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Full-Text Articles in Law
On Protecting Children From Speech, Amitai Etzioni
On Protecting Children From Speech, Amitai Etzioni
Chicago-Kent Law Review
Are children entitled to the same First Amendment rights as adults? This Article explores the constitutionality of limiting children's access to objectionable materials assuming that both free speech rights and the protection of children are two core values that, like all other social values, must be balanced. When used to assess specific court cases and public policies, the balancing principle is a helpful guide in determining whether voluntary or incentives-based programs are sufficient to remedy the problems at hand or whether government regulation of free speech is necessary. The Article analyzes five court cases involving Internet filters in libraries, the …
Response, Amitai Etzioni
On Protecting Children—From Censorship: A Reply To Amitai Etzioni, Marjorie Heins
On Protecting Children—From Censorship: A Reply To Amitai Etzioni, Marjorie Heins
Chicago-Kent Law Review
Etzioni's argument for censorship of minors ignores the fundamental problem with Internet filters, misstates the results of media-effects research, and uses emotional terms like "protection" and "harm" to mask moral judgments about what is appropriate for youth.
Given the size and constantly changing character of the Internet, filters necessarily rely on key words and phrases. As a result, thousands of valuable Web pages are mistakenly blocked by filters, even at their narrowest settings. The problem is inherent in the system.
Most media-effects studies do not show a causal link between violent content and violent (or "aggressive") behavior. The studies that …