A court case has recently finished that has some significant legal ramifications for how anonymity is treated on the Internet. Last week a judge ordered Google to reveal the identity of a blogger who had been writing unkind things on her blog about Liskula Cohen, a New York model. The unkind things focused on Ms. Cohen’s antics while out on the town - I’m told the word “skank” featured predominantly. That this precedent setting decision with First Amendment implications is now widely referred to as the “skank case” is one of the small joys that life sometimes throws your way.
If the decision sticks, this will mean that Internet users can no longer rely on hosting companies and Internet service providers protecting their identity if they post slanderous content on the Web. Before we progress any further, I’ll head off the nasally protests from computer-people now: Yes, there’s still ways to stay anonymous on the Internet. In this case Google could only give up the email address and IP address the blogger used when using the blog. Someone using free email accounts and proxy severs or public wifi spots to disguise their IP address could still easily remain anonymous. Of course, anyone who understands what all of that meant is going to be a computer-person and, fortunately for us, computer-people almost never have something interesting to say. You know the people I’m talking about. They’re always talking about Stargate or anime porn or kernels or some shit. If Robodong42 wants to talk shit about your mama’s Python compiler from behind his 256-bit encrypted, TOR-routed, Ukranian bathhouse Internet connection, let him. No one will care.
Assuming then that most people who have something interesting to say won’t be able to stay anonymous, what options do they have? Aside from not slandering people, obviously. (What a nightmarish world that would be.) Well, after consulting my lawyer I think I’ve come up with some handy guidelines you can use when framing your writing, so you can diss as many skanky models as you want without getting in trouble.
This political cartoon was published in 1794 to protest encroachment upon government authority by sock garter manufacturers. It was considered highly defamatory at the time.
As a framework for this discussion, let me set up the following example. Let’s assume I’m writing a column about Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio, within which I plan to reveal several things about him that were perhaps unflattering. How could I frame such a column to avoid the potential of a lawsuit, while still maximizing the comedic value of hurtful lies?
__
Guideline #1: It’s not slander if it’s true.
For example, if I was to say that Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio was a common gutter slut, that would be slander. (There’s nothing common about his gutter sluttiness.) But if I were to say Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio was a syphilitic man whore, that wouldn’t be slander, because it’s demonstrably true. An extensive (and disgusting) public record already exists documenting it.
__
Guideline #2: The public has an interest in knowing these facts.
The “truth” defense doesn’t always work though. Often courts will demand that there be a “public interest” in you disseminating whatever facts you’re trying to spread. For example, if Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio was a threat to young boys and farm animals, which he is, then I could claim my column was a justifiable method of informing the people and livestock of Greenden, Ohio about the threat living in their midst, and also driving around in a blue Toyota Tercel in their midst.
__
Guideline #3: Slander must be a statement of fact.
As we like to say around here at Cracked, “The truth value of a statement of opinion is untestable in court.” Because opinions can’t be proved to be true or false, it’s difficult to claim they’re slander. Using this guideline, let’s say I title my column I think Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio is a Cancer Upon Society.
Obviously the trap here is that when stating an opinion, you almost always want to outline the facts which have caused you to hold said opinion. It’s well and good to say that I believe Mr. Moore is a polyp embedded in the rectum of evil, but I won’t convince people to take a similar stance unless I back that statement up with some facts. If the facts I enumerate aren’t all exactly true, then I could be potentially slandering the shit necked lamb fucker.
__
Guideline #4: Even if the statement you made is false, if you made the statement in good faith, believing it’s true, you may be protected.
Using our example here, let’s say I have good reason to believe Trevor has been collecting foreskin from circumcised infants and fashioning them into a weird little fingerless glove. And let’s say I found out about this from a reputable source, like the people at Trevor-Moore-Watch.org. So I go ahead and post it in my column, letting the world know what this frequent highway rest stop visitor was doing. Later we find out that the original story was false; Trevor wasn’t making a glove out of all that stolen foreskin, he’d just been hoarding it for unspecified reasons. I would have a pretty strong defense here, simply because I didn’t know I was telling a falsehood.
I should point out this is a touchy defense, because I would have to demonstrate I had followed some degree of care here. In this case I would claim that I was using a reliable source. But if the court felt I was being negligent, and deliberately ignoring countervailing facts, I would be up shit creek, just like Trevor Moore, because he bathes there.
__
Guideline #5: You cannot defame someone who already has a terrible reputation.
Another defense which has sometimes been used in cases like this is claiming that the plaintiff is incapable of being defamed. If everyone already knew that Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio was a Hitler-esque rape-monster, then it would be impossible for Mr. Moore to claim my column had damaged his reputation. No damages means no lawsuit. Again, I would suggest you be very careful using this guideline. My lawyer says this principle hasn’t been tested thoroughly in court.
__
Guideline #6: Frame all your hate filled lies as a how-to guide.
If I was to take all the venomous bile I was going to spew against habitual donkey-fister Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio, and frame them as “examples” in a comedic piece on how to avoid charges of slander, I’d be perfectly in the clear. “Checkmate,” my lawyer confirms. We share a high five.
__
This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 25th, 2009 at 4:00 am and is filed under Slander. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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October 9th, 2009 at 3:54 am
Upon reading all of this, it’s sad to see your so hurt by this person. Good luck with your healing process. I feel your pain and I will take your words and hope they help me in my process somehow. A lesson learned. I don’t believe people should post without using their name, but you did! Good for you! I hope people will read the entire article before posting.
October 1st, 2009 at 8:33 am
A straight Character has slandered ”Gay character” to the extent of inciting mob hatred on ForandAgainst.com.
No one knows who the Straight Character is, it could even be the Gay character attention seeking, seeing the he doesn’t want to press charges. Could you possibly look into it.
It is the featureed debate of the day… The Web Site owners are taking the michael too, out of this very delicate subject.
Thank You
Lord Daniel
September 29th, 2009 at 8:22 am
@ Alex
Quote “This is odd.
How can you know that someones reputation is so bad it cannot be lowered any further? YOU CAN’T its an opinion.
This is exactly why the American legal system fails, so very very hard.”
A person’s reputation can be determined to be so low so as to show that his reputation could not be lowered by the imputations made by a magazine in England (Irving v Penguin Books Ltd [2000] EWHC QB 115 )
This test was adopted as Australian Law and most likely be the test adopted in America if not already adopted.
September 22nd, 2009 at 3:43 pm
You need to get Philalawyer’s opinion on this.
September 17th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
I bet this trevor moore fellow was just an example :P. The fact is, we have this lil thing in America called FREEDOM OF SPEECH. Threats on peoples lives or the a president’s life can be investigated, but not held against them, that is law. Plus, I very much agree with Comi, Words only voice feelings, if you firmly believe that one persons words are destroying us all your an idiot, its not his words it’s how the idiots read or hear the words that insult them, and someone who allows font to insult them is an idiot, no matter what form it is in, especially if the person that rights it doesn’t even know them.
September 11th, 2009 at 8:44 am
Trevor Moore? The dude from The whitest Kids You Know? Just curious.
September 2nd, 2009 at 6:37 pm
My friend recommended me a very interesting place
________ WealthySeeker.com _________ .It is the best dating club for seeking the rich singles, beauties and even hot celebs..what’s the most important is:you dont have to be a millionaire.but you can meet one. I think everyone need to meet some miracle after all the terrible stuff in the news and the economy. –__–
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:49 am
Er… I don’t know how that first comment wound up here instead of on the Double Down Sandwich article.
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:36 am
LordBronco,
Come on. Why don’t you tell us how you REALLY feel.
September 2nd, 2009 at 7:32 am
In all fairness, I actually thought the Famous Bowls were pretty good.
September 2nd, 2009 at 3:28 am
[...] other week I read this article at Cracked.com and thought it was funny. I then ran across an IRC topic saying Glenn Beck raped and [...]
September 1st, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Lol, I love the lawyer links.
August 31st, 2009 at 11:48 pm
oh and Bronco thanks for giving us facts to back up your opinions… Bucholz does a fine job of that. And also… Terrorist? Really?
August 31st, 2009 at 11:46 pm
LordBronco. This site ain’t news. It was never meant to be news. Bucholz has the right to say whatever the fuck he wants and is just stating his opinion. And it’s not HIM that’s the reason America that’s going to hell. It’s people who take shit literally as news from sources that never meant to give news. How about ya think a little.
August 30th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
wow, buchholz did this trevor moore guy put all that sand up your vagina, or was it there before?
August 30th, 2009 at 1:36 pm
being european, I had never heard of Trevor Moore. I googled “Tevor moore”, but found nothing interesting. I was convinced he was simply someone who had been convicted of some crime. So I googles “Trevor Moore donkey”. Only this article came up. Score.
I’d like a Bucholz high-five aswell.
August 29th, 2009 at 7:49 pm
@LordBronco
*you’re a P.O.S.
Just thought I’d point that out.
August 29th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Hey LordBronco, you think you can just come here and use your sophisticated language and obvious bias towards republicanism and hate to insult our beloved Mr. Bucholz. (Don’t get used to it Bucholz, that’s the only time anyone is ever going to call you “Mr.”) Well, may I say that Bucholz is ten times the man that you are. He has an open mind, a great sense of humor, and a level of education and intelligence (I would say sophistication, but…no) that you could never hope to even graze. You sir, are a fucktard.
August 29th, 2009 at 10:59 am
By the time I got to the words “farm animals” I pretty much lost it. Long time since I laughed so hard. Outstanding craftsmanship.
August 28th, 2009 at 6:17 pm
LordBronco’s real name is Tevor. He lives in Ohio. And he loves him some livestock.
-Creativity is dead, and I killed it.
August 28th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Brilliant
August 28th, 2009 at 11:45 am
You forgot about the six-week-old puppy raping.
August 28th, 2009 at 11:39 am
You sir are a professional-but don’t let it go your head.
I imagine copious quanties of botox treatments in your future-and an afterlife scrubbing broilers in Hell.
you sir, are a fucktard, a knave, you are ungentamanley and your a piece of shit.
America’s going to hell-and it’s your fault.
Why can’t our empire collapse quietly in peace?
Short answer: You.
You are the problem.
You’ve been a problem.
You are a problem.
This problem is going to be eliminated.
America has to protect It’s google-and your terrorist acts of questioning Google supremacy are so fucked up- that we are going to rehire Goerge Bush and turn you into a Krispy kreme Popsikle.
You, Sir,are fucked 5 ways from Sunday-and there’s no going back.
Do not read Ain’t it Bale News.Com-because they have foul mouths and talk trash all the time-just like you.
You fucking word terrorist.
August 27th, 2009 at 9:33 am
Brilliant! Make mine a treble
August 27th, 2009 at 3:21 am
[...] articol pe care l-am citit ieri pe Cracked.com – poate că nu reflectă părerile autorului, dat fiind că tot articolul e scris într-o [...]
August 26th, 2009 at 9:24 pm
Negligence is a defense with a public figure, but it won’t work with someone who is an everyday private citizen. There are two standards (presumably because so much gets written about public figures that errors will creep in and a public figure has a soapbox from which to defend themselves). With a public figure you need to prove malice.
August 26th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
by trevor moore do u mean the comedy sketch actor trevor moore?
D:
i love him
lol
but this article amuses me
.__. if u mean a different mr moore please inform me?
August 26th, 2009 at 8:40 pm
I think slander is bullshit if it doesn’t interfere with the slanderee getting a job or succeeding or whatever the case is.
That woman should have said that she *thought* that model was a skank, because then it is opinion as well as being true.
August 26th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
I believe Chis Bucholz is a giant cockbag-douche of shitbrain ancestry
Faggot
August 26th, 2009 at 3:47 pm
this fucking sucked i miss Wolinsky he was actually funny
August 26th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
WTF guys…?
-Trevor
August 26th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio is indeed a dick…no slander here, just facts..
August 26th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
it’s not slander if its print.
it’s libel.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:12 pm
Soooo slander (or as people who know what they’re talking about call it, libel) about some model now qualifies as “something interesting to say”? I don’t know about anyone else, but I think that ranks somewhere between looking through old photo albums with your girlfriend and talking with your grandparents about their various surgeries. And yeah, the ruling in the case does sort of sting, no matter what she was blogging about, but anyone with anything truly interesting or relevant to say will probably have the foresight to do it truly anonymously.
On the plus side, maybe this will finally cut down on all the pointless “trolling” on the internet today. Probably not though.
August 26th, 2009 at 9:35 am
what a great article
August 26th, 2009 at 8:44 am
As an added bonus, I just realized the person talking in that skit is in fact the Trevor Moore this article is about.
August 26th, 2009 at 8:35 am
@lolwut:
Not EVERYTHING is legal to say regarding the president. For a questionably legal example see this.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEQOvyGbBtY
Or if you’re the sort who doesn’t trust mystery URLs search “whitest kids you know it’s illegal to say” on youtube, it’s the first video.
August 26th, 2009 at 5:31 am
Guideline #7. It’s not slander if you write it in a blog. It’s libel
August 26th, 2009 at 2:54 am
DON’T DISS STARGATE, MAN!!!
August 26th, 2009 at 2:46 am
@Alex: The standards of defamation regarding public officials (particularly elected ones) are different. They’re practically non-existent, so anything you say about Obama is legal. See: New York Times v Sullivan (1963).
Also, jurisdiction is a problem, because if the lawsuit is taken up in an American court of law, the defense is likely to get much more sympathetic treatment than in a British court of law. It’s not just an academic problem, either. Plaintiffs with lots of money have been known to transfer their defamation cases over to British courts of law, in the hope of getting more preferencial treatment. British libel laws are notoriously strict. Check ‘libel tourism’ on Wikipedia.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:52 am
This is odd.
How can you know that someones reputation is so bad it cannot be lowered any further? YOU CAN’T its an opinion.
This is exactly why the American legal system fails, so very very hard.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:51 am
Obviously you’re talking about Trevor Moore of WKUK, and your point is that since he isn’t from Greenden, you can claim to be talking about someone else. (Trevor has a popular sketch in which he humorously exploits the loopholes in our restrictions on free speech, and another popular sketch where he plays Hitler, hence “Hitleresque.”) I don’t know if you actually hate him, but if you’re really Canadian and you really do hate him I think I know why, and I agree, and that’s all I’m going to say.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:43 am
Lol imo slander should only be punishable by law if its slander that hurts a company or w/e
If i choose to call Barack Obama a filthy skank, i will call him a filthy skank no matter what some courthouse cockwad tells me.
But then again i do live in Holland were we don’t give a shit about useless things like this.
Ps: Barack Obama isn’t a filthy skank but a sexy, sexy man.
August 26th, 2009 at 12:42 am
I followed your link to Trevor Moore is a Hitleresque Rape monster, and it led me to Pat Buchanan’s page. WHAT DOES IT MEAN.
August 25th, 2009 at 11:41 pm
I think the law in australia also states its not defamation if its used in a comedic or satirical way. im sure they said that in legal studies. So let me go ahead and slander a whole country.. new Zealanders, you all rape sheep!
August 25th, 2009 at 10:52 pm
Wow man.. awesome article. Too bad about Trevor`s ass herpes though huh ?
August 25th, 2009 at 10:43 pm
It’s not the Trevor Moore from WKUK, that guy was born in New Jersey (may God have mercy on his soul).
August 25th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
I would like to see those articles in an undeleted form.
August 25th, 2009 at 10:28 pm
[...] I found a post on cracked.com titled, “How to slander online …”. Yup, the first thing I said was “Let me check that out, because I need some [...]
August 25th, 2009 at 10:21 pm
The very first item is not necessarily true. You still have to have the right to the knowledge in the first place, or it could still be slander even though it is true.
August 25th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Trevor Moore from Whitest Kids U’ Know? What did he do to you?
August 25th, 2009 at 9:36 pm
I dont know who Trevor Moore is but i dont like him
August 25th, 2009 at 9:06 pm
if anominimity online is in threat we will have to go back to sending our enemys/random d-list celebs hate mail with letters cut from catalogues.
did you guys get the one i sent you last week?
August 25th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Awesome.
August 25th, 2009 at 9:04 pm
That New York model fucking skank can go eat sh!t, the Internet is for people who are afraid to speak out their minds in the real world, like me.
give us something damn it!!!!
August 25th, 2009 at 8:23 pm
you can absolutely compile Python if you wanted.
August 25th, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Ha! Python doesn’t have a compiler! It has an interpreter!
August 25th, 2009 at 7:52 pm
Look, I am posing as the person that you were insulting in the article.
Aren’t I creative?
August 25th, 2009 at 7:29 pm
awesome article!!
Bucholz, you’re absolutely my favourite canadian!!
August 25th, 2009 at 7:12 pm
Fuck that skank.
August 25th, 2009 at 6:59 pm
trevor moore is a member of the whitest kids you know. just thought I’d share that
August 25th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
[...] - Cracked’s How to Slander Online Now That Google Won’t Protect You: Guideline #2: The public has an interest in knowing these facts. The “truth” defense doesn’t [...]
August 25th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
This was hilarious. the whole lack of anonymity thing is kind of stupid though, who’s really that concerned with what a random blogger says
August 25th, 2009 at 4:53 pm
Good to see you ripping off some Classic Red Dwarf.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Dear Chris,
Unfortunately, I read this too late to catch the Wiki articles before they were deleted. Loved the titles though. I’m hoping Trevor is a friend or at least a good sport.
Dear Everybody Else,
Those of you lamenting the deleted Wiki pages have forgotten or probably haven’t been visiting here long enough to remember all the fun we had with Biographicon ( http://www.biographicon.com/ ) a while back.
We managed to stay under the radar for a while. For instance: Did you know that DOB once enjoyed scrapbooking and Wayne Gladstone’s real dad is Thurston Howell III ? Of course it didn’t take long for a couple of dick-heads got too obvious & offensive and the moderators there started to lock the biography pages.
(hint: try to keep it good natured & subtle)
August 25th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Stop calling me with death threats, I’m changing my phone number you asshole!
August 25th, 2009 at 4:32 pm
Well Python is actually interpreted, not compiled….
August 25th, 2009 at 4:25 pm
I just laughed until I peed, drooled, and got cramps throughout my entire abdomen. I’ve never laughed so hard in my entire life!
August 25th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
[...] How To Slander Online Now That Google Won’t Protect You – required reading for anyone who slanders others online, which is all of us really. (Cracked) [...]
August 25th, 2009 at 3:13 pm
The 6th amendment starts out with the phrase “In all criminal prosecutions,” and the Bill of Rights only restricts the federal government (and state governments via the 14th.) It doesn’t have anything to do with bloggers. The only way it could would be if a prosecuter wanted to use something from the blog against you in court.
August 25th, 2009 at 2:16 pm
Brilliant!!!
August 25th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
I’m not talking about your right to privacy here though.
Obviously you want a happy medium where your data is protected, your personal files are protected, but you can’t commit crimes (including slander) in perfect anonymity.
There are other rights involved here which are equally important to a functioning society, free speech is popular because everyone wants to do whatever they want with no consequences, and free speech sounds (though it isn’t) a free pass to do that.
The right to face your accuser for example. (6th amendment).
Blogging from the shadows, depriving people of their 6th amendment rights, whilst screaming for your rights to the first?
August 25th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
We laugh at those who don’t know what a proxy is.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
I believe a lot of ISPs were already giving out customer info for the warantless spying program Bush started and Obama is keeping with. That plus the fact Google has been known to work hand-in-hand with the CIA/FBI means this news shouldn’t surprise anyone.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
That’s true, Omar. I just don’t like the idea of my information being shared on the internet. I know, I know, it’s nothing really devious like my real name, but it just comes back from that paranoia my mother instilled in me when I first got on the internet.
I could go through the huge lecture I got, but in a nutshell: “Internet goers are all rapists and pedophiles and if they ever discover you real name, they’ll track you down and rape you.”
Of course, I know now that she was only partly right.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Eventually internet anonymity will be gone, and everyone will have some kind of “internet passport” which will identify you (or your computer, or household - doesn’t matter). I think it is unavoidable, but no one knows how much time it will take.
The bad thing - you will have to care about what you say. The good thing - you won’t have to register on every site that supports “passport” anymore.
And about free speech. Free speech should be protected as long as it doesn’t violate any other laws. Which is kind of difficult.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
I was pissed to high heaven when I first got word of this. Only reason the lil ho-bag is doing this is so her name becomes relevant again and appears all over. It’s working, as I see even Cracked here posted an article xD but not in the good way I think she hoped. On a side note, thepiratebay’s reaction to this was to make the site http://www.baywords.com enjoy <3
August 25th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
Another good guideline:
Celebrities, or anyone normally in the “eye of the public” are an exception to most defamation laws. You could pretty easily infer this, considering how much shit is talked on basically every celebrity there is. I mean, it’s basically their job to accept it.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
Just to add.
You can’t do something like shout fire in a crowded stadium causing hundreds of people to die and hide behind your ISP. You can’t change road signs around or just add them to the highways as part of free speech.
You are not guaranteed anonymity, and you shouldn’t be guaranteed anonymity just because you don’t have the balls to say it out loud, to the person, or worse yet, if you said it out loud someone would put all your poorly reasoned argument in its place in 2 seconds flat.
That’s why you do it from a shady corner of the internet. It’s not as scary.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
hahaha awesome =) great article
August 25th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
I saw the model on the news earlier in the week. From what she said, it sounds like she filed the lawsuit because the blogger was costing her jobs. There’s a fine line between attacking someone anonymously that you don’t like, and continued harassment of that person. And it turned out to be someone she knew.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
To be honest I don’t see why they should be protected.
You have the right to free speech. Not the right to free speech in anonymity without regard for harm or veracity of claims.
If you have the kind of free speech where it’s internet commentary, it degrades legitimate free speech. What is the point of free speech in a torrent of drivel and bullshit effectively from internet trolls of a grander scale? There is none. You lose that freedom to internal abuse rather than external political force. You are making freedom of speech worthless.
August 25th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
V. funny
August 25th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
privacy on the internet doesnt exist
decent article
August 25th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Good one
And like R said, Google now suggest Trevor Moore Green Ohio…
August 25th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
Mildly amusing.
Although I am disturbed by the precedent the court case sets for Internet commentary. It seems that privacy on the Internet isn’t as strong as we think it is.
August 25th, 2009 at 12:34 pm
I for one feel that this Cohen individual sounds to be a whiny little super-skank incapable of the most limited forms of usefulness outside of being used as a test-tube to brew various forms of superaids and other incurable venereal diseases and I feel that there is little doubt that without timely action her ungodly venereal apocalypse will bring about life to the dead and end the world as we now know it, but once again that is just my opinion.
August 25th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
Random comments on the internet by an anonymous character is not “slander.” We’re all going to get dissed at some point in our lives, and someone’s twitter, blog, etc. is probably the most obscure place for it to happen. Slander only involves cases where the material could seriously damage somebody’s reputation. The average blogger doesn’t get that many hits per day. If we’re actually concerned about internet blogging becoming a serious venue for slander, we need to get our heads on straight.
And kudos, by the way, for the article, I giggled multiple times.
August 25th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
It’s not funny but it’s like good advice.
August 25th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
I think it’s noteworthy that “Trevor Moore Green Ohio” Is popping up on Google quick search now…
August 25th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
I wonder how many people googled the name Trevor Moore after reading this article. *raises hand slowly*
I’m a tad surprised how many Trevor Moore’s there are. Just looking at the responses to this article I have spotted at least 4, all of which believe they are the most unique and creative Trevor Moore. That being the case I think that farmers are going to have to keep a much closer eye on their livestock.
August 25th, 2009 at 11:30 am
I think that a lot of people should make their own blogs with an untracable IP and insult Cohen just to piss her off.
August 25th, 2009 at 11:19 am
Opinion of someone may or may not be slander. but if an asshole is an asshole nothing in the law that protects against that…
August 25th, 2009 at 11:01 am
ORWELL BIG BROTHER JACKBOOTS I’M A STUPID NERD LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
August 25th, 2009 at 10:57 am
Or could I do the Fox news approach?
“Is Trevor Moore really a shit necked-Hitler-esque-rape-monster?”
August 25th, 2009 at 10:55 am
Is the “nah I was just kidding” defense acceptable too?
August 25th, 2009 at 10:48 am
I am Trevor Moore and I confirm that I am, indeed, a shitnecked Hitler-esque rape-monster.
August 25th, 2009 at 10:46 am
I for one hope that the blogger who called Cohen a skank tries to use Guideline 1 as an affirmative defense if the defamation case goes to trial. Not because Cohen is a skank (Super ass-saving powers activated!), but because it would be hilarious.
August 25th, 2009 at 10:35 am
Sort of like the NEW CA?! http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1292175/
Bwwwahahahahahhaaa!!!!
August 25th, 2009 at 10:34 am
Wonder if this means that they’ll just cancel my gf’s “Gossip Girl” Seems like that was the general plot. Silver linings, right?
August 25th, 2009 at 10:06 am
dude. DUDE. why diss Stargate yo.
August 25th, 2009 at 10:01 am
I have a sports blog where I make up shit, like Bill Belichick hiding bodies under his floorboards, ESPN troops capturing Paris, etc. etc. etc. Am I in trouble? It’s just harmless satire, after all.
August 25th, 2009 at 10:00 am
The laws on this planet really need to catch up with the
technology. You can say whatever you want if you say that it’s alleged. People hear ‘alleged’ and that’s enough for them to believe it. Even if the allegation came from a man walking down the street spouting nonsense.
Anyways, this is a frigging hilarious article, as always!
August 25th, 2009 at 9:57 am
loser- lmfao!!! you’re right!!!
August 25th, 2009 at 9:56 am
I love the the taste of dick in the morning.
August 25th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Hey look, I can be anonymous on the Internet.
Yours
TM
darn
August 25th, 2009 at 9:48 am
Funny, the Trevor Moore from Whitest Kids You Know does a sketch very similar to the last guideline, and now that I think about it, the entire article.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEQOvyGbBtY
Funny piece.
August 25th, 2009 at 9:43 am
I FUCKING hate that man, because this article made him appear as a childmolesting, farmanimalfucking, societydestroying rape monster!
August 25th, 2009 at 9:35 am
The “turn an accusation into a question” is popular on Foxnews.com. The opinion pages contain tons of headlines like “Will Obama’s Nazism Force Us To Rape Our Cats?” and “Are All Democrats Pedophile Race-Mixers?” It’s pretty brilliant, especially because it allows you to weave a dense web of misinformed lies and then frame it as hypothetical musings.
August 25th, 2009 at 9:28 am
I… I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t read the rest of the article once I got to the picture of a bald eagle kicking Thomas Jefferson right the fuck in the face.
August 25th, 2009 at 9:27 am
Funny article, although the last guideline was pretty predictable.
August 25th, 2009 at 9:04 am
So if I were to reply that this article was hilarious then I could no longer use Guideline #4 in defense of my Trevor Moore Sucks blog when I quote the above statements.
August 25th, 2009 at 8:59 am
I think the article’s taking a shot at the comedian Trevor Moore, and Bucholz is consistently mentioning a fake hometown so as to avoid stating that he means the (sort of) well known comedian.
So he’s hiding another helpful bit of info in here: use the same name with a few bogus facts, and your defense can consistently claim you were never referring to the celebrity trying to sue you. This does suck though - I would say this is a new era that puts the first amendment in danger, but realistically the first amendment has always had limitations depending on how much money the person who’s being made fun of has, and whether they can suck off a judge effectively or not.
Slander’s almost always been an issue you could be taken to court for in the US, so nothing really changes here… except that by slyly using a slander case, the US government has gotten its foot in the door and can now effectively subpoena google for any information it wants to about you. Orwell was right, just 25 years early (he forgot to consider how stupid we are and thus figured ‘84 tech would be awesome).
August 25th, 2009 at 8:57 am
I am being threatened with libel when I have told the truth. I am in the UK, the people I wrote about are in China but they are acting against me in Australia which has repressive libel laws where they can make any accusations they want in court and the onus is on me to prove that everything I said was the absolute truth. And to prove this will cost me over £200,000.
So basically they are abusing the legal system to get fair criticism removed from the web. More here: http://www.bruceongames.com/2009/08/25/evony-want-to-sue-me-for-telling-the-truth/
August 25th, 2009 at 8:52 am
I like how the Wikipedia article linked under lawyer has been deleted. I wonder if Bucholz just made that page for the sake of this article or if it really was on Wikipedia.
August 25th, 2009 at 8:48 am
I tried to check your sources, but they didn’t work. Why has no one made those pages on Wikipedia about Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio being a Hitleresque Rape Monster?
August 25th, 2009 at 8:26 am
Nicely done.
I agree Trevor Moore of Greenden is evil.
And whenever he will google “Trevor Moore of Greenden” out of his sheer smugness he will find this page as first result. take that you bastard.
I assume he is bogus.
If not I just follow Buchholzes propaganda.
August 25th, 2009 at 8:18 am
An important thing to remember, is the the newspaper approach – simply add a question mark at the end for example – Does Trevor Moore of Greenden, Ohio fuck goats?
And you are in the clear baby. Very funny article BTW.
August 25th, 2009 at 8:17 am
Ah! But you forgot to account for my nefarious Wikipedia Editor connections!
I’ll see you in court!
August 25th, 2009 at 8:12 am
Stop reading this shit! He’s lying!
August 25th, 2009 at 8:09 am
[...] here and more info here at encyclopedia dramatica [...]
August 25th, 2009 at 7:41 am
somehow i think the story of what mr. moore did to get called a hitler-esque rape monster that is a danger to young boys and farm animals might be even funnier (although i’m sure just the offense of driving a tercel might be bad enough -_- ).
August 25th, 2009 at 7:32 am
Beautiful, Bucholz. I dislike most of your fake stuff, but this was littered with enough half-truths to make it funny again. Loverly, and such.
August 25th, 2009 at 7:31 am
you, sir, are an absolute genius.
August 25th, 2009 at 7:29 am
Trevor Moore from the WKUK? lol, had to put it. They mention some city in Ohio alot in their skits so I have to wonder if there is a connection…
August 25th, 2009 at 7:24 am
They’re really sticking it to that Trevor Moore guy again. He must work there or something.
August 25th, 2009 at 7:19 am
Wikipedia’s Grammar and Content Police removed your pages
so much for your LAWYER…….. get a new one. He lied. 
Great article, if only those wiki pages worked i could have revelled in the awesome glory that is internet anonymity.
As for Wikipedia, iThey are Grammar Nazis and Fun Police. Makes me sads. and by Nazi, (to protect my self) i mean National Socialists, political party members. Not the mean ones. Oh no.
August 25th, 2009 at 7:12 am
Fuck you! What I did is legal in some countries!
August 25th, 2009 at 6:42 am
Ummm.. BK Cope… seriously? You don’t get that this is a humor site, do you? I bet people laugh at you a lot, and you have no idea why.
I’d like to also state that Tyra Banks is the slithering spawn of the underworld and must be killed before she corrupts the human race any further.
August 25th, 2009 at 6:37 am
Now I feel bad for being a “computer type” but I’m sure I’ll feel better when I’m happily slandering people and downloading pirated material long after you peons have fallen foul of the authorities.
August 25th, 2009 at 6:35 am
The writer of this article is a swine due to convincing people to continue being ethically unaccountable for their slander that destroys good people - may you get the dose your deserve for teaching people how to be deceitful and hateful!
August 25th, 2009 at 6:26 am
This article was law of Tort; defamation 101. We had memorize all those points for our exam…
August 25th, 2009 at 6:25 am
Interestingly enough, following the Wikipedia links to a page eventually gets you to Pat Buchanan… and no one else. Is Wikipedia suggesting that Pat Buchanan is a Hitler’s Rape Monster?
August 25th, 2009 at 5:56 am
Chris, if you were seanbaby or Swaim, someone would have already made a wiki entry for Trevor Moore Is A Hitleresque Rape Monster. How does it feel to be the unpopular one?
August 25th, 2009 at 5:54 am
” a polyp embedded in the rectum of evil”. Sigh. Poetry at its best.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:53 am
I demand to know the identity of Dr. Chaos. Let us all file suit upon this internet abomination!!!
August 25th, 2009 at 5:52 am
It appears the political cartoon has something against Godwin’s law too. Bet the artist was a Nazi.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:40 am
I don’t think Trevor Moore is a real person. Bucholz, you dirty liar.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:39 am
so a case which ruled against someone for using “skank” as an adjective is now dubbed the “skank” case?
would that entail many potential lawsuites, or not since the skank’s rep has already been damaged?
August 25th, 2009 at 5:39 am
Even as an Englishman I find that blatant flouting of the first amendment to be pretty out of line!
Plus, we already know most models are skanks!
August 25th, 2009 at 5:39 am
This isn’t funny.
Save your public rights protest for a forum that wants to hear it, shut the fuck up and make with the funny.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:35 am
I heard about this case last week, and though even after reading the linked article I still don’t know much about it, so I’m going with the knee-jerk reaction that’s so common on the internet; fuck this skank. As the linked article wisely pointed out, all the plaintiff did was insure that lots more people will all her a skank. What a moronic short sighted skank. Did she (the skank) honestly think that anything positive would come from this? What a stupid, intensely invasive cum dumpster this feces eating whore is (I openly invite anyone who actually cares about this to come find me IRL, because anyone who actually cares about any of this is someone who’s life is so boring and shitty that I’d like to meat them to make myself feel better)
Everyone SHOULD know that nothing should be taken particularly seriously on the Internet. I can understand people being concerned with real harassment, such as an overwhelming number of death threats, but some petty name calling? Man.
Well, if/when 4chan hears about this I’m sure they’ll “hack” this lady’s social networking accounts and send her lot’s of pizzas. That…of if they can find nudes images of her online they’ll “fapfapfap” and leave it at that.
Also, fuck Trevor Moore of Camden Ohio with his previously violated farm animals, repeatedly and savagely. As Always, great article you dirty Canadian bukakke-receiving gutter whore. Bucholz > all.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:34 am
Good for Ms. Cohen. That blogger would have continued making jerkass comments if Google hadn’t exposed that person.
And if that wasn’t enough, said person was someone Cohen knew.
Anonymous is often used as horrible, horrible weapon.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:33 am
Gr8 article, what was the Judge’s Name?
I bet there’s some good Sh*t on them!
August 25th, 2009 at 5:30 am
I wonder if by the end of the article, Bucholz was sick of writing “Trevor Moore from Greendon, Ohio”.
Well done, Bucholz! You’re the only person alive that can make litigation hilarious.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:30 am
All I know is the only Trevor Moore I know is the WKUK guy and if he was a rape monster he severely missed out last week with a few hundred hot 20 somethings that were willing.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:28 am
Would hate to be that guy..
August 25th, 2009 at 5:13 am
Good on the Ms. Cohen. A skank is someone, usually with low self-esteem, who uses their body to try to get attention whereas a model is…oh.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:12 am
Nice article!
As far as this model is concerned, who the hell cares if you are a skank out on the town in NYC? Hmmm? Apparently only you.
However, if this were a column in a newspaper with an anonymous author, that person would, at the very least, be fired and no longer in that paper.
I mean, people, cmon! What makes the world go around? MONEY. Which in today’s world equals POWER. Just the way it is. *yawns*
August 25th, 2009 at 5:06 am
I’d like to meet this Trevor Moore fellow.
August 25th, 2009 at 5:00 am
There has never been a better time to mask your real IP address in pretty mmuch anything you do online! Anonymity is key!
Jess
http://www.anonymity.se.tc
August 25th, 2009 at 4:58 am
Point of order: The shank in question dropped the lawsuit after the subpoena revealed the name of the blogger, presumably because a lawsuit would be difficult to prosecute. It’s fairly probable that the subpoena was the goal of the lawsuit.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:57 am
Why didn’t you slander DOB.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:43 am
My brother is trevor moore
August 25th, 2009 at 4:42 am
This is all libel, not slander. But otherwise it’s awesome
August 25th, 2009 at 4:33 am
Who the hell is Trevor Moore?
Good article by the way!
August 25th, 2009 at 4:30 am
Trevor Moore raped my father and beat my sister unfairly in a game of Chutes and Ladders.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:30 am
The reason why this bitch was able to get Google to publish the guy’s name was because she was a supermodel and could afford the best lawyers in the country. And the judge was one of those old bags who think the internet is some dangerous newfangled thingy those commies like to use to spread propaganda and shit like that. Why Google never appealed is beyond me.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:29 am
Don’t worry everyone. There isn’t even a Greenden, Ohio in existence. We are safe from Mr. Moore.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:26 am
And as we all know, Wikipedia is always right. Now we just need someone to make those articles.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:18 am
Class! If i was trevor moore I’d be happy to be the subject of such a comprehensive ‘how to’ guide.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:16 am
I, sir, am appalled at the outright lies you have written about me. I shall be preparing my rebuttal promptly. You shall hear from me in due course.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:16 am
Good article. The Wikipedia motif was a nice touch. Do you watch The Whitest Kids U’Know, or was the choice of the name “Trevor Moore” purely coincidental?
August 25th, 2009 at 4:14 am
Bastard!
August 25th, 2009 at 4:13 am
It seems very odd to me that a humor site would forget the most important way to libel/slander people: satire. As long as you can convince people that it was all a joke, and you never in a million years thought people would take your outrageous claims seriously, you’re in the clear.
You need a better lawyer.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:11 am
My friend recommended me a very interesting place _____Meet Wealthy com_____*** It’s where wealthy singles looking for someone to enjoy their wealthy lifestyle with.
August 25th, 2009 at 4:07 am
hahahaha eat it trevor moore
August 25th, 2009 at 4:06 am
Great article Bucholz.