| In writing this еssay I aim to givе | | | | ban neo-nazi sites.6) To limit the spread of |
| an insight into onе of, if not thе | | | | subversive knowledge, this mainly covers sites |
| most important issuе on thе | | | | promoting terrorism, which can include information |
| Intеrnеt today, that of | | | | on making bombs etc.7) To enforce legal rulings, |
| cеnsorship. I will first givе a | | | | the Internet can and has been used to |
| briеf outlinе as to how thе | | | | circumvent rulings concerning the British Official |
| Intеrnеt camе about and | | | | Secrets Act. (Global Censorship 99) As far as |
| how it works, as this is | | | | organised groups of individuals are concerned, by |
| nееdеd to | | | | far the most important reason for censoring the |
| undеrstand how thе | | | | Internet seems to be that of pornography.There |
| Intеrnеt can or cannot bе | | | | are a number of organizations dedicated to |
| cеnsorеd. I will also givе | | | | promoting Internet censorship mainly for this |
| rеasons why govеrnmеnts | | | | reason, they include 'Computer Professionals for |
| and individuals want to cеnsor thе | | | | Social Responsibility', 'The Christian Coalition', |
| Intеrnеt, attеmpts that | | | | 'CyberAngels', and the 'National Coalition for the |
| havе bееn madе, | | | | protection of Children and Families' (Duarte 97). |
| and why pеoplе arе | | | | Which leads on to the question 'Should the |
| opposеd to thеsе | | | | Internet be Censored?' The arguments for and |
| attеmpts at cеnsorship. Lastly I will | | | | against both have valid and worthy points to |
| outlinе if cеnsorship of thе | | | | support their reasons. Good arguments can be |
| Intеrnеt is practicablе or | | | | put forward for some of the reasons for |
| achiеvablе and givе my own | | | | censorship outlined above, most people wouldn't |
| viеwpoint.According to (Kristula 1997) | | | | argue with trying to censor paedophile material, or |
| thе bеginnings of thе | | | | neo-nazi material. On the anti censorship side the |
| Intеrnеt can bе | | | | main argument seems to be the protection of |
| tracеd back to 1969. APRA (Thе | | | | free speech, with the majority of material on the |
| Advancеd Rеsеarch | | | | Internet being American dominated, this has |
| Projеcts Agеncy) a division of | | | | become a particularly contentious issue in the |
| thе Amеrican | | | | United States. Mainly because unlike in this country |
| Dеpartmеnt of | | | | they have a constitution, which sets out basic |
| Dеfеncе | | | | rights for every American citizen and is |
| crеatеd a nеtwork of four | | | | considered by many Americans as sacrosanct.The |
| sеrvеrs callеd thе | | | | first amendment declares that: "Congress shall |
| APRANЕT. Its purposе was to | | | | make no law respecting an establishment of |
| dеcеntralisе information on | | | | religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or |
| thе nеtwork so that in thе | | | | abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; |
| еvеnt of a nuclеar war | | | | or the right of people peaceably to assemble, and |
| information would still flow ovеr thе | | | | to petition the Government for redress of |
| nеtwork. Information passеd | | | | grievances" Their argument is that any attempt |
| around it until it rеachеd its | | | | at censorship is a violation of the first amendment |
| dеstination, it was not | | | | and therefore unconstitutional. A major milestone |
| nеcеssary to follow any particular | | | | in the censorship issue occurred in 1996 when the |
| routе. It is this kеy point thе | | | | U.S. Congress passed the Telecommunications bill, |
| fact that thеrе is no onе | | | | part of which consisted of an act that allowed the |
| placе through which all information | | | | government to censor speech and eliminate all |
| passеs that, as I will еxplain in | | | | sexually explicit material on the Internet this was |
| morе dеtail latеr | | | | called the Communications Decency Act (CDA). |
| makеs cеnsorship difficult if not | | | | The act met with widespread disapproval and |
| impossiblе. Thе nеtwork | | | | inspired new organisations like the Citizens |
| еxpandеd in sizе and | | | | Internet Empowerment Coalition (CIEC) and |
| spееd as tеchnological | | | | American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to form in |
| advancеs continuеd ovеr | | | | order to fight for free speech as laid down in the |
| thе nеxt twеnty | | | | constitution. Major companies including Microsoft, |
| yеars.Standards began to emerge for | | | | America Online and Apple supported them.The |
| instance the TCP/IP protocol for transmission of | | | | range and number of different people and |
| data over the network. HyperText Transfer | | | | organisations opposed to the act showed the |
| Protocol (HTTP) the standard way in which to | | | | Congress how strongly people felt on the issue of |
| send and receive Internet documents had come | | | | free speech on the Internet. The CIEC supported |
| about by 1990. Four years later the APRANET | | | | by the organisations named above launched a civil |
| was disbanded, this evolved further with in | | | | suit in the federal court challenging the CDA on |
| excess of three million computers being | | | | the basis that it was unenforceable and violated |
| connected together to form a public network | | | | the first amendment. In response the defendants |
| now known as the Internet. The Internet | | | | argued in favour of the CDA because "The |
| continues to grow at a massive rate everyday, | | | | Internet threatens to give every child a free pass |
| with figures of the number of people connected | | | | into the equivalent of every adult bookstore and |
| being obsolete before they even have a chance | | | | every adult video store in the country" (Mattos |
| to be published. This rapid growth caught many | | | | 97).However the three judges that heard the |
| people by surprise the main feature of the early | | | | CDA case unanimously opposed this assertion, |
| Internet was the complete freedom from | | | | declaring the CDA unconstitutional on the grounds |
| censorship, and its true democratic ideal. In the | | | | that it contravened the first and fifth |
| words of (Sterling 93) the Internet is "a rare | | | | amendments. In the United Kingdom the issue of |
| example of a true, modern, functional | | | | Internet censorship has not become as big an |
| anarchy...there are no official censors, no bosses, | | | | issue as it has in the U.S. with the government |
| no board of directors, no stockholders...no central | | | | favouring a self-regulatory approach for Internet |
| authority".However by the mid 1990's | | | | content regulation as opposed to the introduction |
| governments and other groups began to show an | | | | of legal solutions. The approach by the UK |
| interest becoming concerned with the unrestricted | | | | government is largely inline with developments in |
| flow of data and potential of the Internet. As | | | | this area at the European Union level. However |
| mentioned above groups concerned with | | | | there have been some regulatory attempts in the |
| censorship of the Internet fall broadly into two | | | | U.K. with the government keen to try to regulate |
| categories, governments and organised groups of | | | | the Internet in areas mainly concerning state |
| individuals. There are a number of reasons | | | | secrets and personal attacks (Gates 96).The |
| governments want to censor the Internet:1) To | | | | potential for the Internet is almost unbounded it is |
| stop pornography, both access of obscene | | | | already a major area of discussion all around the |
| material by children and the distribution of | | | | world and is still in its relative infancy. The Internet |
| paedophile material.2) To limit discussion of political | | | | community must be allowed to govern itself, no |
| and/or religious matters, Zambia banned an on-line | | | | government can or should be allowed to dictate |
| edition of an opposition newspaper, and | | | | what can and cannot be published on it. It should |
| imprisoned the editors for criticising the | | | | be left free so anyone no matter whatever their |
| government.3) To counteract 'misinformation', | | | | viewpoint can add new ideas and opinions so we |
| some governments actively pursue people | | | | can all benefit from this remarkable new |
| involved in what they consider to be deliberate | | | | medium.Bibliography:Akdeniz, Y. (1998) Who |
| subversive misinformation campaigns designed to | | | | Watches the Watchmen: Part II Accountability & |
| undermine the government.4) To protect cultural | | | | Effective Self-Regulation in the Information Age |
| boundaries. With the U.S. domination of the | | | | Cyber-Rights & Cyber-Liberties (UK) D.R. Internet |
| Internet and the subsequent prevalence of the | | | | Censorship Gates, B. (1996). The Road Ahead |
| English language, the French government has for | | | | New York, Penguin Books.Kristula, D. (1997) The |
| instance passed a law declaring that all sites must | | | | History of the Internet Mattos, J. (1997) The CDA |
| be in French.5) To stop hate speech and groups, | | | | Before the Court Global Censorship Sterling, B. |
| in Germany Anti-Semitism is illegal the | | | | (1993). Short History of the Internet. |
| government has made numerous attempts to | | | | |