Issues and Implications of Free Speech on the InternetAbstract: The issue of free speech has existed since the Founding Fathers first ratified the United States Constitution. With the emergence of new technologies, particularly the Internet, free speech has been redefined and its limits have been tested. What are the limits of free speech on the Internet and how can they be enforced? These are constitutional questions for the digital age. Imagine being in your home, a bastion of privacy and comfort, and having someone yell racial slurs at you as you sit placidly in a comfortable chair. Unlikely, you say? Just visit the Aryan Nation or Klu Klux Klan website. In this day and age, when anyone can become a publisher by reading a book and clicking a mouse, the Internet is used as a showcase for fringe and unpopular opinions that gives them a semblance of authority and allows them to reach a large audience. Interestingly, a similar phenomenon occurred in the past when new types of media appeared. The invention of the printing press allowed the ideas of the Protestant Reformation to spread rapidly and take hold in Europe. Without the genius of Gutenberg, Luther's ideas might never have escaped Saxony. Obscure topics such as the quilting methods used by the Amish in the early 19th century could find expression on the Internet. Once-isolated enthusiasts can communicate their love of quilting and post their favorite designs on a website for all to see and emulate. However, it's not just bland, acceptable information that creates communities. The formation of interest groups on the Internet is also possible for fanatics, racists, xenophobes and others. For you...... half of the sheet......2.A gift of fire, by Sara Baase. Copyright 1997, Prentice Hall.3. www.epic.org/free_speech/cda/leahy_S213_statement.html: A statement on bills introduced and joint resolutions delivered during the debate on the Communications Decency Act4. www.epic.org/cda: Updates on the CDA legal battle from EPIC5. www.cybercrime.gov/racismun.htm: A government site dedicated to cybercrime issues. This specific page deals specifically with First Amendment rights.6. www.coe.ilstu.edu/portfolios/javendano/landmark.htm: a site containing cases regarding free speech on college campuses7. www.jmls.edu/cuber/cases/baker.html: Page maintained by John Marshall LawSchool8.www.cybercrime.gov/bombmakinginfo.html: 1997 report on the availability of bomb-making information, prepared by the United States Department of Justice United