Protecting the right to be anonymous online

Good editorial in today's San Jose Mercury News: Protecting the right to be anonymous online.

Much of the anonymous babble that fills Internet chat rooms, discussion groups, bulletin boards and blogs is not terribly interesting. Some of it is outright distasteful.

Yet most of it must be protected to preserve free speech. Indeed, a robust, unfettered conversation in which a diversity of views is freely expressed is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy and is guaranteed by the First Amendment.

That principle was reaffirmed last week by the Delaware Supreme Court, which drew a clear shield around anonymous political speech on the Internet. It's the first state supreme court to do so, and it should hearten Internet users and free-speech advocates everywhere.

Efforts to pass a law offering similar protections in California stalled last year and ought to be revived by the Legislature. ...