In a case testing the possible legal liabilities facing purveyors of online marketplaces, a Chicago civil rights committee is suing community classifieds site Craigslist for allegedly publishing
discriminatory advertisements. The Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law contends that online classifieds sites should be held to the same strict standards as print publishers--meaning
every ad should be vetted to conform to the law. However, as the
Chicago Tribune points out, the Internet has not developed according to these standards: informal communities tend to police
themselves, and free expression and anonymity are valued. The lawyers' committee cited over 100 ads in the Chicago Craigslist site that violate the federal Fair Housing Act. The ads say things like
"Non-women of Color NEED NOT APPLY" or "Requirements: Clean Godly Christian Male." Craigslist founder Craig Newmark said he is "very concerned about discrimination in housing ads," but completely
screening the site's vast classified listings would be "physically impossible." The site does deploy a self-policing system whereby users flag down inappropriate or illegal ads, which are then swiftly
removed. Newmark contends that Craigslist is not a publisher, but rather a site where people can publish their own postings. By this logic, he says, federal laws for publishers don't apply.
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