Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2003, the boundaries of free speech in America have been constantly pushed. The effects of the American Anti-Terrorism movement have been felt in several ways:

Government Shuts Down Websites

Internet Service Providers Shut Down Websites
Website Owners Censor Websites
Government Censor their Websites
Government Requests Removal of Info from Websites
Media Personalities Punished

Current Legislation Regarding Internet Censorship:

In Free Speech Victory, Appeals Court Strikes Down COPA - Again - On March 6 the Third Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously upheld - for a second time - an injunction against the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), citing numerous constitutional flaws. COPA would have forced Web publishers to block a wide range of legal material, and the detailed decision is a major victory for free speech online. The case has already gone to the U.S. Supreme Court, which disagreed with parts of the Third Circuit's first ruling in the case.March 7, 2003

Decision

CDT Appeals Pennsylvania Attorney General's Secrecy over Blocked Internet Sites - CDT has appealed the refusal by the Pennsylvania Attorney General to disclose the Internet web sites that he has blocked under a controversial state law. Since mid-2002, the Attorney General has issued over 300 secret censorship orders, with no judicial oversight or public review, requiring ISPs to block web sites that allegedly contain child pornography. Those orders also result in the blocking of hundreds or thousands of legitimate web sites that share the same "IP address" as the illegal sites. CDT assisted in the filing of a request under Pennsylvania's "Right to Know" law seeking to force the Attorney General to make his actions public. The Attorney General denied that request on April 1, and CDT has appealed, arguing that the Attorney General cannot continue to shield the censorship orders from public scrutiny. April 21, 2003

CDT Report on Penn. ISP Liability Law, Feb. 2003

House Amendment Would Outlaw "Misleading" Domain Names - On March 27, the House of Representatives approved an amendment to the Child Abduction Prevention Act outlawing the use of "misleading" domain names "with intent to deceive" Internet users into viewing obscenity or, in the case of minors, material "harmful to minors." The amendment, which was inserted by Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) at the last minute, includes penalties of 2-4 years imprisonment. CDT has significant concerns about the potentially-harmful effects of the amendment's "harmful to minors" standard on free expression. CDT also believes that such legislation's collateral effects on the Internet's naming systems should be thoroughly evaluated before being enshrined in law. March 26, 2003

S. 151 - Child Abduction Prevention Act