FreakPirate said:
And hold on a second... isn't there something terribly illegal about all of this? I mean... if I give out someone's home address or phone number on SG I'd be in a lot of shit. Shouldn't Fox be backpeddling like mad right now?

No, it's public information. It's just incredibly irresponsible. I suppose there's a possibility Fox could be held culpable if something happened to the family.

Something did happen to the family: harrassment, intimidation, property damage.

They should be suing the socks off Fox News right now.

I have no doubt that there will be suits filed and subsequently settled as expediently as possible.

JohnClement

Silver Spring, MD

January 2004

AUG 28, 2005 04:37 PM

Shalome said:

BillHaverchuck said:

No, it's public information. It's just incredibly irresponsible. I suppose there's a possibility Fox could be held culpable if something happened to the family.

Something did happen to the family: harrassment, intimidation, property damage.

They should be suing the socks off Fox News right now.

Right, sort of a judgement call though, no? Isn't the company line in this situation, "we cannot be responsible for the actions of our viewers/consumers"? Don't get me wrong, I think Fox is completely at fault, and that it was absolutely intentional, I'm just saying legally speaking.

waldo

I'm lost

June 2004

AUG 28, 2005 04:54 PM

I'll be interested to see if anyone gets fired as a result.

zenFish

Vancouver, BC

August 2004

AUG 28, 2005 05:59 PM

I'm with FP, who the fuck gave this guy the RIGHT to do this to anyone?

Terrorist or not, this guy just wanted to play vigilante.

MisterSatan

Portland, OR

August 2002

AUG 28, 2005 06:07 PM

fstop said:
people make mistakes, and this is probably someones really bad judgement call.

There are mistakes, and then there's vigilantism masquerading as "patriotism". The fact that the guy wasn't living in the house anymore made it a mistake; the fact that they read out someone's fucking address on live television makes it a reprehensible act of straight-up McCarthyism. What if it was your address they read? I doubt you'd be as "logical" as you seem right now.

Slander

Dayton, OH

May 2004

AUG 28, 2005 09:22 PM

It's interesting to me how people often say, "well, if you're not guilty, you've got nothing to be afraid of." And then, some truly idiotic shit like this happens to people who are not guilty. It is explained away as a mistake, often an "honest" one. Excuses are made because it is easier for people to accept that than the truth, that this is the result of close-minded simplicity that reduces complex things to black and white.

Well, notably, some people. The red herring crowd. Most broadcast news outlets are doing worse than they ever have been these days. But the differences between CBS's mistakes and Fox News's mistakes were fairly well covered in English 101, under logical fallacies.

"Hey, shit happens, right? Sorry about their luck. But look at what CBS was doing with Dan Rather..."

As has been stated, Fox News put these people at risk. A fucking retraction doesn't change that. At best, it was irresponsible. At worst, stupidly irresponsible.

Vanuslux

Atlanta, GA

February 2004

AUG 29, 2005 07:26 AM

I think FOX should have to buy that family a new house, then make John Lofton live in their old house.

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Subrosa

San Francisco, CA

July 2004

AUG 28, 2005 04:17 PM