Telling both sides of the story

Editor's note: Chu, a Fudan University lecturer, writes a micro-blog under the name Wenyuangedaxueshi, or "Great Scholar". He has more than 50,000 followers on Sina Weibo.

Weibo is certainly a good channel for disseminating information, but the cases of Qinhuohuo and Lierchaisi should sound warning bells for netizens, because they emphasize that we should be responsible for what we say, especially micro-bloggers with many followers, even though the Internet is a virtual space.

However, many legal professionals have raised the question: Should the government be directly involved in cases of this sort? If rumors damage people's reputations, it seems more reasonable for the victims themselves to come forward and request moral and legal help.