Invitation to a Dialogue: Nameless on the Web?

Invitation to a Dialogue: Nameless on the Web?

Facebook has 800 million users who are required to use their real names (“Naming Names: Rushdie Wins Facebook Fight,” front page, Nov. 15), and, as a result, are identified with and accountable for what they post. It is time to consider Facebook’s real-name policy as an Internet norm because online identification demonstrably leads to accountability and promotes civility.

The real you: Say goodbye to online anonymity

Link: The real you: Say goodbye to online anonymity

Online anonymity may be a luxury we can no longer afford – and it’s disappearing fast anyway. Are we ready to bare all on the internet?

IN JULY last year, Orlando Figes, one of the UK’s most eminent historians,admitted posting savage critiques of rivals’ books on the Amazon website under the pseudonym “Historian” - alongside praise of his own. His eventual confession came only after he had threatened to take legal action against anyone who accused him of the misdeed. Later he blamed his wife for the reviews.