PERSONAL PROJECT - RESEARCH PAPER PRO FORMA

1. Your general field of enquiry.

I have decided to examine a humanitarian topic which is relevant to us all, ‘freedom of speech.’ Freedom of speech is enshrined in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and is granted formal recognition by the laws of most nations. Nonetheless the degree to which the right is upheld in practice varies greatly from one nation to another. In many nations in the developing world strict censorship is enforced, while even among liberal democracies there are different approaches to issues such as hate speech, obscenity and laws.
Freedom of speech is a fundamental principle that provides people with the right to speak their thoughts in public. However, there has been much discussion on this topic lately, especially in the media in light of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in America and the 7/7 attacks in Britain. As a result of these terrorist attacks, both the U.S and U.K governments have introduced new legislation & laws to help combat their war on terror. However, they are not without opposition from those who feel they are impeding on our civil liberties & rights.
Does freedom of speech permit a person to arouse fear or hatred? It is true that freedom of speech can be abused. Nevertheless, this freedom is so important that surely every precaution should be taken to protect those who call upon its guarantee. Freedom of speech continues to be problematic as well as important. I have just read an article where the Ku Klux Klan were given permission to hold a rally in a town in America & received police protection; then they were sent a bill for the additional security. When the Klan protested, the court decided that the group did not have to pay. It is easy to say that the Klan should be silenced because its message is objectionable. However, if one group with objectionable views can be silenced, it soon may become acceptable to silence another group, and then another group. In this light, I am reminded of the Pastor Martin Niemöller famous poem "First they came..." and feel its words & message still ring true today “When they came for me, there was no one left to speak out.”



2. Your chosen subject.

I intend to research & examine the specific issue of Internet Censorship. Internet censorship is control or suppression of material an individual can publish or access on the Internet.The legal issues are similar to offline censorship. One difference is that national borders are more permeable online: residents of a country that bans certain information can find it on websites hosted outside the country. Conversely, attempts by one government to prevent its citizens from seeing certain material can have the effect of restricting foreigners, because the government may take action against Internet sites anywhere in the world, if they host objectionable material.
Total censorship of information on the Internet however is very difficult to achieve due to the underlying distributed technology of the Internet. Data havens (such as Freenet) allow unconditional free speech, as the technology guarantees that material cannot be removed and the author of any information is impossible to link to a physical identity or organization.
However, this does not mean that governmental originations throughout the world are not trying to implement forms of censorship. The recent (September 2004) international operation against the anti-globalization Indy-media network, led to the knock down of several servers worldwide. So this shows that the era of completely free internet is finished. Even in democratic countries the authorities have now the technical and legislative means to shut down anybody on the net, for any good or evil reason. In the United Kingdom, the new Home Office Minister Vernon Coaker set a deadline of the end of 2007 for all Internet Service Providers to implement a “Clean feed” style network level content blocking platform. Currently, the only web sites ISPs are expected to block access to are sites the Internet Watch Foundation has identified as containing images of child abuse. However such a platform is capable of blocking access to any web site added to the list, making it a simple matter to change this policy in future. The Home Office has previously indicated that it has considered requiring ISPs to block access to articles on the web deemed to be “glorifying terrorism”, within the meaning of the new Terrorism Act 2006.

Levels of Internet censorship vary from country to country as previously discussed. Some countries impose stricter regulations and penalties than others. In total there are 61 Cyber dissidents imprisoned to date in various countries for illegal web bloggings and other forms of expression or statements against their governments, with this number ever increasing. In November 2006, governments and companies from all over the world will attend a UN conference to discuss the future of the Internet. This could pen ultimately mean that the face of the Internet as we know it will change. For this reason, I feel it is something that needs to be examined and is in everyone’s best interest that the results are made freely available to the masses.



3. Your objectives. What are you going to document/ uncover/ explain/ question?

In this time of regulation, freedom is really threatened on the Internet. There are peoples who try to monopolize the net, see to censor it, openly or hypocritically, be it is in the name of the defence of the order or in the name of freedom. There are those who agree with censorship, but one is compelled to ask “to what extent?” Denial of inappropriate images of minors for example is something I would hope everyone would see as a good thing. But what about censoring articles with strong religious or political beliefs because the opinions held are not your own? I believe it is imperative that a balance should be reached between censorship of explicit material and freedom of speech.
I wish to obtain an understanding of the current state of affairs throughout the globe in this issue. Firstly I must discover what forms of expression on the internet are under attack. I then intend to examine how special governmental bodies and interest groups suppress the right to free speech on the internet by attempting to silence anyone whose opinions do not conform with their agendas. After I discover what means are used to suppress free speech (e.g. smart filter, websense), I wish then to develop my project further by looking at what tools are available (e.g. Freenet) to help protect those who do not have the fundamental right of free speech..
Having done all this, I intend to present my findings in a professional journal. I am currently looking for an appropriate place for publication among organisations such as Amnesty International (Irrepressible campaign) and Reporters without borders etc. Above all I hope to present a coherent and well balanced report, which draws upon all the issues of Internet Censorship & which presents the reader with a good understanding of the these issues.



4. A description and assessment of research base. Primary sources. Secondary sources.

Much of my primary research will comprise of distributing Questionnaires, e-mails and letters to the appropriate persons. Case studies will be conducted into various countries to gain an understanding of the scale of internet censorship and the resulting penalties for braking set laws, be they an individual countries or international.
The secondary sources I will use will include books, videos, journals and articles on the internet. Although many articles, particularly on the internet may be bias or inaccurate, they will still be invaluable to my findings and understanding of the issue.
5. An indication of your preferred methodology and why it is appropriate. What academic approach will you choose that is best suited to the analysis, contextualisation and cultural critique of your subject?

Researching into this issue could be particularly difficult. Because this is such a profound issue for many people and because there are those who wish to distort the truth, individual agendas may play heavily on the information I find. Fortunately I have a background in Historical study and have had much experience of using primary and secondary sources. Therefore I am aware of the problems that bias and inaccurate information can cause, but should also be able to identify such issues.
When my research is complete, the academic approach I intend to use to analyse my findings will take the form of a philosophical discussion. I am concerned with the issue of Internet censorship and apart from just looking at the technical capabilities available to enforce this censorship and how to overcome them. I also intend to present an unbiased philosophical discussion, citing the works of key thinkers & philosophers. I think this would be particularity appropriate because it would allow me to gain a full understanding of the issues for and against internet censorship, before writing a conclusion on where I stand on the issue & presenting my finished project.
Furthermore, I intend to use appropriate law based methodology when I come to present my findings into the kinds of penalties issued for breaking censorship laws.

6. References to key thinkers/academics.

Isaiah Berlin (Political philosopher and Historian of ideas. 1909 - 1997).
Jeremy Waldron (Professor of law and philosophy at the New York University School of Law. 1953 - present).
Jonathan Wolff (Professor and Head of Department specialising in political philosophy at University College London. 1959 - present).
Bernard Williams (Professor of Philosophy at the University of Cambridge,1929 - 2003).
Ronald Dworkin (American legal philosopher, 1931 - present).
H. L. A. Hart (Legal philosopher, 1907 - 1992).
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (Philosopher of the Enlightenment, 1712 - 1778).

7. Indicative bibliography.

Freedom: An Introduction with Readings by Nigel Warburton
(Routledge, an imprint of Taylor & Francis Books Ltd. 14 Sep 2000).

The New Thought Police by Tammy Bruce
(Crown Publications. Jan 2003).

http://irrepressible.info/ (Amnesty International Campaign).
http://opennet.net/map/ (Internet Filtering Map).
http://www.rsf.org/ (Reporters without Boarders).
http://www.ispa.org.uk/ (The Internet Services Providers' Association. ISPA UK).
http://www.netfreedom.org/ (Free speech organisation).
http://www.eff.org/br/ (Electronic Frontier Foundation. Free speech organisation).
http://www.epic.org/crypto/ (Electronic Privacy Information Centre).
http://www.scripting.com/twentyFour/ (A Celebration of Free Speech on the Internet).


8. Additional information that is relevant.

Time willing, I would like to present my project not just in written form, but also in some kind of multi-media format. I wish to create either a video, e book, website or some other form of multi-media presentation. A written dissertation or journal may be appropriate for presenting my finding to an academic body, but I also wish to present my work in a form that is more accessible to a larger audience.


9. Any questions you may have for staff.

Having discussed this topic with S. Pope on the 30/10/06, I am happy that I have a credible and above all interesting proposal for a project. I will require further discourse soon, although I am happy to talk about my proposal at any time.