{
  "id": 11050734,
  "title": "Victory! California Appeals Court Refuses to Revive Surveillance Tech CEO’s Meritless Lawsuit Against Journalist",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/victory-california-appeals-court-refuses-to-revive-surveillance-tech",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-30T22:38:05.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "EFF Deeplinks",
    "slug": "eff-deeplinks",
    "url": "https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/09/victory-california-appeals-court-refuses-revive-surveillance-tech-ceos-meritless"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In a significant victory for free speech, a California appeals court has refused to revive a meritless lawsuit filed by former Premise Data CEO Maury Blackman against journalist Jack Poulson. According to prosecutors, Blackman attempted to use the court system to silence negative reporting about himself, in an attempt to force the removal of Poulson's reporting from the internet. The lawsuit, which included claims against Substack, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and another organization, was dismissed in its entirety by the trial court under California's anti-SLAPP statute. Blackman appealed the decision, arguing that a court order sealing the arrest record of a felony domestic violence offense he allegedly committed should override Poulson's right to report the news. However, the Court of Appeals correctly rejected Blackman's appeal, affirming Poulson's First Amendment protections and noting that his right to publish the lawfully obtained and truthful information outweighed Blackman's privacy interests. The court also found that Poulson, as the publisher of the All Source Intelligence newsletter, was protected by California's Shield Law, and that Substack and the other websites were protected by Section 230 from liability. This decision is a win for free speech, for Poulson, and for everyone.",
  "summary": "When the rich and powerful try to use the court to silence negative reporting about themselves, it’s worth calling out that behavior for what it is: an attack on free speech. This is why EFF is happy to stand up for reporters who find themselves in that situation. The California Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision to strike a former Premise Data CEO’s meritless lawsuit against a…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}