by the PinoySpy Reporter
Move over, problogger. Make way for the pro-debtblogger.
The emergence of the Brian Gorrell blog has extended the possibilities of blogging, from mere self-expression to making money online and now — debt-collection.
Brian Gorrell has inspired abandoned children, neglected mistresses, spurned lovers, estranged spouses to now consider the possibility of blogging to collect debts, whether monetary or moral.
Abandoned by your father? Then make a blog and ask for child support. Your sugardaddy stopped giving you money? Blog about your life as a mistress and shame him.
This kind of blogging now presents a new situation for bloghosting services such as Google’s Blogger (Blogspot) which at this moment is being pressured to shut down the blog (as Mr. Gorrell himself said). How do you balance the freedom of speech and expression on the Internet with the individual right to privacy, not to mention laws on libel and defamation?
Blogger (Blogspot) has hand-off policy concerning content that people put on their blogs. Quoting their terms of service:
Much of the content of Blogger.com and Blogspot.com — including the contents of specific postings — is provided by and is the responsibility of the person or people who made such postings. Google does not monitor the content of Blogger.com and Blogspot.com, and takes no responsibility for such content. Instead, Google merely provides access to such content as a service to you.
This would be Blogger’s standard reply to anybody asking to remove a certain blog post or an entire blog on Blogspot. Blogger would also tell any complainant to instead contact the person about the content he posted, which is like saying: Good luck.
Further:
By their very nature, Blogger.com and Blogspot.com may carry offensive, harmful, inaccurate or otherwise inappropriate material, or in some cases, postings that have been mislabeled or are otherwise deceptive. We expect that you will use caution and common sense and exercise proper judgment when using Blogger.com and Blogspot.com.
Google does not endorse, support, represent or guarantee the truthfulness, accuracy, or reliability of any communications posted via the Service or endorse any opinions expressed via the Service. You acknowledge that any reliance on material posted via the Service will be at your own risk.
At this stage, for Google to remove the Brian Gorrell blog on the basis of its content or Gorrell’s motivations would be a big slap on the face of freedom of speech, and will erode the public’s confidence on Blogger as a reliable venue of self-expression. It would in fact be a big slap on blogging itself.
RELATED POSTS
+Brian Gorrell’s online existence depends on Google+Scam alert: Don’t fall for get rich quick, work-at-home scams
+Unemployed man finds 10 grand in mailbox
+Manny Pacquiao takes college entrance test in Notre Dame of Dadiangas University
+Russia: Couples told to skip work and make babies!
