Free speech could lead to online disconnect

FREE SPEECH COULD LEAD TO ONLINE DISCONNECT
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: David Lazarus]
If you're displeased with the way a company treats you, you're free to air your feelings in public, right? Not necessarily if you receive high-speed Internet access from AT&T or Verizon. Buried deep within both companies' voluminous service contracts is language that says your Net access can be terminated for any behavior that AT&T or Verizon believes might harm its "name or reputation," or even the reputation of its business partners. AT&T and Verizon say they've never enforced the can't-criticize-us contract terms, which have been in place for years. But the provisions highlight yet again the danger to free expression when a relative handful of private companies serve as gatekeepers to information networks. Whether it's a rock star ranting against President Bush or a disgruntled customer griping about shoddy service, how free is free speech in the digital era?
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-lazarus10oct10,1,3069013.column?coll=la-headlines-pe-business
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