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Memo politicians:
It's not TV
A FRIEND asked me recently to show her how to use the Internet so she could
"go on the shopping channel". I explained there was no specific channel. There
were thousands of different places to burn a hole in your credit card.
But she seemed baffled. It is not an atypical reaction from either new or non-Net users,
particularly those older than about 35 who have little experience of computing. A fairly
big slice of the population tends to see the Net as some form of television where content
is pushed at a passive audience. The majority of federal politicians are in the same boat
given how easily they succumbed to the Net censorship legislation of Communications
Minister Richard Alston.
Senator Alston ignored the outcry of experienced Net users, more than 100 submissions to a
Senate committee saying the legislation would not work, and even a US senator who pleaded
with Australia not to tamper with freedom of expression. Senator Alston himself has
admitted the legislation will not be totally effective in filtering out pornographic and
violent content.
But he has been able to get his way because of the lack of understanding about the Net.
His opponents have turned Web pages black, marched through the streets of capital cities,
sent senators copies of George Orwell's 1984, bombarded politicians with e-mail and
mounted technically literate arguments all over the Net.
Senator Alston has lost nothing by barely acknowledging them. His audience has been those
who still see the medium as an exciting but challenging form of TV. The senator has
manipulated fears by repeating the words "paedophile" and "bomb making
recipe". The ease with which he rammed censorship through shows how those inaccurate
portrayals still hold a powerful grip.
Prime Minister John Howard has been otherwise occupied with the Democrats and the GST, but
took some time last week to claim that anti-censorship protesters did not understand the
mood of middle Australia. "What the community wants is protection of young people
against certain material on the Internet, I think that is absolutely defensible," he
told Adelaide radio 5DN.
Absolutely correct. But by the Government? With legislation that Senator Alston admits
will not be totally effective? With legislation that equates Net content with TV and
videos?
Censorship opponents will maintain their rage. But in some forums they are starting to
debate whether they need to move their attacks into more traditional media such as letters
(rather than e-mail) to politicians and letters to the editor. Some admit they have relied
too much on the Net and preached to the converted. Senator Alston has not relied on the
Net and preached to the yet-to-be-converted, who still outnumber Netizens.
Censorship opponents hold out the hope that Senator Alston will ultimately lose his job --
they dislike his legislation that much -- because of the continuing rapid growth in users.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics last week estimated that 16 per cent of all households
had home access, an increase of nearly 280 per cent over 1996. Within a year or two those
who think the Net is like TV will know better. Whether they will enjoy access as fast and
as cheap as it is now will test whether the Net community or Senator Alston is right about
censorship.
And pornography and violence . . . they will still be there.
All articles Copyright: © West Australian Newspapers |
