding! I think I keep it pretty positive on Twitter, but I've tweeted a gripe or two.

Pardon me while I go clean out some previous tweet...

2009-07-30T19:30:09.553-05:00

Pardon me while I go clean out some previous tweets......