...I'm not a lawyer, but I've had professionals counsel me enough on this. And it's a timely subject WRT the Pitino scandal.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion and free to speak it publicly (although not applicable to a message board). It also needs to be couched or prefaced as your opinion.
When you say something on a factual basis--"Pitino is a crook"--that makes no mention of yours or anyone's opinion, that comment needs to be supported by facts. It matters whether you say "it's my opinion" or "I think" beforehand. And be prepared to argue those facts, not offer a flippant "it's obvious". In our society, you have to prove someone's guilt or responsibility when you allege something.
There are any number of examples in this space over the last 48 hours where posters have defamed Pitino. And it probably matters more on this, a free message board, than if you said it on the premium page. If you said factually that he broke the law or did something that broke the law, that's a higher level of defamation--"per se"--where the damages are presumed and merely have to be quantified (the tough part).
I don't think Pitino's suing anyone here. But as a matter of practice, you're better off telling people how you feel or think and not what you know factually unless it's complimentary. It's the reason that although I think Pitino deserved to be fired, you don't see me saying unequivocally that he did anything more. At a minimum, it's bad form...
Everyone is entitled to their opinion and free to speak it publicly (although not applicable to a message board). It also needs to be couched or prefaced as your opinion.
When you say something on a factual basis--"Pitino is a crook"--that makes no mention of yours or anyone's opinion, that comment needs to be supported by facts. It matters whether you say "it's my opinion" or "I think" beforehand. And be prepared to argue those facts, not offer a flippant "it's obvious". In our society, you have to prove someone's guilt or responsibility when you allege something.
There are any number of examples in this space over the last 48 hours where posters have defamed Pitino. And it probably matters more on this, a free message board, than if you said it on the premium page. If you said factually that he broke the law or did something that broke the law, that's a higher level of defamation--"per se"--where the damages are presumed and merely have to be quantified (the tough part).
I don't think Pitino's suing anyone here. But as a matter of practice, you're better off telling people how you feel or think and not what you know factually unless it's complimentary. It's the reason that although I think Pitino deserved to be fired, you don't see me saying unequivocally that he did anything more. At a minimum, it's bad form...
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