Home : Blogs : Jeff Turner : Turner's Perspective

12 U.S. Laws That Impact Bloggers

I posted a link to this on my JustDugUp.com tumblelog, but felt this was too important not to share here as well.

project blogger logo Part of my daily activity now includes research for Project Blogger to assist Julie Ferenzi with her Living In Plainfield blog. That includes things to avoid. Sometimes I communicate information directly with her, but most of the time the information has a more universal appeal. This is indeed the case with 12 Important U.S. Laws Every Blogger Needs To Know.

This is an extremely well written, plain English post that covers these important areas:

Whether to Disclose Paid Posts
Is Deep Linking Legal
The Legal Use of Images and Thumbnails
Laws that Protect You From Stolen Content
Domain Name Trademark Issues
Handling Private Data About Your Readers
Who Owns User-Developed Content and Can You Delete It
The Duty to Monitor Your Blog Comments, and Liability
Basic Tax Law Issues in Blogging
Limited Liability Laws and Incorporating
Spam Laws and Which Unsolicited Emails are Legal
Are Bloggers Protected from Journalism Shield Laws

This is worth the time to read. And... note the disclaimer at the bottom of their post:

Disclaimer:

This article has provided information about the law designed to help readers better understand the legal issues surrounding blogging. But legal information is not the same as legal advice — the application of law to an individual’s specific circumstances. Although we have conducted research to better ensure that our information is accurate and useful, we insist that you consult a lawyer if you want professional assurance that our information, and your interpretation of it, is accurate. To clarify further, you may not rely upon this information as legal advice, nor as a recommendation or endorsement of any particular legal understanding, and you should instead regard this article as intended for entertainment purposes only.

Looks like they follow their own advice.

Posted by Jeff Turner on 05/04/2007 07:34 PM

Comments (42)

blogging, blog law, project blogger

Originally posted at: Turner's Perspective: 12 U.S. Laws That Impact Bloggers

Post is included in group: The Hubba Clubba...ROAR!

42 Comments on 12 U.S. Laws That Impact Bloggers

MAY

2007

Good to know. Thanks for the link.

Jeff T. .. thanks for sharing this. I'll go over to the other link and read up on this. thanks

jeff belonger

Jeff, Midori said I would learn a lot from you.. she wasn't kidding. Glad I subscribed!

Thanks Jeff. I'm actually quite concerned about this as on my blog (Live in Los Gatos), I have a lot of posts that I've written after doing considerable research - and I don't want them swiped!

Great post, I've bookmarked it.

OOOWWWW.... my head. Way too much, especially the images and thumbnails. I'm going to have to digest this later. Jeff thanks for the information overload.

Thanks. I've been on city-data and am amazed at the "opinions" that are given by lay people who are clueless to what they are doing...except that they state it as fact...

Is there a way to have a disclaimer automatically posted at the bottom of my blogs, similar to an Outlook signature?

Larry... if your blog is a wordpress blog, there is a plugin for you... http://wp-plugins.net/plugin/simpledisclaimer/

Andrei and Jeff... you're welcome.

Lysa... thanks for checking it out.

Mary... I would also subscribe to copyscape if I were you.

Gary... yeah, I hear you. Lots to think about.

Thanks for the link......I know this will really help me with some issues I've been wondering about.

Great Information! Thanks for sharing.

Thank you, great post as always! I have to admit that I had not thought of some of these issues.

Tool Boy...

My haven't we been busy. SVW. What is this your third or fourth feature in a row. Cool :)

Keep 'em coming Tool Boy but please don't tell anyone that I am turning into a geek :)

I'm supposed to be "The Lovely Wife"...Not..."The Geeky Wife". LOL.

TLW...ROAR!

Thanks for sharing this info. I will review it and my posts to ensure legality just to cma.

In addition, we have to make sure our Blogging doesn't impact the Code of Ethics and or MLS Rules and licensing issues. Thanks for the list and link

Great Info! I agree, there's a lot to it.

This is very interesting. With every new technology and every new application, there are LAWS. I am going to have to bookmark this and come back to it later! Thanks for the heads up.

Jeff,

I really appreciated the information, read all 12 and bookmark the site. I am alway concern about being on the right side of the law.

Scarry stuff, can't we all just be friends.

Jeff, Thank you. I've already started creating "Terms of Service" and posting them on my blog. Very important information.

Thanks for alerting us to that article - very informative! I'm in the process of working on a new WP blog and will make sure I incorporate the Terms of Service issue.

I agree with Daniel. Why can't we just have fun!

Whoops! that is my comment above. Forgot I wasn't signed in. Elaine

Jeff-Thanks for the link! Good to know.

Thanks for the info. I've bookmarked this post for reference. Also, thank you for all the useful tips and sites you've been sharing on AR.

Great information. More learning.....does it every really stop? Thank you so much. I didn't know about some of those.

Thanks for the information. I'll check it out.

Fran

MAY

2007

Jeff. thanks for the info - another book mark - congrats on the feature - but I know you don't do it for that but to help keep all of us blogging successfully without ending up in orange jumpsuits with numbers on the back. - I don't look good in orange (LOL) - I've had many of these concerns myself. Thanks.

Great items to be aware of, particularly as legal interpretations may change with the rapid increase in blogs and bloggers. Thanks for bringing this to the Rain!

Bookmarked to read after coffee. ;o) Thanks!

Sarah...

I just finished reading all of it. It is well worth the read. There is a lot of information on that site.

TLW...ROAR!

Thank you for providing this useful link. In November 2006 the National Underwriter, Property and Casualty, addressed the insurance liability aspect of Blog publishing in an interesting article Blog Publishing Can Open the Door to Liability by Caroline McDonald that got my attention. I think it is so important to remember these issues when writing posts and commenting on Blogs.

Jeff - Very useful and timely info given we are on the verge of a campaign that involves a large database - Thanks!

Jeff,

Hmm...this post probably grabbed the attention of a few...including me. I've bookmarked (TUIT List). Thanks for sharing.

Hmm...Kumquat.....I have one of those trees (now bearing) in my backyard. Quite a bittersweet kick. Need to experiment with the Kumquat Bomb one of these days.

Jeff,

Thanks for the posting. I've only recently been involved in blogging. This is great to know.

Jeff,

That's my comment above. Forgot to leave my name.

All.. the thing Aviva's post clearly illustrates is that we must be diligent to make sure the wild wild west that is the blogosphere turns into a place we all feel safe hanging out in. The post IS WORTH THE TIME TO READ IN FULL!

Hi Jeff, It looks like the project blogger is going to help the whole community,not just those mentors and mentorees! thanks for sharing this!

Lisa... you couldn't be more right! I stopped calling it a competition a long time ago. It's an event. And I'm loving it.

MAY

2007

All... I just want to reinforce Ardell's addition... "we have to make sure our Blogging doesn't impact the Code of Ethics and or MLS Rules and licensing issues."

Jeff: Thanks for providing me with tonight's reading homework!

Yeah... that's what we all need... more homework. :)

Great information. Something we all have to think about . Great Post

MAY

2007

Thanks, Frank. I think these issues really need to be brought to the forefront.

Leave a response…

Name:

Email:
(optional)

Comment:

What does the graphic say?