Frum blogs and websites can get sued, but Lashon Hora counts too.

In this weeks issue of Time magazine, there is an article about commenters and online reviewers claiming you can get sued for defamatory and false statements. The Virginia Supreme Court recently reversed a decision, saying that reviews should not be censored — and that if they were defamatory, one should focus on getting money damages. The ruling is being hailed as an important victory for freedom of speech on the Internet, which it is. But it is also a reminder of the risks that come with being an online critic.

However as frum yidden we have other laws to be afraid of as well. Hilchos Lashon Hora is one of them. By merely posting negative information about someone does not exempt you of being over lashon Hora. As quoted Here  "its hard to believe that an open derogatory review could be permissible due to the Halachos of Lashon Hora. Whereas there are situations in which it is permissible to provide negative information about someone, a number of conditions are absolute. Among them are the necessity of the information being provided for To'eles. A post that is openly available to anyone, whether or not they may require the information, would appear to violate this condition".

Many individuals and mosdos have been hurt financially due to comments and posts on frum blogs with no oversight or thought. One wrong bit of info can get re-tweeted and shared in an instant where its too late to retract. lets not only think of the potential loss of getting sued but the ramifications of the issur of Lashon Hora as well.