No Quick Fixes for Internet Freedom

[Commentary] Tools for circumventing censorship are indeed important for activists. But they do nothing to protect against cyber-attacks, or to address a growing number of other ways that governments work to prevent activists from using the Internet to access information, get their message out, and organize. Still, many in Congress and the media have bought into the fantasy that all the U.S. needs to do is put enough money into these circumvention tools, and one in particular -- and freedom will flood through the crumbling firewalls.

The State Department has come under fire in the Journal, the Washington Post and the New York Times for failing to support the Global Internet Freedom Consortium. And it's true that of the $20 million already allocated, most went to other groups that are less radioactive as far as U.S.-China relations are concerned. Some of these groups work to help activists with training and security against surveillance, cyber-attacks and other threats, in addition to circumventing censorship. Meanwhile in real life, the human rights watchdog organization Freedom House warns of a "global freedom recession." They point to a decrease in online freedom even in many countries that engage in little or no website blocking. Circumvention technology is one tactic to support access to information and online dissent. It makes sense to keep funding these tools, so long as activists are given choice. On their own, however, they are not the silver bullet that many claim.

The State Department and Congress need to approach freedom of speech issues strategically, based on a clear understanding of purpose and effect.

[MacKinnon is a senior fellow at the New America Foundation]