<nettime> Author sues reviewer over comments on Amazon

[Geert Lovink <geert@xs4all.nl>]

http://blog.indexoncensorship.org/2011/11/11/author-sues-reviewer-over-comments-on-amazon/

Author sues reviewer over comments on Amazon

11Nov11 – 10:30 am
by Alice Purkiss
A father of three from Nuneaton, UK, appeared in the High Court  
yesterday to face libel allegations over a book review he wrote on  
Amazon.

Vaughan Jones, 28, appeared at the Royal Courts of Justice yesterday  
for a hearing to defend himself against the libel suit from online  
entrepreneur Chris McGrath.

McGrath, author of “The Attempted Murder of God: Hidden Science You  
Really Need to Know,” undertook libel action against Jones, after he  
published a review of the book on Amazon, and comments regarding the  
book and Mr McGrath himself on Richard Dawkins’s website during  
September and October 2010. Jones also outed McGrath as the author of  
the book, which had been written under the pseudonym “Scrooby”.

McGrath is not only suing Jones for his allegedly defamatory comments,  
but Amazon, Richard Dawkins himself, and the Richard Dawkins Foundation.

Presided over by His Honour Judge Maloney QC, Jones was joined by  
legal representation for Amazon and the Richard Dawkins Foundation to  
ascertain if there is a case to answer.

Entrepreneur turned author McGrath believes that Amazon and the  
Richard Dawkins Foundation did not respond appropriately to the  
alleged defamatory statements on the respective websites, and thus  
they are also liable for a defamation suit.

John Kampfner, the Chief Executive of Index on Censorship, said: “That  
a family man from Nuneaton can face a potentially ruinous libel action  
for a book review on Amazon shows how archaic and expensive our libel  
law is.”

Kampfner added that the Libel Reform Campaign, which is underway with  
English Pen and Sense about Science, is hoping to commit to a bill in  
the next Queen’s speech to reform the chilling effect libel has on  
freedom of speech.

The hearing continues today


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