'Annoying, Offending' Language Online Would Be Crime Under Arizona Bill
'Annoying, Offending' Language Online Would Be Crime Under Arizona Bill (ABC New …
Distasteful comments and online insults are a mainstay of many social networks and online comment boards, but a new bill passed in Arizona could send people who "annoy or offend" to jail for up to six months.
House Bill 2549, which had bipartisan support, passed in the state's legislature and is awaiting one final vote on a minor "technical change" before the bill is sent to Gov. Jan Brewer.
The bill's sweeping language would severely inhibit First Amendment rights, David Horowitz, executive director of the Media Coalition in New York City, told ABCNews.com.
"Even in talk radio, saying 'I know this will offend my listeners' is a common practice. It's a tradition, speech that challenges the status quo," he said.
Horowitz said everything from Rush Limbaugh calling Sandra Fluke a "slut" on his radio show to Sen. Al Franken's book, "Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot" could be viewed as criminal acts if the bill becomes a law.
The bill states it would be a class one misdemeanor for anyone to "terrify, intimidate, threaten, harass, annoy or offend" through electronic and digital devices. It does not provide definitions of the terms and what would be considered annoying or offensive.
In a letter to the governor, Horowitz urged a veto "to allow legislators to craft a narrower bill that addresses their concerns without infringing on the right of free speech."
It was a matter of time folks...................25 years after 1984
the lack of defined terms makes this a potential civil rights nightmare. have they nothing better to focus their resources upon than this? muy triste.
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