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Cynthia Moreno clearly didn’t expect anyone but a few friends to take note when she indulged in that time-honored pastime of college students: ranting about how much she hated her small hometown. Unfortunately, the local high school’s principal, Roger Campbell, also spotted the “Ode to Coalinga” Moreno posted on her MySpace page—and forwarded it to the Coalinga Record, where it appeared as a letter to the editor under Moreno’s name. The backlash was so severe—including death threats and even a gunshot at the family house—that Moreno’s parents and sister had to leave town. Nevertheless, a California State appellate court ruled late last week that the publication of the letter didn’t violate Moreno’s privacy rights.

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