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IP: CIEC Trial Bulletin - Evening Update Thurs March 21, 7:00
From: Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 1996 19:55:20 -0500
----------------------------------------------------------------- _______ _ _ ____ _ _ _ _ |__ __| (_) | | | _ \ | | | | | (_) | |_ __ _ __ _| | | |_) |_ _| | | ___| |_ _ _ __ | | '__| |/ _` | | | _ <| | | | | |/ _ \ __| | '_ \ | | | | | (_| | | | |_) | |_| | | | __/ |_| | | | | |_|_| |_|\__,_|_| |____/ \__,_|_|_|\___|\__|_|_| |_| Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition Trial Update No. 5 Evening Update - March 21, 1996 7:00 pm ET ----------------------------------------------------------------- http://www.cdt.org/ciec/ ciec-info () cdt org ----------------------------------------------------------------- CIEC UPDATES intended for members of the Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition. CIEC Updates are written and edited by the Center for Democracy and Technology (http://www.cdt.org). This document may be reposted as long as it remains in total. ------------------------------------------------------------------ ** 30,000 Netizens Vs. U.S. Department of Justice. ** * The Fight To Save Free Speech Online * Contents: o Evening Update - Recap of Afternoon Testimony * Surfing the Net from the Federal Court * The Impact of the CDA on Small, Independent Content Providers o More Information on CIEC and the Center for Democracy and Technology ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (1) EVENING UPDATE - SURFING THE NET FROM THE COURTROOM The Court has recessed for the day after a long day of education on the nature of the Internet, the effectiveness of parental control software, and testimony on the potential impact of the Communications Decency Act on small, independent content providers. Testimony resumes at 9:30 am ET Friday March 22. After hearing about the workings of the Internet from Scott Bradner of the IETF this morning (see CIEC Afternoon Edition 3/21), the Court was given a visual demonstration of the World Wide Web by SurfWatch's Ann Duvall. After briefly describing the Internet and the basic steps one must take to get online (including purchasing a computer and modem, and subscribing to an Internet Service Provider or Online Service), Duvall logged on and took the Court on a trip around the Net. Duvall visited a site sponsored by the City of Philadelphia (the setting of the trial) and checked the schedule for upcoming Phillies games, then jumped to London for a quick tour of a Museum before returning to the United States for a demonstration of Yahoo's new site for Kids (yahooligans). She also showed the court how her daughter had found information on Fragile X syndrome for a research paper. Duvall then illustrated the effectiveness of SurfWatch, and parental control technology generally, by attempting to access several adult oriented sites (including Penthouse Magazine) with SurfWatch engaged. She also illustrated how SurfWatch blocks attempts to search for terms like "sexy" and "erotica" using common search engines. Each attempt was greated with a "blocked by SurfWatch" message. Despite expectations that the Justice Department might attempt to use the Internet demonstration to show that some sexually explicit Internet sites may not be blocked by SurfWatch, the DOJ attorneys did not do so, and offered no examples of sexually explicit sites to the Court. Instead, they concentrated their efforts on the number of sites SurfWatch blocks (approximately 5000, plus key words like "sex") in an apparent attempt to show that there is are a large number of such sites on the Net. They also suggested SurfWatch may not be effective because sites on the Internet change frequently and new sites regularly come on line. The Judges appeared extremely interested in Duvall's testimony, and asked a number of questions. They seemed particularly taken with the demonstration of the World Wide Web and the variety of information available. In an important question wich may help to illustrate the potential weeknesses of the CDA, Judge Dalzel focused on Duvall's statement that approximately 30% of the sites SurfWatch blocks are outside the United States. SMALL, INDEPENDENT CONTENT PROVIDERS WILL SUFFER UNDER THE CDA The Court next heard from Kiyoshi Kuromiya, Director of the Critical Path AIDS Project. Kuroimya, called by the ACLU attorneys, testified that he maintains a World Wide Web site which contains information on how to avoid the AIDS virus and other sexually transmitted diseases. Kuromiya stated that some of the materials on his site use explicit terms which may violated the "indecency" and "patently offensive" provisions of the CDA. In response to a question from Judge Dalzel, Kuromiya stated that he would not want to alter the materials he posts, or deny access to the site, in order to avoid prosecution under the CDA. The Court also heard form Patricia Warren an author and publisher who maintains a Web site containing excerpts from her books, some of which deal with Gay and Lesbian subject matter. Warren stated that she fears prosecution under the CDA because some in the United States consider the subject matter she addresses to be 'indecent'. During her testimony, one of the Judges, apparently understanding the vast potential of the Internet to make every user a publisher, asked if it is easier to publish a magazine online than in printed form. Warren responded by suggesting that because distribution and production costs are significantly lower on the Net, publishing online is an important outlet for small publishers with limited resources. Neither Kuromiya or Warren were cross examined by the Justice Department. Testimony resumes tomorrow with Scott Bradner, who had to leave early today. Witnesses expected to testify also include Donna Hoffman, of Vanderbeldt University. Situation permitting, we will post a summary of tomorrow's testimony starting in the afternoon. Please continue to check the CIEC web page for updates (http://www.cdt.org/ciec/) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Subscrition Information As CIEC members, you have been invited to join this list in order to receive news updates and other information relevant to the CIEC challenge to the Communications Decency Act. If you ever want to remove yourself from this list, send email to ciec-members-request () cdt org with 'unsubscribe ciec-members' in the SUBJECT LINE (w/o the 'quotes'). Leave the body of your message blank. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. For More Information For more information on the CIEC challenge, including the text of the complaint and other relevant materials: * World Wide Web -- http://www.cdt.org/ciec/ * General Information about CIEC -- ciec-info () cdt org * Copy of the Complaint -- ciec-docs () cdt org * Specific Questions Regarding the Coalition, incuding Press Inquiries -- ciec () cdt org * General information about the Center for Democracy and Technology -- info () cdt org -- end ciec-update.5 3/21/96
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- IP: CIEC Trial Bulletin - Evening Update Thurs March 21, 7:00 Dave Farber (Mar 21)