Judge Overrules Online Porn Law
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It was reported on CNN that a federal judge in Philadelphia shot down an attempt to make cyberspace a little more protected for our children. He favored allowing easy access to pornographic images for all, and leaving it to parents to decide for themselves how they will filter such information.
Now, there are times when I don’t think it’s appropriate for government to get involved with family matters. There are definitely times when it shouldn’t happen. But this is one of those cases where they need to be involved because I’m convinced that there are more parents who don’t make a significant effort to protecting their children online than those who do.
We put age restrictions on so many other things: drinking, voting, driving, etc. Why should online porn be the exception?
It’s just too easy for anyone to land on a site with inappropriate material, and this is especially true for people who aren’t even trying to find it. With sites like MySpace and even eBay, kids could enter these places with no intention whatsoever of finding porn, but finding it just the same, and in the case of eBay, buying it.
Looking at this from another angle, this means that Senior U.S. District Judge Lowell Reed Jr. ruled in favor of the supporters for free access to online porn. The law would have required credit cards to be entered as a form of age verification before entering an adult site.
So, what’s the trouble with that? Comparing this to a kid attempting to walk into a bar, you know he’s going to be stopped to show some ID to prove he’s of age. Why is online porn any different?
Alas, that would just get in the way of an adult trying to get at some eye-candy.
So what can you do to minimize the chance of you or your family from accessing online porn?
- Install an Internet filter, also known as parental control software. You have a lot of choices, some of which I’ve written about here.
- Know that it’s really very easy to fall into this sort of content by accident. I use StumbleUpon frequently and even though I’ve configured it to avoid adult content, there are times when images show up that I’d be embarrassed to have my children see if they walked in the room. So even the best of intentions are not 100 percent perfect.
- Configure Yahoo! and Google to place strict filtering on search results. This could be changed by the child, but you need to know that protection is there nonetheless.
- And last, but not least, subscribe to my feed.
[tags]porn,internet safety,judge,[/tags]
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Comments
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I pencil in
…He favored allowing easy access to pornographic images for all, and leaving it to parents to decide for themselves how they will filter such information…
I strongly believe that Internet is the ‘’today’’ part of new technologies and like any powerful tool of nature, has to be managed and accessed properly to get real benefits out of it. And, only a combination of educational-guide tool and parental involvement is still the most effective way to keep our kids safe online…
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While I appreciate your concern for the safety of children there is a fundamental difference between pornography and other vices. Drinking alcohol and driving a car are not constitutionally protected. They are privileges, not rights. Like it or not, pornography (and much of the rest of what is on the internet) is considered speech and is protected.
It comes down to being a parent and not only being preemptive in protecting your children but also being open with them about your concerns about pornography. Let’s face it, even if the law stood there would be plenty of ways for curious children to get pornography. Borrowing a credit card would be easy and I am willing to bet that many sites would just move offshore and continue business as usual.
If you want to protect your children then do so. Do not expect Uncle Sam to do it for you.
Hi Sean,
Free speech does not equate to freedom from responsibility. I’m sure that’s not what you meant, but after reading your response as number of times, I kept coming up with the same conclusion.
I agree with you that much of the Web is protected by free speech, but consider this: is it protected speech if someone sends death threats to another via the Web? Or what about the student who creates a site for the sole purpose of bad-mouthing other students (cyberbullying)?
They’re perfectly within their right to feel what they want about others, but I’m sure you’d agree that type of behavior should not be tolerated and is not protected under the constitution. You can’t scream “Fire!” in a crowded room of people.
Driving a car is certainly a privilege, but it’s governed by laws we must follow to protect ourselves. Pornography, to some degree, has laws of its own to follow, some of which are meant to protect people as well. Porn involving children comes to mind. And just because it’s a form of free speech, doesn’t mean having laws surrounding it is infringing on anyone’s right to speak freely. To put it more accurately, freedom to participate in porn — from whatever angle one chooses — does not mean that free access is automatically a given.
As you say, it comes down to the parent, and I say, “YES!” If parents got more involved with their children in any topic, they will have taken a large step forward in helping to guide them.
I also agree with you that children will find other ways to seek out porn even if access to it is made a little more difficult. They do that with anything you tell them to avoid. But I think the best approach you and I can take would be not to let that keep us from doing or supporting the right thing for them.
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