What a Difference a Decade Makes

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Brock N Meeks <bmeeks () cox net>
> Date: May 27, 2008 5:15:57 PM EDT
> To: David Farber <dave () farber net>
> Subject: What a Difference a Decade Makes

> Policy Beta Blog--Digital Policy in Progress
> http://blog.cdt.org/2008/05/27/
>
> The year was 1995 and the biggest threat to Internet free speech was a
> bill called the “Communications Decency Act.” If passed, the bill
> threatened to criminalize all manner of constitutionally protected
> speech under the guise of keeping “indecent” material from being
> viewed by children.
>
> Momentum for passage of the bill was enormous. The bill passed House
> with barely a hint of opposition. The vote in the Senate was little
> better; only 16 Senators bucked the political headwinds and remained
> steadfast in their vision of the Internet as a new and exciting ground
> for free expression and innovation. Among those voting against the CDA
> was Senator Joe Lieberman.☼ And he proved to be right about the CDA
> — a federal court immediately enjoined the enforcement of the new
> law, and 18 months later the Supreme Court ruled that it was
> unconstitutional.
>
> What a difference a decade makes.
>
> Last week Senator Lieberman sent a letter demanding that the Google-
> owned video site YouTube scour its user contributed online offerings
> and remove any that smacked of supporting terrorism or carrying
> threatening messages fomenting terrorism. Google appropriately
> reviewed the YouTube videos and removed 80 of them from the site
> because they violated YouTube’s long-established terms of service
> agreement. But Lieberman demanded more. He insisted that YouTube begin
> to proactively censor content based on its origin alone, regardless of
> what the video contained. It is an outlandish request and cuts against
> First Amendment freedoms.
>
> Beyond the clear constitutional prohibition against mandating content
> restrictions, Internet censorship is frankly, highly unlikely to be
> effective. Internet based content isn’t like the open ranges of the
> Wild West, able to be fenced off with barb wire. Shutting off one
> particular access point is likely to spawn two or three more and all
> outside the reach of the government trying to shut off access. When
> you come right down to it, Internet censorship is little more than
> virtual game of Whack-A-Mole.
>
> Senator Lieberman should realize this, especially considering his
> courageous vote against the CDA. Let’s hope that courage, once foun 
> d,
> is found again, and the Senator regains his vision of the Internet as
> a platform for openness, innovation and free expression.
>
> John Morris
> General Counsel
> CDT



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