[Gllug] Linux users - sign petition to say you use BBC web site!

[Adrian McMenamin]

On Fri, 2007-11-02 at 17:12 +0000, - Tethys wrote:
> On 11/2/07, Adrian McMenamin <adrian at newgolddream.dyndns.info> wrote:
> 
> > Surely the answer is to submit an FOI request to the BBC asking what
> > assessment they have made of the numbers of users of different OSes are
> > accessing their site.
> 
> The BBC is not fully covered by the FOI act, and only has to respond
> to certain requests. Whether this sort of request is one of those it
> has to answer, I couldn't say.
> 
> > By the way, accusing somebody of lying about their job is a quick route to
> > the libel courts. Not advised.
> 
> That depends. Demonstrably false figures like this are fairly solid
> ground for such an accusation. Now whether the misinformation is due
> to malice or ineptitude is a matter for debate. But since anyone with
> half a brain can see that the quoted numbers are false, one has to
> wonder why they're quoting them in public.
> 

NB: nothing below indicates I think anybody has told a lie.

In a defamation case you have to prove your case. The person being
defamed (and calling someone a liar in the context of their job is
definitely a defamation) has to prove nothing.

Justification is an absolute defence, but what if, say the BBC messed up
their log analysis? Then nobody has lied in the sense of deliberately
misrepresenting something.

So be very careful.
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