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Schools and facebook stuff

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tranquility

Senior Member
"Mrs Teacher = B****" is libel.
No, it isn't. Not in the back of your mind, not in some academic angels on the head of a pin or in any other way. It is not a legally actionable phrase no matter the context. (I take that back. If one were putting out a dog for stud called "Mrs Teacher" and the above were alleged, THEN you might have a defamation.) You can go to wikipedia, you can get an attorney, you can imagine all you will, but calling another that name is not libel. Period. By even making this an issue you look foolish. If you want to discuss the legal issues I will.

As to the rest, res ipsa loquitur.

Walk it back edit:
I can actually imagine other facts which could make the phrase actionable other than the one I provided. I take back "no matter the context" and change it to "in this context".
 
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divona2000

Senior Member
...the AP wants to see me and he asks me for access to my facebook page. And I was like, umm no. He wanted me to log in or give him my log in. So then he said I'd get suspended...I still refused to give my log in...I've ended up getting suspended for a few days...
dc$, what was the exact reason you were suspended?
All this free speech arguing might be irrelevant if OP was suspended just for refusing to provide the log-in.

...Facebook has ultimate control and authority over all accounts, and it has very explicit policies with regard to account sharing...I believe it violates FB's TOS to give one's log-in information to another person...did the school force OP to commit a civil violation?
Back to Charlotte's post--Facebook rules do state in part:

"You will not share your password...let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account."
"You will not transfer any of your rights or obligations under this Statement to anyone else without our consent."
"If you violate the letter or spirit of this Statement, or otherwise create risk or possible legal exposure for us, we can stop providing all or part of Facebook to you."
 

dc$

Junior Member
To dc$, believe me everyone here has done exactly what you have done in our lives. And, almost assuredly, far worse. The difference is, we did it with a whisper to a friend or with a barbaric yalp with our posse, clique, group of malcontents/misfits/sport team--whatever. This newfangled interwebs thingy is confusing to us when a whisper/yalp to friends can be spread to all in a moment for them to do with as they will. We fear your power to communicate with anyone and everyone with ease with whatever you choose. An internet meme can change the world.

Personally? I don't think you did anything wrong. I think a part of growing up is learning to challenge authority appropriately. I think the public square is best place to make those challenges. Putting ideas out into the open....well, look at my signature quote. We can only hope when all look at things stupid is squashed and enlightened is lifted, even though we know with the nature of humankind the reverse can often happen because of petty issues. One price of freedom is you have to accept the problems with free speech if you want to savor the benefits. The problems are multiplied when speech can simultaneously reach an entire population—or appropriate sub-populations based on whatever criteria people self-divide. While I have grown up through the explosion of computers to the internet and have a pretty good understanding of the technical issues of how it all works, the sociological changes are simply not in my heart. I don't think anyone over a certain age understands how things are different today.

All that being said, there are many complications as well. Look at the cases I've cited and follow the relevant cases the courts cited too. If you read the three fairly recent Supreme Court cases regarding student speech, you'll find how the courts try to address the issue for everyone even before they know what the specific facts are of what happened when we ask similar questions later in life. You'll find the issues get down to if the speech is in school or out (and what that means) and what types of speech can be actionable by the school. (A good page with summaries [I recommend going to the actual cases, however.] is at: http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/studentspeech.htm ) The cool thing is, I GUARANTEE you could get a paper or research project out of it for some class. Think of it, homework which is fun! Not only that, you will learn much more. You will gain power. Use it well.
Cool post. Thanks.
Yeah, I will read stuff while I keep trying to figure it all out. Thanks for giving me links.
I fear my power to communicate with anyone and everyone with ease too!
 

dc$

Junior Member
"Mrs Teacher = B****" is libel.

Here's the definition.

is the communication of a statement that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an individual, business, product, group, government, or nation a negative image. This can be also any disparaging statement made by one person about another, which is communicated or published, whether true or false, depending on legal state.
So what's the difference between libel and having an opinion of someone that you don't really like (if you state your opinion doesn't it give a negative image?)

You can access FB from any mobile device. Students don't realize that it is still "during the school day" from their own phone.
Yeah but you're not meant to. My point was, if it was being accessed during school time, if it was introduced to school campus that way - it was by people breaking the rules over that to start with.

Not the same. Not what happened.
This is maybe a dumb question, but it's part of what I don't understand. This is why I keep trying to figure out if how writing/technology are related.
So. Is stuff posted on facebook legally considered 'published'? Why?
Is it the writing and the sharing? Is it the technology? What's going on??
That's why I brought up writing it on a piece of paper and showing it to friends - ok, so that's 'communicated', same as on facebook. Both are 'communicated'.
If I put it on facebook, to share with friends, with my privacy control settings - is that 'published'? But if I write it on a piece of paper and hand it round the same friends - it's not 'published'?
 

dc$

Junior Member
dc$, what was the exact reason you were suspended?
All this free speech arguing might be irrelevant if OP was suspended just for refusing to provide the log-in.
They said I disrupted school. That I was the source of what was going around.
THough I think the exact reason is more because they were annoyed.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
They said I disrupted school. That I was the source of what was going around.
THough I think the exact reason is more because they were annoyed.
So do you want to fight it? Are you going to fight it? How far are you going to take it?
 

tranquility

Senior Member
So. Is stuff posted on facebook legally considered 'published'? Why?
Yes. When speaking of publication in the sense of the defamation torts (slander, libel), publication is any intentional or reckless transference of the false and defamatory statement to another. "Publication" can mean telling one other person or putting it on the front page of the newspaper.
 

tranquility

Senior Member
While clearly necroposting, here's a case with extensive discussion and links to related cases on the matter for those who do a search.

R.S. v. Minnewaska Area Sch. Dist

http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=8557869744736747334&hl=en&as_sdt=2&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr
 

Antigone*

Senior Member
While clearly necroposting, here's a case with extensive discussion and links to related cases on the matter for those who do a search.

R.S. v. Minnewaska Area Sch. Dist

http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=8557869744736747334&hl=en&as_sdt=2&as_vis=1&oi=scholarr
Very interesting!!!

oh yea - what's up with the necroposting, now go pour me a drink!:p
 

JudibeeFL

Junior Member
Oy Vais! Humusluvr is correct here!

Yes he did. Virtually. It came to school. Welcome to the 21st century!
Oy Vais, Humus! I am just now accessing this thread! I agree with you on this. The incident began with OP creating his Face Book post. As any Face Book user knows anything you write on FB walls everyone gets to see. Yes there are privacy settings. OP had his set to where his friends were able to read them because the original post goes to the friends' pages. The friends then replied back to OP. Now you just never know what is going to offend others. Obviously, one friend did not approve of OP's actions or the reactions of OP's friends that responded. A conversation about the FB began and ensued at the school. Now it became a school matter. Had OP not made that comment on FB, there would have been nothing to talk about at the school. OP instigated, whether he knew it at the time or not, the conversations that came up at the school. It seems obvious that OP knew that if the principal saw what he had written his punishment could have been much worse so he covered up his FB account information by refusing to comply with the principal's request to view the page! (To me that is admission of guilt right there!) Were free speech rights violated? Not in this case. Your rights to freedom of speech to have boundaries; your freedoms end where another person's freedom to live in peace and harmony begin. It is very clear that OP did not think of how others would respond to his message nor did he realize how fast that his message can get to others and offend them with the use of social networks ilke Face Book.

The principal was with in his rights to suspend OP for 3 days. OP got off easy there. I know of cases where the ISS and or OSS punishments were much longer. There are federal cases that have dealt with similar issues; Tinker vs. DesMoines, Bethel vs Fraser to name a few. Look the cases up. They will open your eyes to a few things.

JudibeeFL
 

CSO286

Senior Member
Oy Vais, Humus! I am just now accessing this thread! I agree with you on this. The incident began with OP creating his Face Book post. As any Face Book user knows anything you write on FB walls everyone gets to see. Yes there are privacy settings. OP had his set to where his friends were able to read them because the original post goes to the friends' pages. The friends then replied back to OP. Now you just never know what is going to offend others. Obviously, one friend did not approve of OP's actions or the reactions of OP's friends that responded. A conversation about the FB began and ensued at the school. Now it became a school matter. Had OP not made that comment on FB, there would have been nothing to talk about at the school. OP instigated, whether he knew it at the time or not, the conversations that came up at the school. It seems obvious that OP knew that if the principal saw what he had written his punishment could have been much worse so he covered up his FB account information by refusing to comply with the principal's request to view the page! (To me that is admission of guilt right there!) Were free speech rights violated? Not in this case. Your rights to freedom of speech to have boundaries; your freedoms end where another person's freedom to live in peace and harmony begin. It is very clear that OP did not think of how others would respond to his message nor did he realize how fast that his message can get to others and offend them with the use of social networks ilke Face Book.

The principal was with in his rights to suspend OP for 3 days. OP got off easy there. I know of cases where the ISS and or OSS punishments were much longer. There are federal cases that have dealt with similar issues; Tinker vs. DesMoines, Bethel vs Fraser to name a few. Look the cases up. They will open your eyes to a few things.

JudibeeFL


You signed in in just so you could add your two cents to a thread that is six months old? Really?

Have a macaroon.
 

tranquility

Senior Member
Oy Vais, Humus! I am just now accessing this thread! I agree with you on this. The incident began with OP creating his Face Book post. As any Face Book user knows anything you write on FB walls everyone gets to see. Yes there are privacy settings. OP had his set to where his friends were able to read them because the original post goes to the friends' pages. The friends then replied back to OP. Now you just never know what is going to offend others. Obviously, one friend did not approve of OP's actions or the reactions of OP's friends that responded. A conversation about the FB began and ensued at the school. Now it became a school matter. Had OP not made that comment on FB, there would have been nothing to talk about at the school. OP instigated, whether he knew it at the time or not, the conversations that came up at the school. It seems obvious that OP knew that if the principal saw what he had written his punishment could have been much worse so he covered up his FB account information by refusing to comply with the principal's request to view the page! (To me that is admission of guilt right there!) Were free speech rights violated? Not in this case. Your rights to freedom of speech to have boundaries; your freedoms end where another person's freedom to live in peace and harmony begin. It is very clear that OP did not think of how others would respond to his message nor did he realize how fast that his message can get to others and offend them with the use of social networks ilke Face Book.

The principal was with in his rights to suspend OP for 3 days. OP got off easy there. I know of cases where the ISS and or OSS punishments were much longer. There are federal cases that have dealt with similar issues; Tinker vs. DesMoines, Bethel vs Fraser to name a few. Look the cases up. They will open your eyes to a few things.

JudibeeFL
The cases you "cite" come to the opposite conclusion. This thread had substantial legal references. Before you necropost again, perhaps you should at least read and understand the thread. You make yourself look like a troll.
 

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