Freedom of Speech is not the same as Freedom of the Press
This isn't an information war. This isn't a blog war. This is a freedom of speech issue. How much micro-management of your virtual tongue do you want to give away to any entity you have no say or control over? That entity may have governmental duties to regulate advertising (which is very cool and I have no problem with that) but how far should one have to go just to have a simple conversation about what one personally likes and dislikes without incurring what has the potential of being very expensive arbitrary and capricious fines?
What triggers a FTC blog audit?Your competition b*tching about you? A disgruntled employee or independent contractor you let go? An enemy trolling for litigation? The guy across the street with the crappy restaurant you don't eat at and never mention in Localism? The jerk you kicked out of your ActiveRain group? Do you have the tiniest inkling of just how dangerous this document hypothetically may be? Where is the mechanism to fine the liar who makes a bogus complaint against your blog? Will there be damages imposed upon a naughty consumer in proportion to the fines advertised for bloggers or the hypothetical misconduct and/or malfeasance of a negligent investigator possibly overworked and underpaid who rubber stamps and imposes a writer's potential fines because bloggers have no idea what all of their material connections may or may not be to a business?
When I wrote this post I said what I wanted to say. The goal was to get you to look beyond the rant and read the document. Some of you didn't get it so I shall write seriously in the hopes that you will take the time to read the document for yourself. When something is important you should read the entire document for yourself. You should place it into the context of your life and try to figure out how it affects you and your blogging habits. I can only answer for my own actions, just as you can only answer for yours. We all have different reasons why we blog. We all have moments in life that inspire us to share our thoughts on a particular subject. Are you ready to go back and audit your own blog and edit yourself?
YOU should try to understand this document, not waste a single moment of your time trying to argue with or understand me. The post is about the document. Do not make the post about me. You are doing yourself a huge disservice if you do and you are missing your moment to get involved because you think this will all work itself out in the end. Well it wont if bloggers don't open their virtual mouths and ask the pertinent questions that need to be asked.
I got quite a virtual earful about "Freedom of the Press" and how some of you are misinformed about a Constitutional protection you as a blogger do not have. Your e-mails have inspired me to point out a fact that needs to be stated quite emphatically: Freedom of Speech and Freedom of the Press are two very distinct and different things. For example:
Here is a priceless 3 page PDF you need to read: http://www.freedomhouse.org/uploads/FOP2009_UnitedStates.pdf It provides some extremely important background information that you, as a writer, really need to know because knowledge is power. It helps you protect yourself.
"The First Amendment: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." Findlaw has great links you need to explore here regarding this subject. Notice how the freedom of speech has a comma that separates it from or of the press? If you bother to check case law you'll notice the two diverge in very interesting rulings... they are not the same exact thing.
"Freedom of the Press consists of Constitutional or Statutory protections pertaining to the Media and published materials." In this case the media is the Mass Media. "The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference, and impart information and ideas through any media regardless of frontiers." You can read the full Wikipedia article here.
"Freedom of Speech" is the freedom to speak freely without censorship or limitation. The synonymous term freedom of expression is sometimes used to indicate not only freedom of verbal speech but any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used. In practice, the right to freedom of speech is not absolute in any country and the right is commonly subject to limitations, such as on "hate speech." Wikipedia also reports that "the right to freedom of speech is recognized as a human right under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized in international human rights law in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)." You can read the full Wikipedia article here.
Posted by 
Featured in M.A.N.C.R.O.W. CONGRATS!
;)
;)
C- I read the FTC paper. I sent you the speech because I was not sure if you were predicting infringment on free speech.
I understand the FTC law,or at least I think I do. It is to curbe outrageous and unfounded claims. I beleive some of it may have come about after the deaths associated with a diet drug being advertised on the web.