WWW: Beyond the Basics

5. Freedom of Speech

5.3. The Internet: The Ultimate Medium for Free Speech

"Free Speech" has often been dictated by the voices of the few and the rich and the powerful. The voices of the many and the not-quite-so-rich and the not-nearly-as-powerful have heretofore not been given equal due. The Internet changes this tradition to a debate that allows many voices, many cultures, and many opinions, dominated by none other than the best and brightest speakers, who by no means dictate the universal opinion. The resulting atmosphere is a democracy for the masses by the masses uncontrolled by the authorities. No wonder some age-old conservative bastions are worried about the Net.

The Internet has opened doors to freedom of speech that have never been accessible before. The ideal of free speech for all has only tacitly been achieved in the past. Control over communications media has always been in the hands of few. The hands of the many were left to small rooms, discussion amongst family, friends and maybe neighbors, but oftentimes only to their diaries. Certainly such a grand scale of many speaking to many has never been achieved with such success. The Internet allows the "lowest," least privileged persons to engage in discourse on any subject of their choosing with any of the "highest," most privileged members of society.

Some people in high places agree that the Internet is a unique communcation environment (FEED, 1996):

"The Internet may fairly be regarded as a never-ending worldwide conversation. The Government may not... interrupt that conversation. As the most participatory form of mass speech yet developed, the Internet deserves the highest protection from governmental intrusion."
The author of that quote sounds like a staunch supporter of freedom of speech. The quotation above comes from the conclusion of Judge Dalzell, United States District Court for Eastern Pennsylvania, one of the ruling judges that found the CDA unconstitutional. The CDA is a bill that proposes restrictions on telecommunications, including the Internet, in the US (Communications Decency Act, 1995).

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Copyright © 1996 Mike McGee, All Rights Reserved

Mike McGee <mmcgee@vt.edu>
Last modified: Thu Nov 27 13:13:33 1996