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October 06, 2001

Censorship and Free Speech

Censorship | Free Speech

I've seen a lot of rants about Freedom of Speech and Censorship on the Internet. Some of them make me laugh. Hopefully once you understand a few things, it'll make you laugh too...

FIRST AMENDMENT

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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The first thing I notice is that the First Amendment is directed toward the Government. It limits the actions that the government can take. Say it with me - "go-va-mint." It does not limit businesses or people. A newspaper is a business. An Internet Service Provider is a business. A television station is a business. The First Amendment protects these businesses from the government. It does not allow the government to close a business because of what they broadcast, print or say. (Hence, the Jerry Springer show continues on unfettered.) For the most part, this is a good thing.

Everyone has an opinion. And everyone (in the US) has the right to express that opinion. A newspaper or magazine can print anything they please without government interference. Perhaps they print an article that expresses an opinion that is contradictory to your opinion on that topic. What can you do? Well, you can write an article using whatever means is at your disposal. You could write a letter to the editor. Does that magazine have to publish your contradictory article? No. [But what about "free speech?"] Does that magazine have to publish your letter to the editor? No. [But what about "free speech?"] That magazine doesn't even have to read your article or letter. In fact, they have the right to see your name on the return address and toss it in the trash, unread. Isn't that "censorship?" No. It's called property rights. They own the presses. They buy the paper and the ink. They can print (or not print) anything they want. And the government cannot interfere. That's what the First Amendment protects.

What about the case of a husband and wife who disagree? Perhaps the wife went out and spent $500 on 10 pairs of shoes and paid for it out of their joint account. The husband comes home and finds this pile of shoes on the living room floor. They're right where he was going to put the barcalounger that he was going to buy with that $500. He's pissed. She's disinterested. "What the hell did you.." "Shut up, George." "But, I was..." "Shut up, George." "Can't I.." "No." "But..." "La,la,la,la,la,la,la,la....I can't hear you." "Da..." "Talk to the hand." [Can't ya just feel the love?] What about his right of free speech? Does the First Amendment guarantee that he can express his opinion? No. Is that censorship? No.

Okay, so most people can see where I'm going with this. I'm sure you've heard many people invoke the "free speech" or "censorship" arguments where they really don't apply. If you work for an ISP, multiply that times 100. For some reason, people think that online - different rules apply. Maybe it's because the part they use to connect to that world is in their living room? Or maybe the background radiation from the monitors produces chemical changes in their brains? Either way, it's incorrect and blatant amendment abuse. [Don't you wish there were logic police?]

Okay so let's move on to what the Internet really is... The Internet is a bunch of computers connected to other computers by means of lines, routers and switches. Yes, you may own a computer, but you don't own the bandwidth and you don't own the servers that you're connecting to or using. Your "web space" is not really a place. It's a folder on a server that your ISP (or Geocities or AOL) owns. Can you put anything you want on your web page? That's up to the terms of the service you are using. Can your ISP delete your account or take down your web page? Yes. They are providing a service. It's their equipment and they have the right to determine the type, content, and amount of data on their servers. It has nothing to do with the First Amendment. If they determine they don't want "porn" on their servers, they can do that. If they determine they are going to allow "porn" on their servers, they can do that. If they want to disallow all blue pages - yes, they can do that too.

But that's not fair... Well, what comes around goes around. Remember - these are businesses. And why do businesses exist? To make money. They take their property (servers and bandwidth) and use it to make a profit by selling a service. Yes, these businesses could make any rules they want regarding the terms and limits of the service they're selling and apply those rules in any manner they determine. But, what stops them from banning all blue pages? Customers. If a business had a reputation of applying their terms of service arbitrarily or imposing draconian rules, they could lose current or potential customers. Read: they would lose money. With some businesses - like those that provide a "free" service - the profits are made from advertising income. In that case, you want to please/appease most of the people most of the time. This maximizes the number of registered users and increases the value of advertising space. [Note: this is why most free services require you to register. The registration shows the potential audience - which increases the value of the advertising space.] So your freedom/restraint is based upon what rules (and in what measure) are most profitable. It's all about the money.
So if you ever find yourself in a position where your self-expression is limited, your account is disabled, or your web page is taken down by your service provider - don't cry "censorship" and don't demand your "right" of free speech. The logic police are watching...

Posted by BlueWolf on October 6, 2001 02:52 PM