In the past, journalists were one of the most effective intermediaries between ordinary speakers and the mass audience, a conduit between an individual and the marketplace of ideas. Courts view this pipeline as essential to the national dialogue, not so much because of the journalist' s speech, but because the journalist acts as a medium or amplifier for other speakers. The development of the Internet created an alternative medium. Doe no longer needs to use a journalist to convey messages to a mass audience. And just as news sources have their reasons to speak anonymously to journalists, on-line speakers have legitimate reasons to speak anonymously.
Protection is especially important where a source fears retaliation for their speech.
While the medium has changed, the First Amendment protection for the users of the medium should not. Contrary to TMRT's assertion, TMRT Brief at 7, group associations can and do exist based on Internet communication alone. InfoSpace brief at 6-7. Silicon Investor users congregate on the message boards because they share a common interest, and wish to communicate with others who share their interest. If these individuals gathered in a physical location, the attendance list for that meeting would be protected.