what are legal guidelines governing slander/libel online? have there

been cases, and case law on this issue? blogs usually contain material about individuals or entities that might be considered slander or libel in the real word. Does one have to feel restricted in writing such material? whats the law?

As of now, I know of nothing that holds the a site owner responsible-but you can hold the author responsible for Libel but you must prove that they KNEW the written statements to be false. That's a hard one to prove. Some people confuse libel (written) and slander/defamation of character with someone having an opinion. I can openly say that I think so-and-so is a jerk, DH, MF, and whatever else and that is my opinion, protected under free speech. But I cannot say in a public forum untrue statements-make sense?