Book Review - Sex, Laws, and Cyberspace

[Danny Yee]

     title: Sex, Laws, and Cyberspace
          : Freedom and Censorship on the Frontiers of the Online Revolution
        by: Jonathan Wallace + Mark Mangan
 publisher: Henry Holt 1997
     other: 304 pages, index
      info: http://www.spectacle.org/freespch/

Surprisingly few books on Internet censorship have appeared, and _Sex,
Laws, and Cyberspace_ fills an important niche between technical
academic works and poorly researched rants.  It is a captivatingly
readable book, but one that is also full of solid legal analysis and
intelligent exposition of the political and social issues.

Wallace and Mangan describe in detail the landmark events in the history
of Internet censorship in the United States: the Amateur Action case,
where a couple running an adult bulletin board in California were
convicted under Tennessee obscenity legislation; Phil Zimmerman, PGP,
and other matters cryptographic; the Jake Baker case (a university
student posting "snuff" stories to Usenet); libel cases such as _Cubby
v. Compuserve_ which tested the liabilities of service providers;
Scientology's attempt to stop online criticism using copyright law; Marty
Rimm (the "Barnum of Cyberspace") and his infamous pornography study;
information about bombs and explosives; and the Communications Decency
Act.  A final chapter looks back over the history of legal responses to
new communication technologies and argues that the best analogy for the
Net is "a constellation of printing presses and bookstores".

_Sex, Laws, and Cyberspace_ is hardly news-breaking: the striking down
of the CDA only just made it into the epilogue, for example, and there
is no mention of PICS or controversies over filtering software.  But the
choice of topics and the level of treatment prevent it dating too rapidly
(and also make much of it applicable outside the United States, despite
the legal detail).  There is also a web site associated with the book.

The subject is not one where impartiality is really an option, and
Wallace and Mangan make no bones about being supporters of free speech.
While this certainly influences their commentary, it does not appear to
bias their legal analysis or prevent a balanced presentation.  _Sex, Laws,
and Cyberspace_ is passionate without being at all strident, and indeed
avoids hype of any kind.  It would make a great introduction for the
newcomer to the subject of Internet censorship, but even experienced
activists will find it illuminating.

--

Disclaimer: I requested and received a review copy of _Sex, Laws, and
Cyberspace_ from Jonathan Wallace, but I have no stake, financial or
otherwise, in its success.

--

%T	Sex, Laws, and Cyberspace
%S	Freedom and Censorship on the Frontiers of the Online Revolution
%A	Jonathan Wallace
%A	Mark Mangan
%I	Henry Holt
%C	New York
%D	1997
%O	paperback, references, index
%G	ISBN 0-8050-5298-4
%P	xv,304pp
%W	http://www.spectacle.org/freespch/
%K	crime, law, Internet

27 September 1997

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        Copyright (c) 1997 Danny Yee (danny@cs.su.oz.au)
        http://www.anatomy.su.oz.au/danny/book-reviews/
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