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Craigslist Bites Back, Answers Connecticut AG

Blumenthal has his facts wrong, craigslist argues

By Truman Lewis
ConsumerAffairs.com

April 15, 2008 

"While misuse of craigslist for illegal activity is rare, it is absolutely not tolerated in any measure, and eliminating misuse of its site is craigslist's top priority," said Edward Wes, a Craigslist attorney.

Wes said that Blumenthal had not participated in calls between attorneys on his staff and Craigslist executives, in which he said Craigslist outlined the "numerous measures" the non-profit company has taken to enforce its terms of use.

"These terms absolutely prohibit the use of craigslist for any criminal activity. These tools include not only moderation by the craigslist community (through the 'flagging' tool), but also blocking and screening advertisements for illegal activity to prevent them from being posted, as well as broad and effective cooperation with law enforcement," Wes said.

Blumenthal's demand followed the arrest of a Connecticut woman on prostitution charges. She had allegedly used craigslist to troll for clients.

In spite of rules banning such content, Craigslist's "erotic services" section is rife with ads containing explicit language and images bordering on pornographic, as well as hourly rates and descriptions of services clearly sexual in nature, Blumenthal's office claimed.

Blumenthal said he sent the letter after several months of discussions with craigslist in which he claimed the site refused to take aggressive steps to curb apparent prostitution ads, a charge Wes strenuously denied.

Not true, says craigslist

"Far from 'stonewalling' your staff's requests, we assured them that further improvements to enable craigslist to enforce its terms of use were being developed and implemented constantly," he said.

In a letter to Blumenthal, Wes said Craigslist has implemented a new telephone verification procedure, which (by tying advertisements in craigslist's "erotic services" category to live telephone numbers that are verified when an account is opened) enables craigslist to effectively block new advertisements from accounts that are brought to craigslist's attention as violating its terms of use.

"This was a very major improvement, yet your staff dismissed it as inconsequential," Wes said. After telephone verification was implemented, the volume of person-to-person erotic ads dropped from almost 400 per day to about 50 per day, he said.

Many of the remaining ads were further blocked by craigslist's filters before reaching the site or were removed by the flagging system, he added.

Law-abiding

Wes said it is important not to confuse the criminals who occasionally misuse craigslist with craigslist itself.

"Craigslist is a law-abiding company that is trying very hard to do the right thing, while also providing a very valuable free public service for the people of Connecticut, and the world at large," he said. "Craigslist does not have tens of thousands of employees, as do other large internet sites. The lack of this overhead is the reason that craigslist can provide its valuable public services at such low cost and without paid advertising."

"Unlike the "online" versions of weekly newspapers and numerous paid "erotic services" sites that make a profitable business out of erotic services ads, craigslist earns no revenue from that portion of its site whatsoever. In fact, craigslist incurs substantial expense in operating this section, including the costs of telephone verification and other compliance efforts that are discussed above," Wes added.

"Under the circumstances, we strongly believe that you owe craigslist a public retraction of a defamatory statement that you made to the New Haven Register to the effect that '[craigslist] continues to profit from prostitution.' This statement is patently false, and I trust that you understand the importance of accuracy in matters such as this - particularly when the statements come from a respected public servant," he said.

'Freedom trumps prudence'

"Craigslist is on absolutely solid ground and should be given an award instead of being threatened by political officeholders who are paid to know better," said ConsumerAffairs.com President James R. Hood. "Craigslist provides an invaluable public service at no cost to the vast majority of its users, which is a lot more than the State of Connecticut can say."

"Throughout the land, corporate interests and reckless politicians are trying to subvert the First Amendment rights of American citizens by stifling free expression on the Internet while the large media companies who should manning the barricades sit idly by," he said.

"Internet sites provide a means for citizens to speak freely, providing an important and Constitutionally-protected balance to the constant barrage of corporate propaganda and government hogwash," Hood said. "Those paid by the public to uphold the Constitution should do their jobs instead of putting the iron boot of the state where it doesn't belong."

"Freedom trumps prudence anyday," Hood said. "Major media companies should stop worrying about next year's Gridiron Dinner and join the struggle to preserve the First Amendment rights they are so quick to cite when their own interests are at stake."

Discrimination decision

Earlier this month, a federal appeals court held that Craigslist could not be held liable for discriminatory real-estate postings.

Civil rights attorneys in Chicago had argued that the site should be held responsible for apartment rental and home sale listings that specify racial or ethnic preferences.

But the court said the Communications Decency Act protects Web sites from liability for third-party postings. It's the latest in a series of similar rulings.

A staff attorney for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Kurt Opsahl, said the ruling was "good news."

The protection provided by the law is essential to the Internet's free operation, he said.

Craigslist allows users to flag inappropriate language or material and removes postings that are identified as violating its terms of service.

The appeals court noted that while Craigslist does not actively ban discriminatory postings, it does not encourage them either.

"Nothing in the service craigslist offers induces anyone to post any particular listing or express a preference for discrimination," the court held.

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