Law Commons^™

Immunizing Internet Service Providers From Third-Party Internet Defamation Claims: How Far Should Courts Go?, Sewali K. Patel

Vanderbilt Law Review

On April 25, 1995, a notice titled "Naughty Oklahoma T- shirts" appeared on an America Online ("AOL") bulletin board. The notice advertised T-shirts with slogans such as "Visit Oklahoma... It's a BLAST!" and "Putting the kids to bed ... Oklahoma 1995." In short, the notice glorified the Oklahoma City bombings of 1995, which killed 168 people. Under the only known identity of "Ken ZZ03," the author invited readers to call "Ken" at the listed phone number, which belonged to a Mr. Kenneth Zeran. While Mr. Zeran's first name was in fact Ken, Mr. Zeran was not responsible for posting the …