CdA Press: Free To Criticize

(Kootenai County GOP Central Committee Chairwoman Tina) Jacobson is demanding the identity of one or more people she believes have accused her of a crime. Of particular displeasure to the county’s Republican Party leader was this question, posed on Dave Oliveria’s “Huckleberries” blog after Oliveria posted a photo that included Jacobson on a stage with other Republicans: “Is that the missing $10,000 in Kootenai County Central Committee funds actually stuffed inside Tina’s blouse??? Let’s not try to find out.” The Spokesman-Review’s attorneys argue that the comment doesn’t constitute a factual assertion that Jacobson stole any money - or even that any money had gone missing. But even if it did, our question is this: How damaging is an anonymous opinion stated on a blog that makes no claim to the information being accurate or even substantially true? If someone had spray-painted the same thing on a downtown wall, would Jacobson sue the building’s owner? Because what’s happened here is very much like graffiti; the comment may be eye-catching but it lacks credibility because nobody is owning up to it/ Coeur d’Alene Press Editorial Board . More here.

Thoughts?