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15 Colo. Tech. L.J. 517 (2016-2017)
Preventing the Rogue Bot Journalist: Protection from Non-Human Defamation

handle is hein.journals/jtelhtel15 and id is 541 raw text is: PREVENTING THE ROGUE BOT JOURNALIST: PROTECTION FROM NON-HUMAN DEFAMATION LAUREL WITT* The Mayor Cheats on His Taxes reads the headline of an online newspaper article. Thousands of readers see the headline. But the article incorrectly characterizes the mayor; he did not cheat on his taxes. The false description ruins the mayor's reputation, diminishing his chances of being re-elected. If a human journalist wrote the headline, the mayor could sue under defamation law, which holds a journalist responsible for damaging the good reputation of another. If the mayor meets his burden of proof, the responsibility for harm falls on the shoulders of the journalist. As the mayor is a public official, he would have to prove the journalist maliciously published the article, rather than negligently. What if the journalist is not human? A robot or algorithm cannot think for itself. It can be programmed to write news stories; stories which, inevitably, will harm an individual's reputation. A plaintiff would lose in court, because the plaintiff could not show the robot acted negligently or maliciously. If the newspaper that employs the robot cannot be held liable, no incentive exists, apart from pure morality, to remove the material or issue a correction. A robot can publish any material, even false material, without the newspaper checking the stories. Where does this leave the mayor? With a ruined reputation and unemployment. The mayor--or any other individual harmed-has no recourse. This note explores defamation law and its application to an emerging technology, robot journalism. This note suggests courts should hold bots responsible for defamatory material, because the harm to the individual is greater than the value of robot speech. To accomplish this, courts can substitute defamation's requisite intent element with the doctrine of respondeat superior. Then, this note * J.D. Candidate, University of Colorado Law School, 2017; Executive Editor, Colorado Technology Law Journal. Gratitude goes to Colorado Law Professor Helen Norton for inspiring me to study and write about First Amendment law, and to Professor Amy Griffin for her continual encouragement in the pursuit of the written word. Most of all, thank you also to my early-morning coffee provider and late-night editor, Jonathan Witt. 517

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