Ohio newspaper voluntarily reveals anonymous blogger

A Cleveland newspaper unmasked the identity of an anonymous commenter who posted personal attacks on newspaper employees on the paper’s website, The Plain Dealer [Cleveland] reported.

The Plain Dealer revealed the commenter’s identity after newspaper editors found out that it was a local judge commenting on cases pending in her court.

The newspaper’s decision to voluntarily reveal the source of the online comments sparked debate among media ethicists. Anonymous postings on media websites have been the subject of recent legal battles across the country and some experts fear that revealing commenters’ identities will create a chilling affect on future postings, while others claim that the public’s right to know trumps those concerns.