• by Ray Schultz , July 25, 2023

Lee Enterprises has lost a round in a class action privacy lawsuit that was filed against it last year.  

U.S. District Judge Stephen H. Locher ruled that the lawsuit, which charges that Lee shared personal information on readers with Facebook, can proceed.  

“The Court concludes that plaintiffs have stated plausible claims for relief and therefore DENIES Lee’s motion to dismiss,” Locher wrote.  

The case is on file with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa Eastern Division. Lee asked for the dismissal in May. 

The suit contends that Lee’s websites offer newsletters and other forms of content in exchange for personal information like names and mailing addresses, and that personally identifiable information is captured through tracking methods, according to the Missouri Independent. 

This data is handed to Facebook without consent, in violation of the Video Privacy Protection Act of 1988, the suit charges. 

But Lee’s attorneys argue that, under the 1988 law, personal information “must be the type that would readily permit an ordinary person to identify a specific individual’s video-watching behavior, without the need to combine it with other information in the recipient’s possession,” the Independent continues. 

Lee also argues that the Facebook ID is non-identifying and would be meaningless to the average person.