727 lines
32 KiB
Plaintext
727 lines
32 KiB
Plaintext
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Computer underground Digest Sun Jun 16, 1996 Volume 8 : Issue 46
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ISSN 1004-042X
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Editor: Jim Thomas (cudigest@sun.soci.niu.edu)
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News Editor: Gordon Meyer (gmeyer@sun.soci.niu.edu)
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Archivist: Brendan Kehoe
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Shadow Master: Stanton McCandlish
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Field Agent Extraordinaire: David Smith
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Shadow-Archivists: Dan Carosone / Paul Southworth
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Ralph Sims / Jyrki Kuoppala
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Ian Dickinson
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Cu Digest Homepage: http://www.soci.niu.edu/~cudigest
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CONTENTS, #8.46 (Sun, Jun 16, 1996)
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File 1--CDA lawsuit the Pentagon Papers of cyberspace, sez Reuters
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File 2--ACLU Press Conference on CDA
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File 3--Exon Press Release/Statement on CDA Decision
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File 4--Dalzell on broadcast v. net metaphor
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File 5--President Clinton's Statement on the CDA Decision
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File 6--ALA applauds CDA victory, "a historic case"
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File 7--OPPOSITION: FRC on CDA Decision
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File 8--Cu Digest Header Info (unchanged since 7 Apr, 1996)
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CuD ADMINISTRATIVE, EDITORIAL, AND SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION ApPEARS IN
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THE CONCLUDING FILE AT THE END OF EACH ISSUE.
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---------------------------------------------------------------------
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Date: Fri, 14 Jun 1996 18:33:38 -0500
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From: Declan McCullagh <declan@well.com>
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Subject: File 1--CDA lawsuit the Pentagon Papers of cyberspace, sez Reuters
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I think it was Marc Rotenberg from EPIC who said at Wednesday's CDA press
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conference in DC that this was the Times v. Sullivan of cyberspace. The
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attached Reuters article now compares our lawsuit to the Pentagon Papers
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case...
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-Declan
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---------- Forwarded message ----------
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NEW YORK (Reuter) - As official Washington from President
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Clinton on down attacked a court ruling blocking censorship in
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cyberspace, the 25th anniversary of a momentous clash on press
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freedom passed almost unnoticed Thursday.
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It was on June 13, 1971 that the New York Times began
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publishing details of the Pentagon Papers, a 7,000-page secret
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official history of the U.S. role in the Vietnam War that many
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said proved that successive presidents misled the American
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people on the course of the war.
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For two days, President Richard Nixon let the Times print
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embarrassing disclosures about the Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy
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and Johnson administrations. Then he sent his lawyers to court
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to stop further stories, saying they would cause ``irreparable
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injury to the defense interests of the United States.''
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It was the first time in U.S. history that a president tried
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to exercise prior restraint on a newspaper and a New York judge
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issued a restraining order on the Times. Within days, the
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Washington Post obtained a copy of the papers and began
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publishing. When a court stopped it as well, newspapers in
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Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and St. Louis began publishing. The
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issue went to the Supreme Court, which sided with press freedom.
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A quarter of a century later, while historians, press
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critics and participants still argue over the Pentagon Papers, a
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new freedom of speech issue is expected to head to the Supreme
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Court -- whether it is constitutional for the government to slap
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curbs on indecent material on the Internet.
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[...]
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David Rudenstine, a New York law professor and author of
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''The Day the Presses Stopped,'' a new account of the Pentagon
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Papers, says the battle between the Times and other newspapers
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and the government became a high water mark for democracy. At
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the same time it laid the foundation for the destruction of the
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Nixon administration.
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[...]
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------------------------------
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Date: Wed, 12 Jun 1996 16:01:41 -0400 (EDT)
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From: Mark Mangan <mmangan@pencom.com>
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Subject: File 2--ACLU Press Conference on CDA
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ACLU Press Conference
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June 12
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=================================
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The Conference
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NEW YORK CITY-- The ACLU held a press conference this morning to
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announce the victory in its suit contesting the constitutionality
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of the CDA. The win is embodied in a 216 page decision which reflects
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the three-judge panel's 3-0 thumbs down to a half-baked ban on indecency.
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Chris Hansen, lead counsel for the ACLU, described the decision as a
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"resounding victory," calling the CDA "an unconstitutionally bad idea."
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Statements were also made by ACLU attorney Marjorie Heins and ACLU
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Executive Director Ira Glasser, as well as several of the plantiffs
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in the case. When the press asked about children and how to protect
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them from looking at all the smut, Hansen pointed to the service providers
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such as AOL and Prodigy, as well as the existing blocking software such
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as Surfwatch. He essentially stressed that the freedom and responsibility
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associated with this powerful medium should be placed with the parents.
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Glasser offered an interesting world view, as he declared this
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a "bogus issue." He said he has four kids and "the question of
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how to raise children is a parental problem which no law should address."
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In response to a worrisome assertion that kids having a better understanding
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of computers, he pointed out that "kids who are sophisticated today will
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be parents tomorrow." When asked about the problem of rogues stirring
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up problems with anonymous postings, Glasser said "this is not a new
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issue," recalling the pamphlets in colonial America and such anonymously
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penned works as the Federalist Papers. Anonymous, free speech is valued
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in the American tradition, he argued--it's not a new problem served up by
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the Internet
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The government lawyers have 20 days to file an appeal. If the Supreme
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court doesn't laugh in their face and tell them to piss-off, the
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case would presumably reach the highest court in the land sometime
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next fall.
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================================
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Some Good Quotes
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The decision of the court includes 80 pages of Findings of Fact,
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as well as a lengthy opinion from each of the judges.
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The ACLU press release, written by Emily Whitfield, picked out
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some of the best quotes.
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Judge Dalzell: "Cutting through the acronyms and argot that littered
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hearing testimony, the Internet may fairly be regarded as a never-ending
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worldwide conversation. The Government may not, through the CDA, interrupt
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that conversation. As the most participatory form of mass speech yet
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developed, the Internet deserves the highest protection from governmental
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intrusion."
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Judge Buckwalter: "I continue to believe that the word 'indecent' is
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unconstitutionally vague, and I find that the terms 'in context' and
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'patently offensive' are also so vague as to violate the First and Fifth
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Amendments."
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Judge Sloviter: "The bottom line is that the First Amendment should not
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be interpreted to require us to entrust the protection it affords to the
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judgement of prosecutors. Prosectors come and go ... the First Amendment
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remains to give protection to future generations as well."
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------------------------------
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Date: Thu, 13 Jun 1996 16:29:59 -0400
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From: Bob Palacios <bobpal@cdt.org>
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Subject: File 3--Exon Press Release/Statement on CDA Decision
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For Release, Wednesday, June 12, 1996
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EXON ISSUES STATEMENT ON COURT RULING ON DECENCY ACT
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Washington, D.C. -- U.S. SENATOR JIM EXON (D-NE), issued the following
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statement today after the court ruling in Philadelphia on the Exon-Coats
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Communications Decency Act:
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"The Communications Decency Act makes it illegal to transmit or make
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available indecent material to children. From the beginning, we felt that
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the best chance for a considered opinion would be in the U.S. Supreme Court
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and that's where the final decision will be made. We are still a land of
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laws and courts and while I do not agree with the judges' decision today, I
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respect their right to make it. The court has taken the ACLU line that
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anything goes on the Internet, even though that overlooks well-established
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laws protecting children from pornography
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in other areas. The Decency Act stands for the premise that it is wrong to
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provide pornography to children on computers just as it is wrong to do it
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on a street corner or anywhere else. Hopefully, reason and common sense
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will prevail in the Supreme Court."
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-end-
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----------------
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SENATOR EXON PRESS CONFERENCE AFTER PHILADELPHIA RULING
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A three judge panel in Philadelphia this morning handed down a decision
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enjoining enforcement of two sections of the Communications Decency Act
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(CDA). This decision is not a surprise, nor is it a set back for the new
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law. It in fact clears the way for U. S. Supreme Court consideration.
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The ACLU and their fellow plaintiffs did not select the Philadelphia court
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by accident to launch their challenge to the CDA.
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First, it is important to understand what the CDA is and what it is not.
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The CDA makes it a crime to knowingly use a telecommunications device or
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interactive computer to send an indecent communication to a child and to
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use an interactive computer to display an indecent communication in a
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manner accessible to a child.
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The new law does not ban any constitutionally protected material from adults.
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The radical decision of the three judge panel in Philadelphia rests on two
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pillars. From this Senator's point of view, those pillars are made of chalk
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which will crumble upon Supreme Court review.
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The Philadelphia court found that there were no effective measures to
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determine the age of computers users. This technological argument is faulty
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because as a relatively, new medium, the Internet and other interactive
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computer services are infinitely malleable and their architecture can
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accommodate child screening. The court overlooks that, a number of Internet
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sites already block child access by requiring credit card or adult PIN
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numbers to access certain sites. Even if such technology were not
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available, the statute does not require the impossible only what is
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"reasonable, effective and appropriate."
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The second line of criticism was with the law's "indecency" standard. The
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Philadelphia court found the term "indecency" and its rendition in the
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statute to be "vague." The court brushed aside years of U. S. Supreme Court
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jurisprudence which not only found the indecency standard sufficiently
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clear, but which applied the very standard to radio, television, telephone
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and cable use. Here the court's disagreement does not seem to be with the
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Congress but with the U. S. Supreme Court which has repeatedly upheld the
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decency standard.
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The Philadelphia court also overlooks that no court has applied the
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indecency standard to prohibit serious works of art, medical information or
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important literature. In this regard, the court feasted on a plate of red
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herrings.
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The Congress took great care to craft the CDA so that is zeroed in on
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protecting children from on-line indecency, as the U. S. Supreme Court has
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repeatedly acknowledged as a compelling state interest. The Congress
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modeled the statute after the existing DIAL-A-PORN law which the U. S.
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Supreme Court has found to meet the least restrictive alternative test
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which is applied to first amendment cases. The CDA can not be violated by
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accident. There must be a knowing violation.
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The Philadelphia court ignores that it is fundamentally wrong to knowingly
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give pornography to children or to display pornography in public place. I
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am hopeful that the U .S. Supreme Court, relying on its own precedents will
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find the CDA to Be Constitutional.
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----------------
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This press release, along with other Congressional press releases and
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President Clinton's statement, can be found at: http://www.cdt.org/ciec/
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------------------------------
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Date: Wed, 12 Jun 96 21:48:21 PDT
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From: Jonathan Blumen <us003275@pop3.interramp.com>
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Subject: File 4--Dalzell on broadcast v. net metaphor
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Judge Dalzell--whose sympathy to the freedom of speech was apparent
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from the questions he asked during the hearing--writes some really
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clear and stirring prose distinguishing the Supreme Court's
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indecency ruling in Pacifica (the seven dirty words case) from the
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CDA case.
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One of the fundamental tenets of the pro-CDA forces--expressed on
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various lists by Matt Elkins--is that the Net can be regulated in
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the same way as broadcast media. Government regulation of broadcast
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originated sixty years ago with the doctrine that broadcast
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frequencies are "scarce"; therefore the government must determine
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who gets a licence; therefore, in determining who gets a license,
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the government may determine who is abusing the airwaves with
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"indecent" language. Since the Net involves no scarcity, pro-CDA
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forces have had to find an independent underpinning for government
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intervention. They found it in "pervasiveness", the doctrine that
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broadcast waves come into the house unbidden and may ambush children
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who turn the set on and are exposed unexpectedly to indecent
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content.
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The Carlin case, involving the comedian's Seven Dirty Words routine,
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referred to "the uniquely pervasive presence" of broadcasting and
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never mentioned the scarcity doctrine. Thirteen years ago,
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communications scholar Ithiel de Sola Pool correctly observed that
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this statement, if it meant what it appeared to, would justify
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"quite radical censorship." Now along comes the wonderful and
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clearheaded Judge Dalzell and clears it up for us.
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He points out that in a 1994 case, Turner Broadcasting v. FCC, the
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Supreme Court refused to extend Pacifica to cable TV because of
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"fundamental technological differences" between broadcast and cable.
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Dalzell says:
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"The legal significance to this case of Turner's refusal to apply
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the broadcast rules to cable television cannot be overstated.
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Turner's holding confirms beyond doubt that the holding in Pacifica
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arose out of the scarcity rationale unique to the underlying
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technology of broadcasting, and not out of the end product that the
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viewer watches. That is, cable television has no less of a
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'uniquely pervasive presence' than broadcast television....Whether
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one receives a signal through an antenna or through a dedicated
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wire, the end result is just television in either case. In declining
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to extend broadcast's scarcity rationale for cable, the Supreme
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Court also implicitly limited Pacifica, the holding of which flows
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directly from that rationale." (pp. 188-189)
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Three cheers for Dalzell. During three decades, censorship advocates
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have used Pacifica to justify radical measures pertaining to various
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electronic media. Dalzell's interpretation stops them at the bridge.
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ACLU v. Reno will be the Supreme Court's opportunity to clarify the
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outer boundaries of broadcast regulation and to tell us whether
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"pervasiveness" really means anything; the Turner case suggests that
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the Court will not shirk its responsibility.
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------------------------------
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Date: Thu, 13 Jun 1996 13:53:44 -0400
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From: Jonah Seiger <jseiger@cdt.org>
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Subject: File 5--President Clinton's Statement on the CDA Decision
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What's more interesting is what it doesn't say. He is not at all
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definitive on whether the gvt will file an appeal...
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Jonah
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--
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THE WHITE HOUSE
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Office of the Press Secretary
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___________________________________________________________________________
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For Immediate Release June 12, 1996
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STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT
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The Justice Department is reviewing today's three judge panel court
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decision on the Communications Decency Act. The opinion just came
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down today, and the statute says we have twenty days to make an
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appeal.
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I remain convinced, as I was when I signed the bill, that our
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Constitution allows us to help parents by enforcing this Act to
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prevent children from being exposed to objectionable material
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transmitted though computer networks. I will continue to do
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everything I can in my Administration to give families every
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available tool to protect their children from these materials. For
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example, we vigorously support the development and widespread
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availability of products that allow both parents and schools to
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block objectionable materials from reaching computers that children
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use. And we also support the industry's accelerating efforts to
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rate Internet sites so that they are compatible with these blocking
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techniques.
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------------------------------
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Date: Fri, 14 Jun 1996 20:35:11 -0700 (PDT)
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From: Declan McCullagh <declan@well.com>
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Subject: File 6--ALA applauds CDA victory, "a historic case"
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Date--Fri, 14 Jun 1996 23:31:25 -0400 (EDT)
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From--Stan Bernstein <sbernst@panix.com>
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Subject--ALAWON, No. 5, No. 34 (194 lines) (fwd)
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=================================================================
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ALAWON Volume 5, Number 34
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ISSN 1069-7799 June 14,1996
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American Library Association Washington Office Newsline
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In this issue: (194 lines)
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COMMUNICATIONS DECENCY ACT REJECTED BY COURT:
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LIBRARIANS APPLAUD CDA RULING
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_________________________________________________________________
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COMMUNICATIONS DECENCY ACT REJECTED BY COURT:
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LIBRARIANS APPLAUD CDA RULING
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The American Library Association, library advocates and others
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involved with the Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition (CIEC)
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welcome the decision of a federal district court panel declaring
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the new Communications Decency Act unconstitutional saying the
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ruling protects First Amendment rights, the public's open access
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to information and the librarians that provide the access.
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ALA is the lead plaintiff in a suit filed by the CIEC, a
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coalition of organizations which also includes online providers,
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publishers, parents and other public interest groups. The suit
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challenged the Act on the grounds that it is overly broad and so
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vaguely worded that it would subject librarians and other members
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of the public to criminal prosecution for posting materials
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online that are legal in other media.
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ALA Executive Director Elizabeth Martinez said after the court
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decision was released on June 12, "This is a historic case. The
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judges have acted to protect public access to information in this
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new and important media." Martinez said she was impressed by the
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open-mindedness of the judges and "their willingness to learn
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more about the Internet and how it works."
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The suit, filed in Philadelphia by CIEC, was consolidated with a
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similar suit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union. The
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government is expected to file an appeal that could be heard as
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soon as this fall by the U.S. Supreme Court.
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"We are ecstatic. Librarians can continue to provide ideas to
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the public regardless of the format, without concern about fines
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or jail terms," said Judith Krug, head of ALA's Office for
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Intellectual Freedom (OIF). "This is a victory for anyone who
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uses public libraries."
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The role of ALA in organizing the coalition was broadly
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acknowledged. OIF was especially instrumental in involving Bruce
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Ennis, longstanding counsel for the Freedom to Read Foundation,
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as the lead attorney.
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BACKGROUND:
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Under the Communications Decency Act, passed in February as part
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of the Telecommunications Reform Act of 1996, any person who
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knowingly sends or displays materials over the Internet that
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could be interpreted as "indecent" or "patently offensive by
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contemporary community standards" could be imprisoned for up to
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two years and fined up to $250,000.
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Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued that the law would curtail
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freedom of speech by restricting all communication on the
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Internet to a level appropriate for children and would unfairly
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subject libraries, colleges and other educational institutions to
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criminal prosecution for distributing great works of art and
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literature, health, science and other materials that some might
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find offensive. Government attorneys argued that the court
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should read the Communications Decency Act to apply only to
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hardcore sexually explicit material.
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Other plaintiffs included America Online,Inc.; the American
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Booksellers Association; American Society of Newspaper Editors,
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Apple Computer, Association of Publishers, Center for Democracy
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and Technology, Prodigy Services Company, Wired Ventures,. Ltd.
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This three-judge panel thoughtfully examined and ultimately
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understood the unique nature of this new medium. Judges Dolores
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Sloviter, Stewart Dalzell, and Ronald Buckwalter each wrote
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opinions to articulate the panel's unanimous decision. The judges
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came to understand the global, interactive and open nature of the
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Internet, and ruled in favor of the free flow of information that
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is both the tradition of our democracy and cyberspace. The court
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also was aware that this case was being watched around the world
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and sets a precedent for Internet regulation by other countries
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which would like to censor cyberspace.
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In concluding her statement, the panel's chief judge, Dolores
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Sloviter, wrote:..."the bottom line is that the First Amendment
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should not be interpreted to require us to entrust the protection
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it affords to the judgement of prosecutors. Prosecutors come and
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go. Even federal judges are limited to life tenure. The First
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Amendment remains to give protection to future generations as
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well. I have no hesitancy in concluding that it is likely that
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plaintiffs will prevail on the merits of their argument that the
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challenged provisions of the CDA are facially invalid under both
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the First and Fifth Amendments."
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Judge Dalzell noted in his opinion: "...the Internet deserves the
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highest protection from government intrusion..." Elsewhere he
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added "...the Internet may fairly be regarded as a never-ending
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worldwide conversation. The Government may not, through the CDA,
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interrupt that conversation."
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Judge Buckwalter wrote: "...I find that current technology is
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inadequate to provide a safe harbor to most speakers on the
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Internet...I continue to believe that indecent' is
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unconstitutionally vague, and I find that the terms in context'
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and Patently offensive' also are so vague as to violate the
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First and Fifth Amendments."
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This was the first full court appeals panel hearing regarding the
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Internet and is considered precedent setting, making the Internet
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at least as protected as the print medium, if not more so. It
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became clear to the court that this law could not protect
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children from inappropriate material on the Internet in a
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meaningful, enforceable way and that the law was vague and over
|
|
broad.
|
|
|
|
Another reason that ALA participated in the litigation was that
|
|
the law made no distinction between librarians, professors,
|
|
museum curators, newspapers and other providers of legitimate,
|
|
educational material and the true purveyors of material
|
|
inappropriate for children.
|
|
|
|
CIEC emphasized that new technology demonstrates a far more
|
|
effective solution to the problem of content on the Internet than
|
|
this or any other law ever could. The judges were shown parental
|
|
control software that effectively blocks unwanted material in
|
|
e-mail, news groups and Web sites. The judges recognized these
|
|
technologies in their opinions. For example, witnesses had
|
|
explained the new Platform for Internet Content Selection (PICS),
|
|
that will be a basis for a variety of rating systems. The
|
|
technology is available now and is beginning to be used.
|
|
|
|
TEXT AVAILABLE: The text of the judges ruling in the
|
|
Communications Decency Act suit is posted at
|
|
http://www.cdt.org/ciec/ciec-info@cdt.org
|
|
|
|
MEANWHILE IN WASHINGTON...
|
|
Response came quickly. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), a strong
|
|
opponent of the CDA in the Senate, was pleased with the court's
|
|
decision, commenting that the Constitution could not be
|
|
"trampled" to "make political points back home."
|
|
|
|
Representative Rick White (R-WA), who had opposed the "indecency"
|
|
provision in the CDA, predicted further legislative work on the
|
|
act after the Supreme Court decision. "That's when we go back to
|
|
the drawing board and do something that works," he said.
|
|
|
|
But President Clinton was quoted as saying: "I remain convinced,
|
|
as I was when I signed the bill, that our Constitution allows us
|
|
to help parents by enforcing this Act to prevent children from
|
|
being exposed to objectionable material transmitted through
|
|
computer networks."
|
|
|
|
Senator James Exon(D-NE), sponsor of the Communications Decency
|
|
Act, was hopeful that "reason and common sense will prevail in
|
|
the Supreme Court" as he looked to the higher court overturning
|
|
this decision.
|
|
|
|
Dee Jepsen, president of "Enough is Enough" said "Once again the
|
|
court system has failed the nation's parents in their struggle to
|
|
protect their children as they use newly available computer
|
|
technology." Bruce Taylor, chief counsel for the National Law
|
|
Center for Children and Families contended "I don't consider this
|
|
a setback."
|
|
|
|
But the enthusiasm for the court decision could not be dampened
|
|
by these opponents. Supporters in the Citizens Internet
|
|
Empowerment Coalition were celebrating a decision that affirmed
|
|
that the "Internet deserves the broadest possible protection."
|
|
Perhaps the enthusiasm at winning could be best described in
|
|
attorney Ennis' quote: "It's a spectacular victory for free
|
|
speech and the Internet."
|
|
|
|
There will inevitably be other legislative and legal battles in
|
|
this arena. More to come.
|
|
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
ALAWON is a free, irregular publication of the American Library
|
|
Association Washington Office. To subscribe, send the message
|
|
"subscribe ala-wo [your_firstname] [your_lastname]" to <listproc
|
|
@ala.org>. ALAWON archives gopher.ala.org; select Washington
|
|
Office Newsline. Web page HTTP://www.ala.org/alawashington.html.
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
Date: Wed, 12 Jun 1996 13:11:45 -0700
|
|
From: "--Todd Lappin-->" <telstar@wired.com>
|
|
Subject: File 7--OPPOSITION: FRC on CDA Decision
|
|
|
|
|
|
CDA DISASTER NETWORK
|
|
June 12, 1996
|
|
|
|
|
|
What do the censors at the Family Research Council have to say about
|
|
today's CDA decision?
|
|
|
|
They think it's "It is an arrogant decision which flies in the face of the
|
|
Supreme Court and our society."
|
|
|
|
Read on for all the whining details!
|
|
|
|
Work the network!
|
|
|
|
--Todd Lappin-->
|
|
Section Editor
|
|
WIRED Magazine
|
|
|
|
===========================================
|
|
|
|
Date--Wed, 12 Jun 96 15:29 EDT
|
|
From--frc@townhall.com
|
|
|
|
This Press Release was sent out minutes ago. For additional information
|
|
about The Family Research Council please visit our Web Site at:
|
|
|
|
http://www.frc.org
|
|
-------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|
|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 12, 1996
|
|
CONTACT: Kristin Hansen, (202) 393-2100
|
|
|
|
|
|
ARROGANT DECISION CONTRADICTS PRIOR CASES ON
|
|
PORNOGRAPHY DISTRIBUTION TO MINORS, FRC SAYS
|
|
|
|
FRC Director of Legal Studies Cathy Cleaver says
|
|
decision on the Communications Decency Act not a
|
|
pro-family defeat
|
|
|
|
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- "What else should we expect from an
|
|
ACLU-hand-picked judge than a sweeping, radical decision
|
|
allowing adults to knowingly send and display pornography
|
|
to minors on the Internet?" Director of Legal Studies
|
|
Cathy Cleaver said Wednesday. "Nevertheless, this is not
|
|
an ultimate defeat for American families and children. No
|
|
matter where this case goes next - either to the full
|
|
Eastern District Court or the Supreme Court - the Department
|
|
of Justice will have a better opportunity to defend the
|
|
constitutionality of this statute."
|
|
|
|
Cleaver made her remarks as the Federal District Court for
|
|
the Eastern District of Pennsylvania released their decision
|
|
Wednesday on the ACLU v. Reno case involving the regulation
|
|
of pornography distribution to minors on the Internet.
|
|
Family Research Council presented a "friend of the court"
|
|
brief defending the cyberporn provisions of the Communications
|
|
Decency Act. The decision, written by Dolores K. Sloviter,
|
|
Chief Judge of the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals and Carter
|
|
appointee, contradicts previous Supreme Court decisions on
|
|
the distribution of indecent material through the media.
|
|
|
|
"It is an arrogant decision which flies in the face of the
|
|
Supreme Court and our society," Cleaver said. "We have long
|
|
embraced the principle that those who peddle harmful material
|
|
have the obligation to keep the material from children.
|
|
Outside cyberspace, laws restrain people from displaying
|
|
sexually explicit images in public places and from selling
|
|
porn magazines to children. So, on the Internet, the burden
|
|
of protecting children from exploitation should not rest
|
|
solely on the parents."
|
|
|
|
In her decision, Judge Sloviter maintains that it is "either
|
|
technologically impossible or economically prohibitive" for
|
|
pornographers to comply with the regulations. However,
|
|
Cleaver said that "this decision reflects the Court's
|
|
unwillingness to consider proposed regulations by dismissing
|
|
them as 'burdensome.' There are constitutional ways to
|
|
protect children from cyberporn but not restrict the freedom
|
|
of speech of the pornographers or the adults."
|
|
|
|
Cleaver continued, "Cyberspace is a work in progress. We
|
|
should not squander the opportunity to examine and appreciate
|
|
a world where pornography knows no bounds. Failure to enact
|
|
strong laws is a concession that the information superhighway
|
|
should belong to pornographers. It would be like leaving a
|
|
loaded gun in a playground."
|
|
|
|
FOR INFORMATION OR INTERVIEWS, CONTACT THE FRC MEDIA OFFICE.
|
|
|
|
- END -
|
|
|
|
+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+--+
|
|
This transmission was brought to you by....
|
|
|
|
THE CDA DISASTER NETWORK
|
|
|
|
The CDA Disaster Network is a moderated distribution list providing
|
|
up-to-the-minute bulletins and background on efforts to overturn the
|
|
Communications Decency Act. To subscribe, send email to
|
|
<majordomo@wired.com> with "subscribe cda-bulletin" in the message body.
|
|
|
|
------------------------------
|
|
|
|
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 1996 22:51:01 CST
|
|
From: CuD Moderators <cudigest@sun.soci.niu.edu>
|
|
Subject: File 8--Cu Digest Header Info (unchanged since 7 Apr, 1996)
|
|
|
|
Cu-Digest is a weekly electronic journal/newsletter. Subscriptions are
|
|
available at no cost electronically.
|
|
|
|
CuD is available as a Usenet newsgroup: comp.society.cu-digest
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|
|
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Or, to subscribe, send post with this in the "Subject:: line:
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|
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SUBSCRIBE CU-DIGEST
|
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Send the message to: cu-digest-request@weber.ucsd.edu
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DO NOT SEND SUBSCRIPTIONS TO THE MODERATORS.
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|
|
|
The editors may be contacted by voice (815-753-0303), fax (815-753-6302)
|
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or U.S. mail at: Jim Thomas, Department of Sociology, NIU, DeKalb, IL
|
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|
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To UNSUB, send a one-line message: UNSUB CU-DIGEST
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|
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The most recent issues of CuD can be obtained from the
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COMPUTER UNDERGROUND DIGEST is an open forum dedicated to sharing
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------------------------------
|
|
|
|
End of Computer Underground Digest #8.46
|
|
************************************
|
|
|