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SWeet email from PEnn dean RE: Wash. Post article.
Poast new message in this thread
Date: March 8th, 2007 4:59 PM Author: floppy sound barrier To: Penn Law School Community From: Dean Michael Fitts Dean Gary Clinton
As you many of you recognize, the rise and pervasiveness of the Internet has raised a number of important and novel issues regarding free speech, legal regulation, and one's legal and professional obligations to society and to the professional and Internet communities. The Internet holds great opportunity, but there are also grave risks. In the not too distant past, offhand comments or written observations quickly dissipated over space and time. Today, the comments made on discussion boards, blogs, group websites and other web postings can have permanent and lasting consequences for the subjects as well as the speaker.
While we understand the right of every citizen to engage in spirited debate, we also believe we all have a moral and professional obligation to engage in that debate in a responsible manner. Posts made on the web may well be permanent and may have serious consequences. Things said on discussion boards and blogs can travel around the world instantly, and become something that can define the writer now or at any future point. Statements made now, in jest or between what the writer assumes to be a small group of friends, may come back to haunt one in the future.
In recent weeks, significant attention has been focused on a discussion board co-owned by a Penn law student, as well as other, independent sites that have been linked to it. These sites contain anonymous postings, which we have no reason to believe came from the owner, and which the great majority of thinking people would find beneath the standards of human decency. They remain posted because of laws governing free speech and the board manager's regretful practice of rarely deleting threads when asked. As a matter of law, and under the University's own policies on speech, we feel we have no basis for disciplinary action against the co-owner, though we have had numerous discussions with him about the board and its very unfortunate impact when ad hominem attacks are made against defenseless individuals. While these activities are outside the purview of the Law School, they may well be subject to laws governing libel and defamation brought by individuals subjected to the personal attacks one sees online, and they may increasingly become the subject of concern by bar admissions committees.
Let us give you a few other examples. In the summer of 2005, we became aware of an incident in which comments made by a student on a blog were read by his employer when the employer Googled her own name and discovered what the student had said about her. Result: instant termination of employment. Many recent stories in the press and on TV have said that it is becoming increasingly frequent - and will soon be the norm - for employers to Google the names of potential hires, to see what they may learn about them. We know of cases in which potential employers have seen some very intemperate postings and have questioned the desirability of hiring the individual. And similarly, we know of a young attorney who was fired one day after accidentally sending firm-wide, rather than deleting as she'd intended, an inflammatory and personally abusive email directed at a member of her firm's support staff.
The same caution holds true for the owners of websites, where the language used by others may well reflect negatively on the site's owners, no matter how well-intentioned the site may be. The well-publicized Senate confirmation hearings of Justice Roberts made us all aware of the importance written words can have, even those written decades ago. His writings, the thoughtful and well-considered work-product of an attorney, are mild compared to some of the postings which people put on their blogs or in other postings these days. It is a certainty that some contemporary postings, done for friends or for unknown readers out in cyberspace and in tones that are presented as jests or as sarcastic provocations, will look far different when viewed in the light of an employment review or a Senate confirmation hearing. What is said now as a joke or a flame under cover of supposed anonymity, may well come back to haunt the writer in later years.
The web continues to provide new opportunities, new uses, new challenges, AND new ways to make major life-altering errors. We are writing to you now as a reminder to give some thought to what you write and send out into the world at large. Freedom of speech is an overarching value to all of us. But the use of self-restraint is no assault on that freedom. PLEASE KEEP THIS IN MIND: you are at the start of your professional career. We urge you to take the long view and the adult view of what you write about yourself and about others. THINK about the words you send out into the world, and imagine what they would look like when you - and surely some of you will -find yourself under review at a confirmation hearing or a job interview for a professional position you dearly desire. There is no do-over on the net. Be careful and be professional in what you post about yourself or about others. |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:03 PM Author: Dead Native Voyeur "they may increasingly become the subject of concern by bar admissions committees" (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726110) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:04 PM Author: lavender center "What is said now as a joke or a flame"
A flame? There are rumors.. on the internets..
Also the GTO bashing is nice. Bravo. |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:20 PM Author: Dead Native Voyeur where is the GTO bashing? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726168) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:28 PM Author: stubborn ape round eye In recent weeks, significant attention has been focused on a discussion board co-owned by a Penn law student, as well as other, independent sites that have been linked to it. These sites contain anonymous postings, which we have no reason to believe came from the owner, and which the great majority of thinking people would find beneath the standards of human decency. They remain posted because of laws governing free speech and the board manager's regretful practice of rarely deleting threads when asked. As a matter of law, and under the University's own policies on speech, we feel we have no basis for disciplinary action against the co-owner, though we have had numerous discussions with him about the board and its very unfortunate impact when ad hominem attacks are made against defenseless individuals. While these activities are outside the purview of the Law School, they may well be subject to laws governing libel and defamation brought by individuals subjected to the personal attacks one sees online, and they may increasingly become the subject of concern by bar admissions committees. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726202) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:38 PM Author: Greedy sanctuary deer antler Also,
"The same caution holds true for the owners of websites, where the language used by others may well reflect negatively on the site's owners, no matter how well-intentioned the site may be." |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:07 PM Author: Chartreuse church building dog poop "What is said now as a joke or a flame under cover of supposed anonymity, may well come back to haunt the writer in later years."
Are you lecturing the Heide Iravanis out there in the world to put on clothes before posing for the pictures they post on myspace and facebook? |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:15 PM Author: Razzmatazz shrine friendly grandma Translation: If you're a fucking retard, you get what you deserve. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726149) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:20 PM Author: Greedy sanctuary deer antler Classy. Nothing like encouraging others to take legal action against one of your students in the same breath you are admitting he did not participate in the flaming.
Also, nice saying "yeah, we are a law school, and we realize this may be legal, and we cannot stop it, but even though it's legal, it's wrong, and it's wrong because I say it's wrong"
Does he publicly opine on every legal issue he disagrees with that may affect students? |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:22 PM Author: Greedy sanctuary deer antler Also classy sending an email publicly when it is so obviously directed at one person. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726176) |
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Date: March 9th, 2007 12:41 AM Author: Supple awkward stag film mexican Please tell me this is flame. No professor, dean, or self-respecting human should write this badly. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7727865) |
Date: March 8th, 2007 5:07 PM Author: Cream stirring ticket booth crotch regrettful. lol. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726125) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:12 PM Author: Excitant navy police squad i'm feeling regrettable about all this. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726139) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:07 PM Author: crawly roommate "beneath the standards of human decency" should really be the new motto for xoxohth (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726126) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:39 PM Author: Duck-like gaped jew affirmative action LOL. Seconded. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726242) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 8:17 PM Author: Adventurous Spruce French Chef there should be a list of mottos like this that get displayed at random each time you load the page (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726761) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 10:37 PM Author: shivering umber wagecucks regret titcp (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7727451) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 10:37 PM Author: floppy sound barrier added to sig (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7727456) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:16 PM Author: mauve skinny woman I enjoyed reading this. It was very well written and I think he makes a very good point. Maybe there should there be a policy that any postings that can be connected to someone on Google by either their real name/picture/blog/MySpace should be deleted upon request. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726152) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:16 PM Author: spectacular address Hahaha. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726153) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:20 PM Author: Excitant navy police squad i don't think he makes a good point. he is sanctimoniously stating the obvious--you shouldn't attack people in writing. moreover, beyond the memorialization of expression, he doesn't offer any reason that this forum is different from, say, a rowdy poker game. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726170) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:23 PM Author: Dead Native Voyeur i didnt realize rowdy poker games can be googled for future reference (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726177) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:38 PM Author: Excitant navy police squad did you even bother to interpret the post? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726235) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:24 PM Author: Cream stirring ticket booth crotch its also a passive aggressive dig on GTO - almost childish whining that "we cant stop GTO, leave us alone." (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726180) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:32 PM Author: Flirting Lodge And, like ICE mentioned above, "We can't do anything, but maybe bar committees can, or if you take legal action yoursleves..." (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726217) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:32 PM Author: spectacular address That was pretty much the sole purpose of the email. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726218) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 7:48 PM Author: Razzmatazz shrine friendly grandma No. The policy should be that outtings based on public info available on the internet are perfectly fine.
If you're so stupid as the think that the internet isn't public, you deserve what you get.
Jesus fucking Christ, people, you're well over 20 years old. Pull your head out of your ass. |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:26 PM Author: glittery demanding tattoo "They remain posted because of laws governing free speech"
lolz. |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:27 PM Author: floppy sound barrier How unfortunate. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726198) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:31 PM Author: crawly roommate Crafty 1st Amendment...always screwing people over! (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726213) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:34 PM Author: sable volcanic crater stage the 1st amendment...decadent or merely shrewd? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726225) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 8:13 PM Author: Honey-headed Hairy Legs Unappreciated. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726739) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:29 PM Author: 180 haunting travel guidebook library The sad part is that people who volunteer to take part in C&F committees are probably the buffoons who think GTO is doing something wrong by not censoring whatever he deems inappropriate. To the Dean of Penn, a notoriously bad public law school not even in NYC, I say this: ppppplllllllllllb |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:42 PM Author: Multi-colored Sexy Mental Disorder (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726253) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:49 PM Author: swashbuckling shitlib area The portion of the message directed at GTO is passive aggressive. The Dean obviously disagrees with him and his course of conduct, but does not directly state that GTO should stop or alter his conduct. The tone is annoying and akin to someone sighing loudly rather than voicing their actual complaint.
However, the larger message to all students is sensible. |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:50 PM Author: Chest-beating self-absorbed toilet seat This is the worst attempt at damage control I've seen. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726285) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 5:59 PM Author: Contagious jewess station i wonder if anyone's been fired for admitting gto. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726315) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 6:57 PM Author: Opaque out-of-control mad cow disease trailer park I would think the mentally unstable law student who SHOT someone over a stupid argument would be a better reason to fire an adcomm. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726495) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 10:26 PM Author: diverse selfie Two strikes against Penn (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7727407) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 6:08 PM Author: glittery demanding tattoo How the hell did Deeh get ahold of this?
I'm certain he's too stupid to write this as flame... |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 6:32 PM Author: violent impressive tanning salon I was thinking exactly the same thing. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726398) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 6:34 PM Author: Flirting Lodge No joke - :D's got a SWeet hookup. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726403) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 7:49 PM Author: Razzmatazz shrine friendly grandma Maybe he's not a fucktard from Texas. He's a fucktard from somewhere else. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726662) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 6:16 PM Author: Amber National Alternative thread title: Just in case any of you really seriously considering attending Penn... (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726357) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 6:24 PM Author: Mahogany Aphrodisiac Point Nowag Perhaps xoxo will make Penn's 115% employment rate at graduate go down to a paltry 105%? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726372) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 7:13 PM Author: spectacular address I doubt it. At most I see Penn's employment rate to drop 3 points, to 112%. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726549) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 7:27 PM Author: charismatic brunch Expect increases now that Penn has changed the way it calculates the employment rate in order to improve reliability. From this year on, students with biglaw offers will be doublecounted since they put in two 40 hour "work weeks" per week. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726582) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 7:29 PM Author: Cerebral frum office liquid oxygen TITCR. Anything under 150% employment would be dissapointing to the school. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726589) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 9:59 PM Author: magenta theatre dragon Yes it should.
Andrew Furlow is the man!
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Date: March 8th, 2007 6:39 PM Author: low-t theater yet another idiot law school dean, shocking (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726422) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 7:53 PM Author: Dashing faggotry whorehouse I can't believe he used the word "flame."
I thought that was an xoxo thing. |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 7:59 PM Author: Azure big pit hissy fit Why didn't you keep your word about retiring? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7726688) |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 8:04 PM Author: Dashing faggotry whorehouse I did.
Didn't you read my retirement post? |
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Date: March 8th, 2007 8:31 PM Author: Maize goyim property Funny.
Dear Penn:
Was all of the controversy really worth it for an admit with a 165 LSAT? |
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Date: April 17th, 2007 9:16 PM Author: underhanded kitchen subtle 9th amendment troll. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=592156&forum_id=2#7951464) |