Inc. Zeran v. America Online - Significance, A Nightmare In Seattle, Distributors As Publishers, Impact

chief judge aol decision

Appellant

Kenneth M. Zeran

Appellee

America Online, Inc. (AOL)

Appellant's Claim

That AOL's delay in responding to notification of defamatory messages posted on their Internet system constituted libel in violation of the First Amendment.

Chief Lawyer for Appellant

John Saul Edwards

Chief Lawyer for Appellee

Patrick Joseph Carome

Judges

Chief Judge Wilkinson (writing for the court), Circuit Judge Russell, and U.S. District Judge Boyle

Place

North Carolina

Date of Decision

12 November 1997

Decision

Upheld district court decision that AOL was free of liability for anonymous third party postings on their system.

Related Cases

Cubby, Inc. v. CompuServe, Inc., 776 F.Supp. 135 S.D.N.Y. (1991).
Statton Oakmont, Inc. v. Prodigy Services, Co., WL 323710 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 1995).
Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union, 512 U.S. 824 (1997).
Doe v. America Online, Inc., No. CL 97-63 (Fla Cir. Ct. 1997).

Inc. Zeran v. America Online - Significance

The decision meant Internet service providers (ISP) were not responsible as publishers or distributors for what their subscribers wrote, even when receiving notice of potential defamatory language from other parties. The ruling sent a clear message that Section 230 of The Communications Decency Act of 1996 designed to protect ISPs could withstand legal challenge and protect the newly emerging medi…

Inc. Zeran v. America Online - A Nightmare In Seattle

Kenneth M. Zeran operated a home-based business in Seattle, Washington, that depended on his telephone for access to the public. On 25 April 1995, six days after the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City, an unidentified person posted a message on an AOL bulletin board advertising "Naughty Oklahoma T-Shirts." The shirts featured offensive slogans related to the bombing. The name "Ken" a…

Inc. Zeran v. America Online - Distributors As Publishers

In the court of appeals decision, Chief Judge Wilkinson elaborated on the lower court's decision by noting that Section 230 of CDA, "precludes courts from entertaining claims that would place a computer service provider in a publisher's role. Thus, lawsuits seeking to hold a service provider liable for its exercise of a publisher's traditional editorial functions--such as deciding whether to publi…

Inc. Zeran v. America Online - Impact

Zeran next appealed to the Supreme Court, but the Court in 1998 refused to hear the case leaving the lower courts' decisions stand. To enhance its public image following the decision, AOL began conducting background checks of the key individuals involved in its various information forums. The checks were an attempt to increase accountability in a largely anonymous communications medium. The speed,…

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