By Lars Kongshem
NOVEMBER 1998 -- Here we go again: Congress has resumed its crusade
to stamp out smut on the Internet. Sound familiar? Last
June, the U.S. Supreme Court nixed
Congress' initial attempt to mandate a squeaky-clean Internet,
ruling that the Communications Decency Act (CDA) violated the
free-speech rights of adults. Undeterred, Republicans took advantage
of the final days of budget negotiations in mid-October to insert
the Child Online Protection Act into the $500 billion omnibus
spending bill. Dubbed "CDA II," the new law requires
web sites to find ways to deny those under 17 years of age access
to material deemed "harmful to minors." Lawyers for
both sides are already bracing for another court battle.
Ironically, 64 of the cosponsors of this bill also voted to post
the Starr Report -- a document many reasonable folks consider
pornographic -- on the Internet, in full view of kids. Go figure.
On a brighter note, education and library advocates were able to stop a similar
last-minute move by Congress to mandate the use of censorware in schools
and libraries that receive the E-Rate discount. Apparently someone on Capitol
Hill still believes in the notion of local control of school district policies.
Had cooler heads not prevailed, the School Internet Filtering Act would have given
the Feds a license to micromanage what software runs on your school district servers.
Go ahead and break out the champagne, but keep in mind that this misguided bill
could rear its head again soon.
Of course, censorware vendors have wasted
little time touting the ability of their filters to block the indecency
unleashed on the Internet by the U.S. Congress. Recent press releases from
URLabs and N2H2 breathlessly announce that their products successfully block
the Starr Report. Hey, more power to them.
But let's get real: Filters and legislation are no substitute for an effective
program to educate and train staff and students in responsible online conduct.
That's the thinking behind "America Links Up," an Internet education
campaign launched in September. Through a series of Internet "teach-ins"
held across the country, the campaign aims to raise awareness and empower educators
and parents to better guide children's activities online. Check out www.americalinksup.org
for more information.
Speaking of the E-Rate: Good deeds seldom go unpunished, so it's not surprising
that the E-Rate has taken such a beating this year. A brief recap: Several
phone companies sued to stop the program, while others added E-Rate line item
charges to residential phone bills in an attempt to undermine the program's public
support. Critics labeled it a "Gore tax." Although Congress had originally
voted to approve the program, some lawmakers suddenly decided the E-Rate was unconstitutional
and introduced legislation to kill or subvert it. In a panic, the FCC cut
E-Rate funding by 40 percent. Never mind the implicit bargain Congress made with
the telco industry in the Telecommunications Act of 1996: We'll deregulate your
business, and in return you'll share less than 3 percent of your profits with
children. How quickly they forget.
No wonder Ira Fishman, former CEO of the Schools and Libraries Corporation
(SLC) -- the agency in charge of administrating the E-Rate -- threw in the
towel in August, saying he'd like to spend more time with his family. Who
could blame him? He's endured a lot, including being compared to King George III
by the ranking Democrat on the House Commerce Committee, who apparently resented
Fishman's $200,000 salary. Fishman has since been succeeded by Kate Moore, formerly
the SLC's Chief Operating Officer. It'll be a short reign for Moore, however,
as her position is scheduled to be terminated when the SLC merges with the Rural
Health Care Corporation at the end of the year -- a move designed to appease
critics who complain that the E-Rate has spawned a bloated bureaucracy.
For now, though, the E-Rate is still alive. In fact, the FCC just established
December 1, 1998, as the opening date to file applications for the 1999-2000 E-Rate
funding period. (All applications received by February 19, 1999 will be considered
as if they had arrived simultaneously.) Will this much-needed program survive?
Keep your fingers crossed.
Lars Kongshem is an associate editor and the webmaster of Electronic School and American School Board Journal.
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