Academic

Blog Insurance: Protecting Against Defamation, Copyright, and Privacy Invasion

By Dan Filler

There's a new insurance product on the market and no, you needn't worry that it will single-handedly consume your 403(b)  (or 401(k) for those of you employed by entitities that actually seek to earn a profit.)  The Media Bloggers Association has announced the launch of BlogInsure.  According the the ABA Journal, it'll cost you some serious sheckels - $540 a year, to be specific - to enjoy this coverage.  But it'll cost more than money...you'll actually have to learn something first.  Everyone seeking BlogInsure coverage is required to take  Online Media Law: The Basics for Bloggers and Other Online Publishers, a course offered by the Citizens Media Project.  This insurance is designed to cover the risks of defamation, copyright infringement, and invasion of privacy claims against the burgeoning blogging community. 

I'm not sure the actual risks bloggers face - I haven't seen data suggesting that these risks rise to the level of suburban car ownership (which is comparably priced in many communities.)  In addition, it may be far cheaper to insure ones self using an umbrella policy attached to car and home insurance.  Still, AXIS insurance seems to think there's a market out there - and perhaps there is.  In this instance, it certainly appears to me that the risk is unevenly distributed and the level of risk is within the control of the blogger.  I'll be curious to see if these policies catch on.  And I'm also curious to see whether universities routinely cover their faculty bloggers - something I'd normally anticipate anywhere other than, perhaps,  the University of Oregon.

Full post as published by The Faculty Lounge on November 12, 2008 (boomark / email).