Chapter 5 Freedom of Expression Lecture 7

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Chapter 5Freedom of Expression Lecture 7
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Chapter 5 - Objectives

• Discuss the legal basis for the protection of our
  freedom of speech.
• Describe the basis for the importance of
  anonymous Internet expression.
• Identify key freedom of speech issues.

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First Amendment Rights

• Congress shall make no law respecting an
  establishment of religion, or prohibiting the
  free exercise thereof or abridging the freedom
  of speech, or of the press or the right of the
  people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
  government for a redress of grievances.

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Obscene SpeechMiller vs. CaliforniaCase that
established if material is Obscene

• Would the average person find that the work
  appeals to the prurient interest?
• Does the work depict or describe in an offensive
  way, sexual conduct specifically defined by the
  applicable state law?
• Does the work lack serious literary, artistic,
  political, or scientific value?

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Terms

• Defamation is the publication of a statement of
  alleged fact which is false and which harms
  another person.
• Slander is an oral defamatory statement.
• Libel is a written defamatory statement.

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Freedom of Expression

• Information technology has provided amazing new
  ways to communicate with people around the world.
  
• Individuals must make ethical decisions in
  regards to how they will use this freedom of
  expression.

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Communications Decency Act

• Became law in 1996.
• Purpose was to allow free competition among
  phone, cable, and TV companies.
• Also sought to protect children from online
  pornography.
• Supreme Court ruled the law unconstitutional.

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Internet Filtering

• Parents may install filters on their children's
  computer to prevent them from viewing sites that
  contain objectionable material.
• Net Nanny
• Cybersitter
• Cyber Patrol
• SurfGuard
• SurfWatch
• HateFilter

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ICRA

• Internet Content Rating Association (ICRA) is a
  non-profit organization that strives to enable
  the public to make informed decisions about
  electronic media through the open and objective
  labeling of content.
• AOL
• IBM
• Microsoft
• Bell South
• Voluntary
• The problem of regulation

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Childrens Internet Protection Act

• In December 2000, Congress passed the Childrens
  Internet Protection Act that requires federally
  financed schools and libraries to use some form
  of technology to block access to obscene
  materials to minors.

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Anonymity

• Anonymous expression allows you to state your
  opinions without revealing your identity.
• Anonymous expression played an important role in
  the early formation of the United States.

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Freedom of Expression

• Maintaining anonymity on the Internet is
  important to some users.
• Anonymous remailer is a computer program that
  strips the originating address from the message.

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Safeguarding Anonymous Identity

• John Doe lawsuit - protects the identity of
  individuals on the Internet.
• In 2001, a California superior court judge ruled
  in favor of protecting the identity of two
  individuals citing the First Amendment protection
  of anonymous speech.

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Defamation and Hate Speech

• In the U.S., Internet speech that is merely
  annoying, critical, demeaning, or offensive
  enjoys protection under the First Amendment.
• Legal recourse can happen only when hate speech
  turns into clear threats and intimidation.

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Hate Speech

• Most other countries do not provide
  constitutional protection for hate speech.
• A U.S. citizen who posts material on the Internet
  that is illegal in a foreign country can be
  prosecuted if that person visits that country.
  

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Pornography

• The Internet has been a boom to the pornography
  industry.
• One in four Americans visit a web site once a
  month.
• Forrester Research estimates that sex sites on
  the Web generate at least 1 billion in revenue
  each year.

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Pornography

• U.S. organizations exercise great care in how
  they deal with the issue of pornography in the
  work place.
• Many companies have a usage policy that prohibits
  access to porno sites.
• There are numerous Federal laws addressing child
  pornography.

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Summary

• First Amendment protects our right to freedom of
  religion and freedom of expression.
• The Internet enables worldwide exchange of
  information.

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Summary

• In the U.S., Internet speech that is merely
  annoying, critical, demeaning, or offensive
  enjoys protection under the First Amendment.
• Legal recourse is possible only when hate speech
  turns into clear threats and intimidation.

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Case 1 - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)

• Founded in 1990, is a non-profit, non-partisan
  organization whose goal is to protect fundamental
  civil liberties related to technology, including
  privacy and freedom of expression on the
  Internet.

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Posting Questions

• What reasons might a company give for joining the
  EFF?
• Your VP for public affairs wants to donate to the
  EFF. Your CFO has asked you if you support it?
  Do you? Why or why not?

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Case 2 - SurfControl

• SurfControl develops software products that
  filter Internet and e-mail use.
• Its goal was to encourage responsible Internet
  usage by reporting employees Internet use.

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Posting Questions

• What actions would you recommend to your company
  before installing this kind of software to
  monitor employee web-surfing and e-mail? Why
  would you recommend these actions?

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End