Introduction
Broadly defined, the internet offers amazing opportunities for many people to express their opinions and for many others to access such information through the World Wide Web. Individuals, political figures, society critics, students –anyone who desires to convey his/ her view on anything – can make their thoughts known to a global audience in a far simpler way than previously possible. The growing pace in the use of the internet for expression has been elating: it is a renewal of the fight for democracy and the restoration of egalitarianism. However, some groups find that this medium of expression has encouraged the distribution of offensive and unpleasant material. Pornography, hate speech, lewd material, and similar items thrive alongside discussions on the forthcoming elections and other positive material. This occurrence has led to concerted efforts to limit the kind of materials that are availed on the internet, such efforts include the development of systems that sort out the so-called offensive material. This paper examines the importance of free speech on the internet.
Free Speech
The internet is a common pool of information, a global space that can be accessed by anybody from any part of the world. Anything that an individual wants to pass on can practically be read by anyone who has access to the internet, and the audience is as diverse as humanity itself. Hence, from a factual point of view, no one community’s standards can be used as an indicator of speech acceptable on the internet. Since the progress of the civilization of the human race depends on the individual conveyance of new thoughts, then the freedom of speech is the most significant asset we can defend. The internet not only provides a platform where we can express ourselves freely, but it also promotes the fundamental theory of open expression (Zuchora-Walske 96).
The right to freely express oneself is identified as a human right in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) also recognizes free speech as a global human right and defines this right as “the right to hold opinions without interference” (OHCHR). Besides, free speech is recognized by regional blocs in all of the five continents. These human rights do not merely cover oral or published works, they extend to other media, including the internet. The World Wide Web is a far more speech-enhancing medium as compared to print or mails, therefore, stifling free speech over this important medium is a form of human rights violation.
Proponents of internet censorship have argued that speech on the internet is unfiltered, unconventional, sexually explicit, and offensive— commonly referred to as ‘indecent’ among many societies. However, such material cannot be devoid of such content, especially in a medium receiving information from all over the world. This does not mean that the government should stop protecting children and minors from internet pornography. It can still reinforce protectionism by implementing existing land laws that criminalize obscenity and child pornography. For example, if there is unlawful material, the government can order the sites affected to pull down such content. Moreover, access to pornographic sites can be regulated by ensuring that persons who enter such sites are adults using various mechanisms, e.g. use of credit cards (Zuchora-Walske 79).
Conclusion
The internet is a very important aspect of today’s communication needs and people must be allowed to exercise their freedom of expression but at the same time, negative aspects of this media should be handled in a logical manner.
References
OHCHR (International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights). 1976. Web.
Zuchora-Walske, Christine. Internet Censorship: Protecting Citizens or Trampling Freedom? New York: Lerner Pub Group, 2010.