sarettah
08-28-2005, 09:43 AM
http://www.firstamendmentcenter.org/commentary.aspx?id=15699
Constructing a red-light district on the Internet
Inside the First Amendment
By Paul K. McMasters
First Amendment Center ombudsman
If you think politics makes strange bedfellows, try pornography.
Let me rephrase that.
A seemingly uncontroversial proposal to create a special domain on the Internet to help protect children (and others) from adult content developed strong opposition on the eve of its implementation earlier this month. It has been put on hold.
Joining forces to oppose the proposal: pornography fighters and some pornography producers.
Certainly these unusual bedfellows have different reasons for not wanting something called the xxx domain to be created on the Internet, but when they speak with one voice, the real and virtual governing bodies listen.
.............................
Worry about government regulation in this situation is legitimate even if the likelihood is slight. ICANN is a private-public entity with global responsibility for the Internet’s operational stability. Theoretically, it is insulated from government control or sway.
But the U.S. Commerce Department actually operates the root server system that makes the domain names work. When a concerted letter-writing campaign can prompt the federal agency to big-foot a sincere and promising effort to make things easier and less risky for parents, consumers and providers, then strange bedfellows with strong voices become not just an oddity but a threat. Official U.S. intervention could heat up concerns in some countries that ICANN is overly influenced by American policy-makers.
In the minds of many, pornography is a worst-class ticket to perdition. They believe that full-force prosecution, even if it is impractical or unconstitutional, is the only option. On the other side are those who believe that private and government powers should not interfere with what grown-ups choose to access in cyberspace.
In the meantime, the vast majority located somewhere between those two positions should welcome any tool that helps Internet users, young and old, safely navigate the Internet.
Constructing a red-light district on the Internet
Inside the First Amendment
By Paul K. McMasters
First Amendment Center ombudsman
If you think politics makes strange bedfellows, try pornography.
Let me rephrase that.
A seemingly uncontroversial proposal to create a special domain on the Internet to help protect children (and others) from adult content developed strong opposition on the eve of its implementation earlier this month. It has been put on hold.
Joining forces to oppose the proposal: pornography fighters and some pornography producers.
Certainly these unusual bedfellows have different reasons for not wanting something called the xxx domain to be created on the Internet, but when they speak with one voice, the real and virtual governing bodies listen.
.............................
Worry about government regulation in this situation is legitimate even if the likelihood is slight. ICANN is a private-public entity with global responsibility for the Internet’s operational stability. Theoretically, it is insulated from government control or sway.
But the U.S. Commerce Department actually operates the root server system that makes the domain names work. When a concerted letter-writing campaign can prompt the federal agency to big-foot a sincere and promising effort to make things easier and less risky for parents, consumers and providers, then strange bedfellows with strong voices become not just an oddity but a threat. Official U.S. intervention could heat up concerns in some countries that ICANN is overly influenced by American policy-makers.
In the minds of many, pornography is a worst-class ticket to perdition. They believe that full-force prosecution, even if it is impractical or unconstitutional, is the only option. On the other side are those who believe that private and government powers should not interfere with what grown-ups choose to access in cyberspace.
In the meantime, the vast majority located somewhere between those two positions should welcome any tool that helps Internet users, young and old, safely navigate the Internet.