Reflection Blog 14

What is Internet Censorship?

Internet Censorship is defined as “the control or suppression of what can be accessed, published, or viewed on the Internet.” (Wikipedia)

Why does Internet Censorship exist?

Internet Censorship exists for several different reasons including self-censorship for moral, religious, or business reasons, or out of fear of other legal consequences.

The extent of internet censorship

The extent of internet censorship varies greatly between different countries. Most democratic nations, such as the U.S., engage in only mild to moderate internet censorship. However, some countries heavily censor general information such as political news in an attempt at reducing intellectual discussion between citizens. One prime example of this is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, more commonly known as North Korea. The North Korean regime censors all information regarding international affairs with the sole purpose of propagating the false idea that their nation is the most powerful nation in the world.  Their methods have been likened to totalitarian propaganda and blatant brainwashing.

I just talked about how Internet Censorship can be used for malicious purposes. What are some beneficial things that internet censorship could possibly bring about?

Almost all advocates of internet censorship argue that the main reason the internet needs to be censored by the government is because it can possibly reduce access to illicit drugs, sex trafficking, human trafficking, and child pornography.

The problem with this, though, is that all of these things have existed since the beginnings of human civilization, way before the internet was even remotely considered a practical idea. Furthermore, the internet is not even the main procedure by which people access these things. So essentially what we’re doing is giving the government power to eliminate nothing. Soon after this, the government will pass more legislation to increase their scope of power, like they always do, which in this case will be in regards to the internet.