Internet Censorship Essay - Censorship and the Internet

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Censorship and the Internet

As the First Amendment states, we as Americans are given numerous freedoms. These freedoms become a constitutional right which no one can take away from us. Among these rights are the freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Many people feel that with these two freedoms combined they can post on the Internet whatever they want. However, the First Amendment does have limitations. Contrary to what some people may believe, our freedom of speech is not protected when it comes to indecency. This fact, along with several other reasons, is why cyberpornography should no longer be present on the Internet.

My friend was recently doing a report on black holes, so she decided to take her search on the web. What she got as her reply was a black female and her "hole." Although this may sound humorous at first, we must look at the larger picture. Imagine a young child who does this same search and gets the same reply. It is hard enough for a parent to explain the topic of sex to their child. Once they do the parent wants the child to think of this as something special. Not as something which is depicted on the Internet sometimes in extremely distasteful manners. We must think of a way to limit the replies that people get back.

I do not agree with censorship over the Internet. As in all media people are allowed to speak freely. This is one of our rights. If we do not agree with what the government is currently doing we can speak out against them, and not be punished. It is important that we maintain some control of this freedom. However, I do not feel that pornography falls under this category.

When the topic of taking pornography off of the web comes up people become very angry. These people feel that their rights are being taking away, but in reality this type of "censorship" is already present in today's media. Although, programming on television has changed greatly over the years, there is still a definite limit on what can be placed on the air. If you want to see detailed sex acts you must pay, often very expensive prices for these channels. You also will never see these vivid pictures in newspapers or news magazines. These graphic pictures are limited in this type of media and for good reason.

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