Ernest Miller pursues research and writing on cyberlaw, intellectual property, and First Amendment issues. Mr. Miller attended the U.S. Naval Academy before attending Yale Law School, where he was president and co-founder of the Law and Technology Society, and founded the technology law and policy news site LawMeme. He is a fellow of the Information Society Project at Yale Law School.
Ernest Miller's blog postings can also be found @ Copyfight LawMeme
Feel free to contact me about articles, websites and etc. you think I may find of interest. I'm also available for consulting work and speaking engagements. Email: ernest.miller 8T gmail.com
CBS Changes Report File: Cut-n-Paste Now Prohibited
I was writing another piece on the CBS Report [PDF], when I noticed that I couldn't cut-n-paste from the report as I did in days past. Unfortunately, I did not save the report I had worked from earlier. I emailed Seth Finkelstein and he was able to show why: CBS Report file has been modifed! Cut and Paste now prohibited!. Now why would CBS News do that? What happened to the transparency?
Failure to provide a searchable .pdf of the report constitutes a lack of transparency? That's your gripe with CBS?
Firing four key employees not enough. Losing a significant, high-profile actors not enough. Now, omigosh! Ernie's troubled by the distribution of a .pdf.
Be serious.
What's next? Tin-foil hats?
(Seriously, this is nonsense. With respect to my good friend and colleague, Ernie -- its just whining, and probably reasonably explained. Why would they do that? I routinely scour documents I want attributed to me to remove metadata and to avoid means by which it can be easily edited or forged. Every now and then, I or my assistant forgets to do so, and I replace the "open" pdf with a closed one. Moreover, I routinely review documents provided by potentially adverse people for the same reason -- it more often than it has any right to do so provides something useful I would not have obtained otherwise.)
Ernie's outrage is misplaced. So, too, is the import he gives to this issue, particularly in view of other, far more remarkable, media abuses.
Wow. Reviewing the traffic and trackbacks, just plain silly. Committing a crime for profit to produce a paid-for story, and covering it up -- that's fine. Replacing a file with the right one, that's loss of transparency.
Sorry, guys, its you who have no credibility here.
Wow. Reviewing the traffic and trackbacks, just plain silly. Committing a crime for profit to produce a paid-for story, and covering it up -- that's fine. Replacing a file with the correct one, that's a loss of transparency.
Sorry, guys, its your politically motivated faux-criticism that has no credibility here.
Ernest Miller pursues research and writing on cyberlaw, intellectual property, and First Amendment issues. Mr. Miller attended the U.S. Naval Academy before attending Yale Law School, where he was president and co-founder of the Law and Technology Society, and founded the technology law and policy news site LawMeme. He is a fellow of the Information Society Project at Yale Law School.
Ernest Miller's blog postings can also be found @
1. Andrew Greenberg on January 14, 2005 12:08 AM writes...
Failure to provide a searchable .pdf of the report constitutes a lack of transparency? That's your gripe with CBS?
Firing four key employees not enough. Losing a significant, high-profile actors not enough. Now, omigosh! Ernie's troubled by the distribution of a .pdf.
Be serious.
What's next? Tin-foil hats?
(Seriously, this is nonsense. With respect to my good friend and colleague, Ernie -- its just whining, and probably reasonably explained. Why would they do that? I routinely scour documents I want attributed to me to remove metadata and to avoid means by which it can be easily edited or forged. Every now and then, I or my assistant forgets to do so, and I replace the "open" pdf with a closed one. Moreover, I routinely review documents provided by potentially adverse people for the same reason -- it more often than it has any right to do so provides something useful I would not have obtained otherwise.)
Ernie's outrage is misplaced. So, too, is the import he gives to this issue, particularly in view of other, far more remarkable, media abuses.
Permalink to Comment2. Andrew Greenberg on January 15, 2005 07:11 PM writes...
Wow. Reviewing the traffic and trackbacks, just plain silly. Committing a crime for profit to produce a paid-for story, and covering it up -- that's fine. Replacing a file with the right one, that's loss of transparency.
Sorry, guys, its you who have no credibility here.
Permalink to Comment3. Andrew Greenberg on January 15, 2005 07:12 PM writes...
Wow. Reviewing the traffic and trackbacks, just plain silly. Committing a crime for profit to produce a paid-for story, and covering it up -- that's fine. Replacing a file with the correct one, that's a loss of transparency.
Sorry, guys, its your politically motivated faux-criticism that has no credibility here.
Permalink to Comment