FOR-EV-ER Internet

Yes, it is 1:37 in the morning
Yes, I do have to be up in 7 and a half hours
Yes, I do have to work tomorrow
Yes, I was writing this blog in my head which is now why I am actually writing it. 
Yep, it is my fault, I had coffee past 3:00

Yes, we've all heard the saying "whatever you put on facebook will be there forever and can cause you trouble later" but what about the rest of the internet? I just thought after taking all of these ethics, journalist and media related seminars and what not I'd share some knowledge with ya'll.

SLANDER
First off did you know you can be sued for slander because of something you posted? It's truueee! Anything you write about on your twitter, blog, email, facebook can be used in the court of law if it is slanderous. I know a lot of this relates to cyber bullying but just calling someone a nasty name can end up in a law suit. For example the word "whore", honestly I know people use this word as slang, but in a court of law, that doesn't hold anything, look up the definition.

Here is a case of a mom suing over a PRIVATE facebook group.
Cyber bullying

EMAIL
And did you know emails can last FOREVER. Yep I learned today that they can be pulled up and out of the woodwork and used in a court of law. So if there is something sensitive you need to talk to someone about, do it over the phone or in person, unless you want that document to follow you around forever. I know I'm guilty of this, venting to someone about someone else because I'm frustrated.

PHOTOS
I just learned that a teacher who, although she was doing NOTHING legally wrong was asked to resign or be fired because of a picture on her Facebook, granit I'm pretty sure she is appealing it but still, her employer thought it was worthy enough to deserve this action. Be careful of ALL photos you post, and any you are tagged in. And even if you make sure you are okay, be mindful of your friends as well. Don't be afraid to ask someone to take down a picture or a post EVEN if you aren't doing ANYTHING wrong. I know first hand because although I don't drink, I may be in a picture with someone else who is and therefore I can look guilty by association. This one is hard even for me to come to grips with. I like some of those pictures because I think I look cute! But I have to ask myself right now, is it worth a future job?? And maybe my employer won't care, but obviously Ashley's did. 
Ashley's Story included on site

JOURNALISM
Another thing I found super interesting is for anyone who wants to be a journalist, and to be honest, I never thought of this but your job is to be completely biased, not only in your writing but in LIFE. I met a lady who said ever since she began voting she registered as an independant because she doesn't want anyone knowing who she may side for. She also spoke of a guy who went to some function of a friends (I think it was someone birthday) and it ended up being a rally against gun control, well he now can no longer write or report on ANYTHING related to guns because people COULD POSSIBLY say he had a bias. Just wearing a pin at an event is a no, no I found out. Welp, there goes my career! I'm pretty sure everyone knows where I stand and I'll just need to find a network that's okay with that. 

So know your job, know what is expected of you, AND WATCH WHAT YOU SAY ON ANY AND EVERY SITE!!!! People whose job it is, is to report are always looking up EVERYTHING so you may post a video or a blog and then decide two days later, well I should probably take that down, but someone somewhere may have already taken photos you posted, a screen shot of a blog, or somehow managed to save the video you posted. That person can always repost it. Things live FOREVER on the internet. So be careful.

I know I was freaked out about this today, who knows what I posted when I was 14 on myspace even though I deleted that page, do you know myspace keeps those and if I wanted to "reopen" my page, THEY HAVE IT SAVED!!! Yeah.


I just wanna help the good people who read my blog out in the cyber world. 


Hopefully I'll fall asleep now. It is 2:17 now and I have to get up at 9... hooray.