In a decision that could set the tone for journalism in the digital age, a California appeals court ruled Friday that bloggers, like traditional reporters, have the right to keep their sources confidential.
A panel of three judges said in a 69-page decision that a group of bloggers did not have to divulge their sources to Cupertino's Apple Computer Inc., contending that the same laws that protect traditional journalists, the First Amendment and California's Shield Law, also apply to bloggers.
Siding with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a high-tech legal group that had filed the appeal, the judges said that Apple could not force the bloggers to reveal the identity of the person -- presumably an Apple employee -- who had leaked details about a digital-music-related project code-named "Asteroid" to a number of bloggers. The details of the product release were published on several Web logs, Internet sites commonly referred to as blogs, including Jason O'Grady's PowerPage, which reports on Apple news.
"This was a huge win for the First Amendment and for journalists who publish online," said Lauren Gelman, associate director for Stanford's Center for Internet and Society, who filed a brief supporting the Electronic Frontier Foundation. "The court recognized that in the modern era, one way journalists publish information is through the Internet."
The decision by the state Court of Appeal in San Jose, which reverses a ruling by the Santa Clara County Superior Court, speaks to changes in the way news is gathered and published. Anyone with a computer and an Internet connection can now be a reporter. It also means that information, not limited by region or resources, can reach far and wide via the Web.
In their ruling, the judges said the online news sites should be treated as newspapers, television and radio broadcasts are. O'Grady and the other bloggers, they contended, were acting as traditional reporters and editors do: developing sources, collecting information and publishing it, albeit on the Web.
"The shield law is intended to protect the gathering and dissemination of news, and that is what the petitioners did here," the judges said in the ruling.
Apple had initially argued that the bloggers shouldn't be considered journalists. The maker of the popular iPod digital music player, along with other Bay Area high-tech companies such as Intel Corp. and Genentech, also were concerned that the Internet had made it easy for the bloggers to make their trade secrets public, potentially giving their competitors an edge and harming their business.
But Kurt Opsahl, an attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said the companies can still protect their businesses but cannot use reporters as their first resort to expose a leak.
"The court upheld strong protections for the free flow of information to the press and from the press to the public," Opsahl said.
In addition, the judges ruled that, in the digital age, bloggers' e-mails should also be protected, just like a telephone call or written document. Apple had not sued the bloggers directly but had tried to subpoena their Internet service provider, which had access to the e-mails sent between the confidential source and the bloggers. The Electronic Frontier Foundation, representing the bloggers, intervened.
In the end, the judges made little distinction between online journalists and traditional journalists.
"Does Walter Cronkite stop being a journalist if he blogs for the Huffington Post (an online news site)?" Opsahl said. "What makes a journalist a journalist is not the format. If you're engaged in journalism, you're a journalist. You have to look beyond the medium selected."
George Riley, an outside attorney representing Apple, declined to comment. Apple did not return calls for comment. It was not clear whether the company would appeal.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/05/27/MNGTGJ3K7S1.DTL
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