IP: Reforming the Communications Decency Act:

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

Reforming the Communications Decency Act:
An interview with Rep. Anna Eshoo


(From Interactive Age Digital, on the Wed at http://techweb.cmp.com/ia)




On March 21, a federal court began judging the fate of the Communications
Decency Act (CDA) -- the restrictive legislation barring online
dissemination of material judged "indecent" As the legal challenges
progress through the courts, Congress is considering legislation designed
to narrow the scope of the indecency ban.


One of those bills, the Online Parental Control Act of 1996 was introduced
last week. Authored by Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, a Democrat representing
most of Silicon Valley in California, the bill seeks to bar only material
that is considered "harmful to minors, using a criteria based on widely
accepted standards now in place across the nation.


Eshoo, first elected in 1992, serves on the House Commerce Committee, and
on the Telecommunications Subcommittee, where the Telecommunications bill
and Decency act were shaped.


Interactive Age Digital's Gary Brickman recently spoke with Representative.
Eshoo about censoring the censorship laws.


IAD: How did the Communications Decency Act become law?


REP. ESHOO: This indecency proposal that became part of the overall bill
did not go either through the committee, nor was it amended on the floor of
the House. This was slipped in when we were in the conference committee.
So, my experience there -- and it was a very close vote on this indecency
proposal - really took me back. It said that First Amendment rights, in my
view, would be violated. Right alongside of that, the government -- not
moms and dads -- would be the decider on what is harmful to minors. I'd
been working with various individuals and organizations to shape
legislation that would correct this, and that's what the Online Parental
Control Act of 1996 represents.


IAD: How did the right wing of the Republican Party get the strength to
pass the CDA?


REP. ESHOO: Certainly the language that was jammed into the bill at the
last minute I don't think withstands the scrutiny of the public. Of course
Rick White [Republican - Washington], one of my colleagues in the House,
tried to have language that would not be as restrictive as the language
ended up. Certainly there were many members that quoted Ralph Reed who
heads up the Christian Coalition. But it lost on a very close vote [17-16].


IAD: So you think the Christian Coalition was the major force in this
country behind the CDA?


REP. ESHOO: I think very much so. But I also think there were organizations
that certainly lobbied on the Senate side -- because it was Senator Exon
(Democrat-Nebraska) that first introduced language that resembled this, the
decency clause. There were many family and parental groups that stressed
their concerns about what children can and are, most frankly, submitted
too. And so that became a very real concern of members of Congress.


The irony in the Telecommunications bill is that Congress understood
television better than the Internet. Because the V-Chip did become part of
the legislative language when it comes to TV. My sense is, that most
members of Congress have little appreciation or understanding that the
Internet is not a federal interstate freeway -- it's not a public highway.
This is a private network.


IAD: To go back to the analogy of television versus the Internet in terms
of government regulation -- isn't the Internet funded in part by federal
dollars that go to educational institutions or research facilities that
receive grants for work they do on the Internet?


REP. ESHOO: They certainly have the Internet, and they certainly make use
of it. But the Internet in and of itself is not a government-funded
network.


IAD: But neither is ABC or CBS...


REP. ESHOO: I'm sure going back over the years the government, through
research dollars helped develop it. But for the most part, these are
private networks. Cyberspace is something that is relatively new.


IAD: Should government regulate the Internet in any way? What form would
that take?


REP. ESHOO: We're not talking about regulation per se, we're talking about
censorship, which goes right to the heart of our First Amendment Rights.
The way the language is constructed in the law is that the indecency
standard is so vague and so broad that it leads to the criminal penalties
that are contained in the bill. In my view, that is harmful in and of
itself. I'm a mother, I'm a parent. My children are grown now, but I'm
certainly sensitive to the legitimate concerns that parents would have.


IAD: Is it realistic to expect that in an election year, with Republicans
in charge of Congress that your bill will pass?


REP. ESHOO: I think that we have a very good opportunity to gather
bipartisan support. I plan to demonstrate the technologies that are
available now [to block sites from minors], so members will be not only be
introduced to the legislation, but also understand the tools that will
provide what parents legitimately need to have.


IAD: The President was fairly silent on the Communications Decency Act as
it was worded when it passed...


REP. ESHOO: It was not an area of the bill that was highlighted. This small
part of the bill, as much of an impact as it had to online users, was not
something that was debated on the floor of the House of Representatives..


IAD: Do you expect the White House will support your bill?


REP. ESHOO: We will certainly meet with the White House and make them very
much aware of what this legislation contains.


IAD: There are some concerns in the online community that judging material
based on "community standards," a criteria supported in your bill, is
impossible to apply to the Internet...


REP. ESHOO: Just a moment. My bill adds two new defenses. One, the use of
labeling or segregating systems to restrict access to online materials,
using the standards defined by PICS, the platform for Internet content
selection project, and two, it protects information content providers who
use these technologies from civil or criminal liability.


IAD: What will the impact on the growth of the Internet industry if the law
stands as it is now written?


REP. ESHOO: This is more than a growing industry in the country. We're the
leaders in the world on this. Obviously we're dealing with a law that
applies to the United States, but we have to keep in mind that this is a
world wide activity. I think it can and will have a chilling effect on both
the part of users, and on the part of those who manufacture technology.


IAD:Why not let the courts deal with this?


REP. ESHOO: Well, the court is not going to rewrite the law. The case is
designed to knock out this section [the indecency standard] of the law. If
in fact it does -- and my guess is, the court will -- what's left in place?
I really do believe that we can and should legislatively speak to the
concerns that parents have. I think that's a very important thing. But the
way we do it, and honor the Constitution, has to be primary.


 -- Gary Brickman
Managing Editor, Interactive Age Digital