November 2002

INTERNET
Supreme Court to Decide Internet Library Filters
States to Vote Today on Internet Sales Tax Plan
Up Against the Firewall
Online Communities Improve Neighborhood Policing

DIGITAL DIVIDE
ICT in Africa Far Behind Global Growth Rate
Pan-European Regional Ministerial Conference Convenes in Romania
Bill Gates commits $21 Million for IT in India

INTERNET

SUPREME COURT TO DECIDE INTERNET LIBRARY FILTERS
The US Supreme Court announced on Tuesday that it would tackle the question
of whether Internet filters in public libraries violate constitutional free
speech protections. The case began when the American Library Association and
the ACLU filed suit against the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA),
which required libraries receiving federal technology funding to install
Internet filtering software. A three-judge panel overturned the law, stating
that filters regularly blocked innocuous content while allowing some
pornographic content to get through; the panel concluded that libraries
could adopt less-restrictive means to protect minors. According to the
Justice Department appeal, the panel's ruling "deprives all the nation's
public libraries... of the ability to make their own independent judgment
concerning how to avoid becoming a conduit for illegal and harmful
material." The ALA and the ACLU's attorneys said the law was as if the
government required libraries to rip out certain pages from their
encyclopedias. The case marks the third time the high court has considered
legislation regarding the Internet and free speech.
[SOURCE: Yahoo! News, AUTHOR: James Vicini, Reuters]
(http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=578&ncid=578&e=5&u=/nm/200
21112/ts_nm/court_tech_dc)

STATES TO VOTE TODAY ON INTERNET SALES TAX PLAN
Tax officials and legislators from 31 states are meeting in Chicago today to
vote on a voluntary pact to collect online sales taxes. The proposed
Streamlined Sales Tax Project will request that the US Congress eventually
make the system mandatory nationwide. Under the proposal, states would
establish definitions for taxable goods and services and maintain a single
statewide tax rate for each type of product, regardless of how the product
is purchased. The plan is expected to contain some kind of incentive for
online retailers, including a profit-share of the remitted taxes.
[SOURCE: Washingtonpost.com, AUTHOR: Brian Krebs]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40364-2002Nov11.html)

UP AGAINST THE FIREWALL
(Commentary) Many US technology corporations are assisting China in their
efforts to censor and monitor the Internet and citizens' online activities.
Developing and sustaining the Internet in China, while effectively assisting
the Chinese government's censorship efforts, has put these companies in
politically awkward situation. Their decision to help build China's Internet
infrastructure has caught the attention of Congress and others in the
political realm. According to article author Ethan Gutmann, words like
"corporate responsibility" and "trust" should be in the vocabularies of US
high-tech companies working in China; in turn, they should not join forces
with the Chinese government as long as it continues monitoring and
constraining the Internet. "There's still time to drop the denials, adopt a
unified strategy, and do business as if our words had meaning," writes the
author.

[SOURCE: Red Herring, AUTHOR: Ethan Gutmann]
(http://www.redherring.com/insider/2002/11/firewall110802.html)

ONLINE COMMUNITIES IMPROVE NEIGHBORHOOD POLICING
The Internet is allowing citizens to remain in contact with their local
police and governmental officials, as well as to report problems to them.
Online communities and Web sites such as that of Fairfax County, Virginia
permit residents to access crime statistics and report neighborhood
troubles. Instead of "parking your patrol car on the block and walking up
and down, knocking on doors," police are also receiving community reports
from citizens via email, says Lt. Keith Roch, a D.C. police officer. Kathy
Chamberlain, a neighborhood watchdog in southeast Washington, adds "I think
police recognize the efficiency of using email and broadcasting information
that way." However, the digital divide remains prevalent -- preventing many
without access to obtain and submit similar information. The District of
Columbia will introduce new Web sites within a year that will feature
community chat groups, bulletin boards, maps and neighborhood statistics.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Petula Dvorak]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A33646-2002Nov9.html)

DIGITAL DIVIDE

ICT IN AFRICA FAR BEHIND GLOBAL GROWTH RATE
African nations lag far behind the information and communications technology
growth rates of other countries, according to reports from a regional ICT
policy and African civil society conference held last week. Behind this gap
is a "severe" lack of technical skills necessary to implement and maintain
ICTs, though scarcity of resources is also a factor. Drawing a link between
the tech growth rate and civil society, ICT expert Dr. David Souter said
private sector investment in ICT growth is key to ensuring that "the right
to information and communication [is] recognized as a basic human right."
[SOURCE: AllAfrica.com, AUTHOR: Dagnachew Teklu, The Daily Monitor]
(http://allafrica.com/stories/200211080133.html)

PAN-EUROPEAN REGIONAL MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE CONVENES IN ROMANIA
Delegates from 58 countries convened this weekend in Bucharest for the
Pan-European Regional Ministerial Conference, a prelude to the World Summit
on the Information Society (WSIS), to be held in Geneva in 2003 and in Tunis
in 2005. The product of the talks, the Bucharest Declaration, lays out a
plan for a free "information society beneficial to all." The purpose of the
meeting was to forge a common regional position for the WSIS meetings, which
are designed to address the digital divide between developed and developing
countries. Government stakeholders pledged to shape policy that will include
as many citizens as possible in the digital age.
[SOURCE: Earth Times, AUTHOR: Valerie Volcovici]
(http://www.earthtimes.org/nov/worldinformationsummitnov10_02.htm)

BILL GATES COMMITS $21 MILLION FOR IT IN INDIA
Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft Corporation, has agreed to donate $1
million dollars to MIT's Media Lab Asia project, along with $20 million
dollars to further develop India's Shiksha edtech training program. The
Media Lab now seeks to pursue more international funding now that assistance
financial assistance has been provided from Gates. The Shiksha initiative
will train more than 80,000 teachers and 3.5 million students over the next
several years.
[SOURCE: The Times of India, AUTHOR: PTI]
(http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/cms.dll/html/uncomp/cms.dll/articleshow.
asp?art_id=28053764)

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OWNERSHIP
FCC Grants Extension in Media Ownership Proceeding

DIGITAL DIVIDE
Web Site Contest To Tempt Teen Girls
Officials Worried About Ability to Inform Public of Terrorism

POLITICAL DISCOURSE
Campaign Sites Miss Web Boat

OWNERSHIP

FCC GRANTS EXTENSION IN MEDIA OWNERSHIP PROCEEDING
The FCC agreed Tuesday to extend the comment period on its proposal to relax
media ownership rules, though it intends to hold true to its deadline of
completing the review by May 2003. The move to allow 30 more days of public
comment on its proposal to relax media ownership rules reflects a compromise
in response to competing pressures from Capitol Hill, media conglomerates
and consumer groups. Gene Kimmelman of Consumers Union calls the extension
"a step in the right direction," and Jeff Chester of the Center for Digital
Democracy lauded the FCC for "giv[ing] the public interest a little more
breathing room." A relaxation of ownership limits by the FCC will likely
result in media consolidation in the long run, as networks are allowed to
buy more television stations and broadcasters are allowed to own more
stations or a newspaper in the same local market.
[SOURCE: The Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Mark Wigfield]
(http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,BT_CO_20021105_008400,00.html)

DIGITAL DIVIDE

WEB SITE CONTEST TO TEMPT TEEN GIRLS
The number of teenage girls embracing technology remains low worldwide, but
the UK government wants to increase those numbers. ITBeat, a new initiative
designed to empower young women to embrace technology, will offer teenage
girls the chance to design a Web site for their favorite pop star. Over the
last seven years, the number of female technology professionals has fallen
to a low of 20 percent in the UK. "By equating technology with pop idols,
ITbeat is providing girls with the excuse they need to investigate IT
further," said Baroness Greenfield, a supporter of the project. "I am
delighted that the British Phonographic Industry and the individual artists
are willing to use this influence to help girls to understand that
information technology offers challenges, rewards and opportunities for
women to excel," added Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Trade and
Industry.
[SOURCE: BBC News]
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2411661.stm)

OFFICIALS WORRIED ABOUT ABILITY TO INFORM PUBLIC OF TERRORISM
Security experts agree that another wide-scale catastrophe, including a
terrorist attack, is probable. However, a plan to effectively communicate
vital information to the public in the wake of such events is at least a
year away, according to the FCC's Media Security and Reliability Council.
Several challenges face the broadcast industry as it attempts to bring
timely resolution to the matter. The Homeland Security Office is creating a
Web site that is to serve as a "single repository" for emergency
information, but critics contend that the digital divide would prevent many
Americans from accessing such information.
[SOURCE: Government Executive Magazine, AUTHOR: Teri Rucker (National
Journal's Technology Daily)]
(http://207.27.3.29/dailyfed/01102/110602td1.htm)

POLITICAL DISCOURSE

CAMPAIGN SITES MISS WEB BOAT
The Internet is widely used by candidates seeking office, yet some
researchers say that many campaigns fail to fully embrace the potency of
campaigning online. More than 70 percent of major candidates in the 2002 US
midterm election had Web sites, and over 55 percent of their sites featured
integrated fundraising endeavors, according to the consulting group
PoliticsOnline. Unfortunately, of those campaigns that had Web sites, many
failed to update them regularly. Of 168 Web sites visited on Election Day,
only 24 percent actually noted it was Election Day on their Web sites,
according to political consultants RightClick Strategies. Additionally,
campaign sites often failed to provide information on where to vote, and
lacked the ability to send email reminders to citizens. But experts
acknowledge the Web is still a new medium for candidates, and their
effective use of it will improve over time. "Skeptics say that the Internet
is not really having a major impact in politics," said Phil Noble, founder
of PoliticsOnline. "I say it's a revolution. And you ain't seen nothing
yet."
[SOURCE: News.com, AUTHOR: Lisa M. Bowman]
(http://news.com.com/2100-1023-964629.html?tag=cd_mh)

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DIGITAL DIVIDE
Kofi Annan's IT Challenge to Silicon Valley
Text Messaging for the Blind

INTERNET
Elect to Surf Early, and Often
Study: Net Credibility Gap Gapes

DIGITAL DIVIDE

KOFI ANNAN'S IT CHALLENGE TO SILICON VALLEY
(commentary) Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations, urged
leaders in Silicon Valley to continue engaging in public-private
collaborations that benefit the many needs of poor communities and
underdeveloped nations. As information and communications technologies drive
globalization, developing countries risk exclusion from the emerging
knowledge-based global economy, says Annan. He urges industry to share more
of its innovations with the developing world. "Information technology is not
a magic formula that is going to solve all our problems," says the secretary
general, "but it is a powerful force that can and must be harnessed to our
global mission of peace and development."
[SOURCE: News.com, AUTHOR: Kofi Annan]
(http://news.com.com/2010-1069-964507.html)

TEXT MESSAGING FOR THE BLIND
Btexact -- BT's research arm -- and the Royal National Institute for the
Blind have developed a technology that allows visually impaired people to
send text messages to handheld computers. The tool is based on a speech
engine developed for computers. Mesad Hameed, a teenager who is blind said
that not being able to receive text messages left him feeling socially
excluded. "You do feel left out not being able to send messages and at the
moment you have to get someone else to read it out to you, which you might
not want if it's personal," he explained.
[SOURCE: BBC Online]
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2403913.stm)

INTERNET

ELECT TO SURF EARLY, AND OFTEN
More than 60 percent of candidates in the mid-term US election have created
an official campaign Web site to communicate with potential voters and
campaign workers, according to a study by PoliticalWeb.info. But for many
candidates, their sites are still little more than online brochures.
Sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trusts, the PoliticalWeb.info survey found
that only 60 percent of the sites tried to recruit volunteers online, and 44
percent allowed visitors to sign up for a campaign email newsletter.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Leslie Walker]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A55496-2002Nov2.html)

STUDY: NET CREDIBILITY GAP GAPES
Many Web sites providing financial, health and comparison-shopping
information fail to provide important information such as privacy policies
and credentials of people providing advice, according to a new study by
researchers with Consumers International. "Credibility on the Web," a study
of 450 large Web sites in 13 countries, found that one-fourth of the Web
sites did not give any clear information about ownership. Additionally,
one-third of sites listed no phone number, while 30 percent had no published
address. While savvy Web users know to take much information gleaned online
with a grain of salt, Consumers International suggests that better standards
for disclosure would make it easier for users to evaluate individual sites.
[SOURCE: Wired News, AUTHOR: Joanna Glasner]
(http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,56183,00.html)

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