MetaFilter posts tagged with censorship and law

Access Denied

Blazecock Pileon — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 12:17:11 -0800

In the same spirit as the Open Net Initiative and Committee to Protect Bloggers that both track global internet filtering, Sami ben Gharbia's Access Denied Map tries to track the blocking of sites like Blogger, Flickr, YouTube and others by governments, as well as efforts by activists to keep them accessible or to challenge their blockage.

Cryptome Shutdown

homunculus — Tue, 01 May 2007 20:48:44 -0800

Cryptome Shutdown by Verio/NTT. Who Killed Cryptome.org?

Malaysia, Politics, and Bloggers

divabat — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 15:31:19 -0800

An Indonesian TV crew was invited to Malaysia for their Visit Malaysia Year 2007 campaign but encountered many problems. They write up about it - and start a flurry of comments and controversy across the Malaysian government about blogging. [more inside]

Fed seek to gag D.C. Madam

Postroad — Wed, 07 Mar 2007 14:46:54 -0800

Feds seek to gag D.C. Madam this madam threatens to spill the names about the biggies that used her services and so: [...]government lawyers claim that some discovery documents contain "personal information" about Palfrey's former johns and prostitutes that is "sensitive." The prosecution filing does not detail the nature of this confidential information, though the identity of Palfrey's D.C. customers would surely be cloaked if the protective order was signed by Judge Gladys Kessler[...]

Manuscripts Don't Burn

divabat — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 02:32:01 -0800

Malaysian bookstore Silverfish Books recently pubhlished a list of books restricted by the Malaysian Home Ministry (confiscated at the border by Customs) - a list that includes Chinese teapots, children's prayers, and Dora the Explorer. Banned books & magazines aren't exactly news in Malaysia; indeed, possession of said books can lead to severe penalties, even jail time.The Opposition has made a statement before, but that hasn't led anywhere. However, since Silverfish's list, Malaysian bloggers have had enough with the arbitrary and Kafka-esque bans and restrictions, and have come together to form Manuscripts Don't Burn, to protest and talk about banned books and the larger issue of freedom of speech in Malaysia.

User may incur custodial sentence for use of non-court approved words.

Blue Stone — Tue, 12 Aug 2003 09:21:25 -0800

In a new twist to a theme discussed earlier on MeFi, on language censorship (but in an entirely different case) the UK might be the first country to jail a man for using a single court-prohibited word in public.
As repellent as the defendant's behaviour was, can such a case of censorship and prohibition of freedom of speech ever be justified?

Enforcing publication bans

transient — Thu, 21 Nov 2002 10:11:42 -0800

Enforcing silence: American media are unsurprisingly preparing to publish details of Vancouver's Pickton case despite a Canadian publication ban. Are media blackouts censorship, necessary for justice, or both? Or are they just doomed to fail when you can just, you know, do stuff like this?

mert — Thu, 24 Oct 2002 09:19:47 -0800

Google censors search results "Google, the world's most popular search engine, has quietly deleted more than 100 controversial sites from some search result listings. "

nthdegx — Sat, 14 Sep 2002 04:35:04 -0800

MTV bans Public Enemy 's video "Gotta Give the Peeps What They Need" because the video contains the lyric "Free Mumia and H Rap Brown". MTV are willing to air the video if the lyric is cut. Public Enemy front-man Chuck D is vocal in his response. Responsible action or censorship in its worst form?

dejah420 — Wed, 21 Aug 2002 18:39:57 -0800

Comic book retailer sentenced to jail for selling a book to an adult The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund's lawyers are filing an appeal in the highest criminal court in Texas in the obscenity conviction of Jesus Castillo, manager of a Dallas comic book store. Castillo has received six months jail time, a year probation, and a $4000 fine. [more inside]

soulhuntre — Tue, 11 Dec 2001 10:53:42 -0800

Fighting the CDA : The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom is working with one of nations most interesting erotic photographers to overturn the portion of the CDA that ties all internet obscenity to the most restrictive definition of the most restrictive community in the nation.

jed — Wed, 27 Dec 2000 20:53:08 -0800

Yahoo appeals to U.S. District Court to avoid being regulated by the French government. This is one of the first important cases testing jurisdiction on ecommerce sites, and neither side appears to be backing down.

owillis — Mon, 10 Jul 2000 01:36:19 -0800

Police State 2000. "What makes you think you can edit content?" the federal judge asked city officials. "Isn't that classic censorship and prior restraint?"

aaron — Tue, 27 Jun 2000 09:52:46 -0800

Another day, another piece of unconstitutional net-censorship legislation in Congress. And this time it's authored by your pal and mine, John "Watch Out for Charlies!" McCain. Perhaps we should start a deadpool for all these bills, giving out some cash to whoever guesses the dates on which the courts throw them out?

baylink — Fri, 23 Jun 2000 22:01:33 -0800

Third Circuit panel upholds injunction against Child Online Protective Act, says that "community standards" approach doesn't work in 'cyberspace'. Is sanity breaking out in the federal judiciary?

palegirl — Wed, 26 Apr 2000 16:55:55 -0800

speed limit -- A bill banning Internet sites which publish or even link to drug-making information looks set to sail through Congress