Blogging and the First Amendment

On Thursday, a three-judge panel of the California Court of Appeals heard argument in a matter which will require the court to reconcile a company’s interest in protecting its trade secrets with the protections afforded by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.  In its trade secrets lawsuit filed against several unidentified defendants, Apple seeks to obtain the electronic records of Macintosh computer enthusiast websites that published leaked details of one of Apple’s unreleased products.

 

A lower court held that Apple could force PowerPage.org, the e-mail provider to one of the Macintosh enthusiast sites, to produce the records.  PowerPage.org appealed, arguing that the records were protected by the First Amendment’s guarantee of a free press and that the identity of the source of the reported information should be protected.  To counter this argument, which is supported by both bloggers and traditional journalists, Apple suggested that the web reporters at issue in the case are not “legitimate members of the press” when they reveal confidential company information.

For more information and commentary on this story, see the following articles and posts:  Apple argues for blogger records at CNET News; Apple Still Seeking Closure on Blogger Suit in the E-Commerce Times; 80 California Bloggers Weigh in on Apple Subpoena Case on SoCal Law Blog; and Can Bloggers Invoke the Journalist's Privilege to Protect Confidential Sources Who Leak Trade Secrets? at findlaw.com.

Technorati Tags:  apple, trade secrets, constitutional law, first amendment