Monday, March 13, 2006

Lance Dutson: A Blogger in Peril

Lance Dutson of Maine Web Report is fighting for his professional life.

Due to his examination of the Maine Office of Tourism's "Pay-per-gate" situation, one of the firms involved has been making phone calls and sending emails to some clients of his Maine Coast Design business. They basically went to his testimonial and portfolio pages, and started sending out a very troubling email that Lance has shared with me. How did he get a copy of the email, you might ask? It was sent to his wife's employer. He has asked me not to share its actual content at this point. Suffice it to say that its unmistakable purpose is to intimidate him into shutting up, at least on his blog. The thing reads like one of those last-minute political ads that everybody hates, yet seem nonetheless effective.

I encourage all Mainers, and anyone interested in shining light into the operations of state agencies anywhere, to read Lance Dutson's posts and the responses he's gotten to his questions. I encourage anybody who has a blog to link to his posts and get the debate to a wider audience.

All Lance wants is a vetting of the facts. People who disagree with him should put forward information that contradicts his, not make him fear for his livelihood.

Peace,

Tor

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