Internet Content
NYT: Inventing Consumer Activism for the Net
WSJ: Tracking Disease Hot Zones on the Net
WSJ: Between the Lines: A Guide to Online Chat
Campaign Fiance Reform
NYT: Whose Speech Is Protected
Government & Technology
NYT: Gates Pitches to Governors Group
Disabilities & Media
WSJ: The Vision Thing
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* Internet Content *
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Title: Inventing Consumer Activism for the Net
Source: New York CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/073197consumer.html
Author: Laurie J. Flynn
Issue: Online Activism
Description: Consumer fraud using the Internet seems to be growing as fast
as the medium itself. Terrence Gardiner, a Silicon Valley mechanical
engineer, has started a new watchdog organization, WebGuardian Inc.
http://www.webguardian.com to help people resolve consumer disputes
arising out of cyberspace. See also Better Business Bureau Online
http://www.bbbonline.org, National Fraud Information Center
http://www.fraud.org, Electronic Privacy Information Center
http://epic.org/, and Blacklist of Internet Advertisers
http://math-www.uni-paderborn.de/~axel/BL/. [For more examples of online
activism see http://www.benton.org/Practice/Best/advoc.html]
Title: Tracking Disease Hot Zones on the Net
Source: Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com/(B1)
Author: William Bulkeley
Issue: Health
Description: The Program for Monitoring Emergency Diseases, ProMed-Mail, a
nonprofit e-mail news service, aims to be "an early warning system" of
epidemics around the world. "By rapidly disseminating disease reports to the
world's medical community...outbreaks may be identified -- and perhaps
contained -- before they can spread as AIDS did."
Title: Between the Lines: A Guide to Online Chat
Source: Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com/(B6)
Author: Robin Frost
Issue: Internet Content
Description: Internet chat rooms seem to have a language all their own. Chat
is of the moment, happening as you type. Article includes 6 sample
conversations.
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* Campaign Fiance Reform *
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Title: Whose Speech Is Protected
Source: New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/oped/31boni.html(A27)
Author: John Bonifaz, National Voting Rights Institute
Issue: Campaign Fiance Reform
Description: The American Civil Liberties Union is fighting a legal battle
to block Maine's new law that calls for full public financing of state
elections. The ACLU and its Maine affiliate say that the voluntary system is
"coercive," "chills" the speech of candidates who opt for private campaign
financing, and will be a harm to low-income voters. Under the Maine Clean
Election Act, candidates that receive public money agree not to accept
private contributions and abide by spending limits. Candidates qualify for
public funds by raising $5 contributions from up to 2,500 voters.
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* Government & Technology *
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Title: Gates Pitches to Governors Group
Source: The New York CyberTimes
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/073197gates.html
Issue: Government and Technology
Description: At the National Governor's Association's (NGA) summer meeting
yesterday, Microsoft CEO Bill Gates urged the governors to get their
state governments online. Touting the ability of the Internet to
increase efficiency and lessen paper work, Gates stressed the ability of
technology to bring people closer to their representatives, and to give
them greater access to government information. The incoming chairman of
the NGA, Ohio Gov. George Voinovich said he would try to put together a
conference within six months to look into improving the use of
information technology by state governments. "Microsoft would like to
sponsor something like that," Gates said. [See also: Lamar Alexander
Rebuts Clinton On National Education Tests, The Washington Post, A4
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-07/31/110l-073197-idx.html
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* Disabilities & Media *
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Title: The Vision Thing
Source: Wall Street Journal http://www.wsj.com/(A1)
Author: Lisa Bannon
Issue: Disabilities
Description: Disney is taking heat already from a new Mr. Magoo movie in
production. In the 50's, Mr. Magoo was The Man -- he won two Academy Awards
and helped sell US Treasury bonds, recruit men for the Navy, and sell light
bulbs for General Electric. One academic critic wrote, "He is American
individualism in its purest form." Now the cartoon character is vilified.
The National Federation of the Blind says bringing back the character
"implies that its funny to watch an ill-tempered and incompetent blind man
stumble into things and misunderstand his surroundings." Disney counters
that Magoo isn't blind; he's "visually limited."
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Sorry for the delay today. We had a Eudora meltdown 8-(