Another Blogger Fired

Adam Tinworth
Adam Tinworth

Ah, here we go again; another blogger sacked:

A British secretary allegedly sacked from her job in Paris over an internet diary is the latest in a growing line to pay a heavy price for blogging.

Catherine – who blogged anonymously under the pseudonym �Petite Anglaise� about life, love and work – has now launched a test case under French employment law.

She claims she was dismissed from accounting firm Dixon Wilson for bringing the company into disrepute, despite never naming it in her diary. The firm has not commented.

I read a few Petite Anglais posts a few years ago. It didn’t catch my attention; well, written, yes, but another one of those �bitch about my life behind the thin veil of anonymity the internet offers� blogs. They worked well, when most people didn’t know what blogs are, and next to nobody read them. Now they’re moving into the mainstream, this sort of public confession of personal life pain is going to become harder and harder as employers start putting two and two together. Anonymity is going to be harder and harder to keep as people get more and more blog savvy.

Your ability to survive in a blogger doing this sort of thing is going to drive you down one of two paths: fictionalising your experiences so thoroughly that no easy connection can be drawn, or hiding the bitching behind a privacy feature that the likes of Livejournal or Vox offer.

She’s suing, but I’ll be surprised if she wins.

Technorati Tags: blogging, blogs

Adam Tinworth Twitter

Adam is a lecturer, trainer and writer. He's been a blogger for over 20 years, and a journalist for more than 30. He lectures on audience strategy and engagement at City, University of London.

Comments