Furious bloggers reject rules

2007-04-11 13:06

San Francisco - Outrage abounds in the "blogosphere" as a pair of internet luminaries are lobbying for rules of behaviour in the lawless world of online commentary.

Internet publisher Tim O'Reilly, credited with coining the phrase "Web 2.0", and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales triggered torrents of vitriol by proposing a "Blogging Code of Conduct" to impose civility on the internet.

The idea came in the wake of anonymous death threats posted on the blog of author and speaker Kathy Sierra, O'Reilly's friend.

"A culture is a set of shared agreements that allows us to live together," O'Reilly wrote in a blog posting calling for a code of conduct.

"Let's make sure that the culture we create with our blogs is one that we are proud of."

The release this week of a first draft of rules of behaviour for online commentary is riling bloggers who accuse its authors of acting like new-age media overlords disregarding precious rights of free speech.

"It's simply unbelievable what's going on here," a blogger writing under the name "Marcus" said in a comment forum at O'Reilly's website.

"So-called 'community standards' are merely the latest example of the agents of normalcy and entrenchment subconsciously attempting to organise, dictate, tame and pacify."

'Never wrestle with a pig...'

The proposed code calls for blog content to be deleted if it is abusive, threatening, libellous, false or violates promises of confidentiality or rights of privacy.

"We take responsibility for our own words and for comments we allow on our blog," the draft code states.

"We won't say anything online that we wouldn't say in person."

One of the half-dozen rules bans anonymous comments and another calls for ignoring "trolls", posters of nasty remarks.

"We believe that feeding the trolls only encourages them," the draft code says, going on to quote an adage "Never wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty, but the pig likes it."

O'Reilly suggests that bloggers adopting a finished version of the code adorn their websites with an icon of a sheriff's badge bearing the words "civility enforced".

Bloggers averse to behaviour rules can mark their websites with an icon of a stick of dynamite with a lit fuse and the words "Anything goes", the proposal offers.

"I like civility but prefer the "anything goes" badge, so how about "civility enforced with dy-no-mite?'," blogger Joe Hunkins said in a message to O'Reilly.

"Censorship is a slippery slope when you are dealing with bright people who want to take legitimate but mean-spirited shots at others. I hope these efforts, which are needed, do not dumb down the debates."

Bloggers complained that barring anonymity would gag online comments from countries with governments intolerant of free speech.

'It won't make a difference'

"In the authoritarian and cruel regimes, if one wants to get himself hanged, only then he would in person criticise the regime," a blogger named "Pakistan Spectator" said on the O'Reilly comment board.

"Blogging is the great and unique way of protest for the oppressed people against such regimes."

Bloggers are always free to remove what they see as inappropriate contributions to forums on their websites, said Technorati founder David Sifry. Technorati specialises in tracking and indexing blogs.

People interested in spewing caustic comments can feature them on their own websites and then leave links on those of other bloggers, Sifry said.

"One of the core principles that the internet is built on is the principle of free speech," Sifry told AFP. "If you really are a jerk, I don't have to read what you say."

Ethical issues in the "blogosphere" mirror those raised by the relentless trend of users providing raw content to websites ranging from video-sharing superstar YouTube to news gathering organisation NowPublic.

"I'm not sure a code of conduct is the answer," NowPublic co-founder Mike Tippett told AFP. "It makes about as much sense as me wearing a badge to have a conversation. It won't make a difference."

People don't need to sign pacts of civility to use telephones or send letters, Tippett noted.

"I think the wisdom of the crowds, societal mores, and the expectations of civility will generally solve the problem," Tippett said. "The internet is just an extension of our everyday lives."

"Presumably, we are all bound by the social norms of our communities. Violate them and you are locked up."

- AFP