HB 4237, “The Blogger Bill” Passes Out Of Committee!
Vince Leibowitz | May 05, 2009 | Comments 2
House Bill 4237, legislation by State Rep. Aaron Pena (D-Edinburg) to extend the “Privileged Matters” clause of the Texas Civil Practices & Remedies Code to citizen journalists, passed out of the House Committee on Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence yesterday 8-1, with State Rep. Beverly Wooley (R-Houston) casting the lone dissenting vote.
Now, our challenge is to pass the bill out of Calenders and sent to the floor.
This is a bill that is a vital piece of the puzzle when it comes to updating Texas law to keep up with changing technology and the way that news and opinion is delivered in Texas. Without protection under the Privileged Matters Clause, bloggers and citizen journalists could be subjected to needless harassment libel suits. Any enterprising politician, elected official, or political candidate could use the fact that bloggers’ coverage and commentary on public affairs does not have specific protection under state law.
If your State Representative is one of those on the Calenders Committee, please call them and ask them to send HB 4237 to the floor as soon as possible.
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