You want to introduce an active webpage into evidence. Now
what?
Courts generally agree that the contents of a website are
admissible evidence, so long as those contents are properly
authenticated and are not in violation of any hearsay rule.
In recent years, the most common way of presenting web content has
been through printouts of the particular web page. However,
jurors expect information from the internet the same way they use
the internet - with a live connection.
When it comes to evidentiary issues, courts have historically
needed time to develop (and then relax) standards for
authenticating emergent technology. Take photography, for example.
Today, it is easy to admit a photograph into evidence - "is
this photo a fair and accurate depiction...?" In 1968,
the 6th Circuit weighed in on the authentication of photos:
