A Montana state judge is ruling that the identities of anonymous commenters posted on news sites are protected by a state's media shield law.
While Wednesday's decision does not carry legal weight with other judges across the United States, media lawyers said Thursday they believed it was the first ruling of its kind.
Only Wyoming does not have a shield law protecting a news outfit from divulging unpublished material in state investigations.
The ruling came in a case in which a Montana man with political aspirations sued another man for libel and slander in Montana state court. The aspiring politico wanted to know whether the person he was suing was the anonymous commenter on the Billings Gazette he claimed was belittling him.
District Court Judge G. Todd Baugh, of Yellowstone County, issued the ruling from the bench Wednesday, according to the Billings Gazette.
There is no federal shield law protecting reporters' unpublished material in federal investigations.
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