The long arm of the federal government is
again reaching into areas many believe are
protected by the First Amendment of the
U.S. Constitution. This time the long arm is
reaching out into cyberspace.
The House of Representatives Confer-
ence Committee has passed a bill which
would enable criminal prosecution of anyone
placing "indecent material" on the Internet.
As of December 11, the bill is on its way to
the Senate Conference Committee.
The two bills in question, Senate Bill 652
and House of Representatives Bill 1555, are
part of The Communications Decency Act
that would revise Title 47, Section 223, of
the U.S. Code. Both bills seek to regulate the
transmission of "indecent" material or com-
munications on the Internet.
What constitutes "indecent" material, as
well as whether regulations to censor, or
regulate, what is communicated on the
Internet should be created at all, is in debate
between members of Congress and the
public. Arguments are being made that
statutes governing criminal activity such as
child pornography and obscenity already
exist, and therefore there is no need to create
new legislation to include the Internet
specifically.
A recent arrest of a Minnesota man,
Steven Bruce Stanley, 47, is a case in point
for the argument that existing law allows
government authorities to crackdown on
violators that invade the Internet with
sexually oriented material or acts. According
to newspaper reports, Mr. Stanley was
arrested and charged in Clearwater, Florida,
with 17 counts of promoting child pornogra-
phy and one count of attempted lewd and
lascivious conduct with a minor. He had
apparently been communicating through a
commercial on-line service with a 17 year old
girl for several months. The two purportedly
had made arrangements to meet for sexual
activity when Mr. Stanley was arrested.
Given the known facts of this case, it
appears that the argument that
laws from which the charges can be made
against people like Mr. Stanley already exist
is on the mark. Therefore, in this situation at
least, one could question the need for an-
other layer of legislation specifically geared
to activity that occurs, or originates, on the
Internet.
If Mr. Stanley, or others like him, solicit
sex from a minor, what is the significance of
said solicitation having been made over the
Internet, versus over the phone? Or for that
matter, from behind the steering wheel of a
car to the minor on a street corner? An adult
soliciting sex from a minor is illegal, as the
law stands on the books now. Why is there a
need to add another statute specifically
addressing communications on the Internet?
Because the Internet is *not* specifically
addressed in current statutes, however, it
appears that the proposed amendments to
Title 47, Section 223 would give authority to
the Federal Communications Commission to
monitor and regulate communications over
the Internet similar to their authority now to
monitor telephone, radio and television
broadcasts.
Needless to say, various organizations
are jumping into the arena in an effort to get
the word out to the general public about the
proposed changes. One such organization,
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, main-
tains a Web site that follows the progress of
the proposed changes to Title 47 of the U.S.
Code. You may follow these changes and
keep posted on other information affecting
communications on the Internet at the
After reviewing the information found at
the site of The Electronic Frontier Founda-
tion, it is clear that this organization is
extremely concerned about the effects that
The Communications Decency Act, as well as
the above House and Senate bills, will have
on the Internet. They seek the help of indi-
viduals and organizations that support their
position in contacting members of Congress
to push for the defeat of these bills.
If you are unsure of who to contact in
Congress, The Electronic Frontier Founda-
tion site gives the user access to a database
in order to search for the name of the con-
gressional representative in the user's
district. The user enters the zip code in
which he lives and the computer
conducts a search, which will reveal
the name, address, phone number, and email
address of the congressional representative
of the user's district. Pretty amazing stuff!
Whether you agree or disagree with the
stand taken by organizations such as the
Electronic Frontier Foundation, regulation of
cyberspace is probably inevitable. To what
degree the government regulates the Inter-
net in the future is being decided as you read
this article. Cyberspace is a wonderful
medium for keeping up to date on what is
happening in the world. It is also a place
where you can be a part of the development
of the future. So, join in on the fun. Contact
your local congressman and communicate
your opinions about regulation of the
Internet. By doing so, you will be part of the
grass roots effort to set the direction for the
world in the twenty-first century.
Copyright (C) 1994 - 1997 by Virtual Press/Global Internet Solutions.
Internet Daily News and its respective columns are trademarks of Virtual Press
/Global Internet Solutions.
