Don't be Evil: Mantra or Mask? An Analysis of Google's Liability for Online Defamation

Abstract

This paper discusses the modern development of the tort of defamation. The advent of the Internet has created numerous difficulties in terms of applying foundational principles of tort law to modern issues. In particular there is cause for criticising the current application of defamation principles to the question of liability for search engines in their role as disseminators. This paper advocates for a rejection of the recent international trend towards protection for online intermediaries in favour of a return to first principles. In developing this argument important questions such as the role of freedom of expression and the value of a free-flow of information, are considered.