Friend, Daily Kos has been locked in a legal battle with anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., for more than a year. But, as Markos wrote to you yesterday, the whole of the news media establishment is coming to our side in a real "Avengers assemble!" sort of moment. Kennedy, despite the long progressive history that comes with the family name, is not one of the good guys. One study of vaccine misinformation on the internet shows that a whopping [73 percent]( (PDF) of anti-vaccine propaganda on Facebook came from just 12 people. Guess who was number two on the list. Actually, I'll just spoil it for youâit was Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. [Daily Kos's legal costs in the fight are significant. We're an independent, progressive news outlet and activism hub. We don't have a major family fortune to tap, like Kennedy does. That's why I'm writing to you. Can you donate $5 right now to help offset Daily Kos's legal costs in its fight against this anti-vaxxer?]( Thank you again,
Michael Langenmayr, Daily Kos P.S. I've included Markos's email below in case you missed it. --------------------------------------------------------------- Friend, anti-vaxxer Robert Kennedy Jr. is suing Daily Kos, trying to force us to reveal the identity of one of our community members. Weâre telling him to go pound sand. You can get the background [here](, [here](, [here](, [here](, [here](, [here](, and [here](. In short, community member DowneastDem wrote about Kennedy cavorting with Nazis at a Berlin rally. Kennedy then sued in New York court to reveal her or his identity. Kennedy won the first round in New York state court, which allowed him to try and get the bloggerâs identity from us. But, weâre in California, and a California court said ânopeâ and quashed the subpoena, pending the outcome of any New York appeals. So weâre now back in New York, where we have appealed the trial courtâs decision. In the final days of 2021, we got unexpectedly great news on that front.The New York Times joined much of the national and New York media establishments in filing an amicus brief supporting our First Amendment fight. [Before I tell you just how great this news is, I have to ask: Can you chip $5 right now to help offset Daily Kos's legal costs in this fight against one of the world's most prominent anti-vaxxers?]( [The brief]( was written by [The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press](, joined by 11 media companies and organizations: The [E.W. Scripps Company](, [First Amendment Coalition]( (the nationâs fourth-largest local TV broadcaster with 61 stations), [The Media Institute](, [MediaNews Group]( (which owns over 100 newspapers and 200 other assorted news platforms), [New York News Publishers Association](, [New York Public Radio](, [The New York Times Company](, [Online News Association](, [Radio Television Digital News Association](, [Society of Professional Journalists](, and the [Tully Center for Free Speech]( at Syracuse University. As they write in [their brief](, âAmici thus have a strong interest in ensuring that New York courts apply a standard for pre-suit disclosure of anonymous online speakersâ identities that appropriately accounts for the First Amendment interests in such speech.â To recap, the New York trial court ruled that there was no harm in unmasking DowneastDem because she or he could then defend against defamation in court. The judge was unpersuaded by our argument that the unmasking was the sole purpose of Kennedyâs lawsuit, not defamation, and would impact both the diarist, and everyone elseâs ability to comment on current events anonymously without fear of public reprisalâa right enjoyed from the very founding of our nation. The media orgs write:
Indeed, as the Supreme Court has underscored, anonymous speech has played an important role throughout U.S. history. Revolutionary writers garnered public support through tracts published under pseudonyms such as âCommon Senseâ or âFarmer.â After the Revolution, Federalists and anti-Federalists relied on the cloak of anonymity to debate the Constitution, writing under names like âPubliusâ and âan American Citizen.â As this history demonstrates, anonymous speech has âan honorable tradition of advocacy and of dissent.â [Citations omitted] The brief notes that anonymity is important for voicing unpopular opinions, to avoid âsocial ostracismâ or physical harm. To allow unpopular messengers to write without being prejudged. To protect organizations they work for from damage by association. To protect from retaliationâparticularly salient in todayâs acrimonious political climate. I donât have to tell you why anonymity is so important. You guys get it. This site is built on protecting its participantsâ rights to freely speak their minds without fear of personal reprisals. And these organizations want to protect their own sources and commenters from the likes of Kennedy.
Media entities have a First Amendment interest in protecting the speech of those who contribute information and commentary to their websites. Media entities do more than report the news; they allow for outside comment on op-ed pages and in letters to the editor, engaging the community in discussion of public affairs. Onlineâwhere the space constraints of print do not existânews outlets can foster even more speech; readers publish commentary, criticism, and praise, and those who disagree can respond immediately. However, if readersâ speech is chilled by the fear that their identities will be exposed, news sitesâ contribution to public discourse lessens. Read the full brief if youâre interested. Itâs actually quite fascinating reading if youâre into First Amendment matters. [Please take one minute right now to chip in $5 to Daily Kos's legal efforts if you haven't already.]( [And click here to support Public Citizen, who is defending DowneastDem pro bono.]( Thank you,
Markos Moulitsas, Founder
Daily Kos P.S. I wrote more about this brief online [here](. If you wish to donate by mail instead, please send a check to Daily Kos, PO Box 70036, Oakland, CA, 94612. Contributions to Daily Kos are not tax deductible. (Please note that we may be slow to process checks during the coronavirus outbreak.) Sent via [ActionNetwork.org](. To update your email address, change your name or address, or to stop receiving emails from Daily Kos, please [click here](.