Early in January, Stevens introduced Senate bill 49, which among other things, would require that any school or library that gets federal Internet subsidies would have to block access to interactive Web sites, including social networking sites, and possibly blogs as well. It appears that the definition of those sites is so vague that it could include sites such as Wikipedia, according to commentators. It would certainly ban MySpace.
"Interactive websites?" Half of the sites on the internet today feature some sort of interactivity, not to mention that a majority of web innovation is occurring in this direction. I think our class is proof positive that such interactivity is fantastic teaching tool, not to mention a fun way to get younger students involved. While I think that this kind of regulation is terrible for - not to mention antithetical to the spirit of - the internet, important regulations like Net Neutrality are necessary for a fair and free web. Should the web be a true laissez-faire universe? Or does the introduction of vital regulation like Net Neutrality open up the door to more insidious bills like this one?
Link. (via digg)
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