• LAVA Moderator: Shinji Ikari

Use of Twitter - Libel?

EU4RIK

Bluelighter
Joined
May 23, 2010
Messages
169
i have a friend, male, who tweeted something about a teacher that smelt of alcohol, and got a suspension for doing so. isnt this a violation of freedom of speech? he never accused or said he was drinking just that he smelt it. whos in the wrong here? now i dont agree with posting something like that on such a public forum but should they be punished?
 
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Are you sure you have the whole story?

If a teacher tweeted about a student would it be equally a free speech issue? Smelt of alcohol and drunk are the same accusation are they not? This sort of thing could result in someone's termination or damage to their reputation. Accusations or stories traceable to a specific person that carry heavy consequences should be treated seriously by the school. Strikes me as malicious gossip which people get away with all the time but when it is traceable and no proof is available for the accusation I find a suspension quite reasonable.
 
Probably should be moved to Legal Discussion...

First, not really familiar with Canadian laws.

Children also do not have the same rights as adults.
http://www.educator-resources.com/pdf/Teacher Tort Liability.pdf

Further, In loco parentis, which means in the place of a parent, comes into play in a Teacher vs. Student situation. Consider that a 10 year old tells his friends that mommy came home drunk last night and the 10 year old gets grounded. Definitely not illegal, although probably bad parenting. This is not a perfect example and educators do not have ALL of the rights of a parent, but you get my drift. This principle "allows institutions such as colleges and schools to act in the best interests of the students as they see fit, although not allowing what would be considered violations of the students' civil liberties." These liberties are severely curtailed in schools (in most jurisdictions) serving children (younger than age of majority).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_loco_parentis

Further, if the teacher was terminated as a result and the student was the age of majority, the Twitter post could be considered libelous. But, again, children (younger than age of majority) do not and cannot have the full rights afforded an adult, especially in an educational setting.

The student's freedom of speech was not infringed. The definition of freedom of speech is to speak freely without censorship. The Twitter post was not blacked out by the school in conjunction with the suspension. The post was punished. We can argue the legal definition of censorship, but that would be arguing a moot point because again, children do not have the full rights of adults, especially in an educational setting.

Edit:

The word(s) "responsibilities/liabilities" could be used in place of "rights" in several instances in this post.
 
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Nevermind, LD is getting shut down. I guess it can stay here for the time being.
 
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