Protecting Americas Youth Online PDF Download

Much of the current public discussion in the United States about the Internet and speech rights focuses on the array of materials (particularly sexually explicit materials) that are available on the Internet, the effect of exposure to them on youth development, and whether the material should be regulated. In exploring questions about youth access to materials on the Internet, students learn that the general objective of law is to balance the interests of the state with the interests of the individual in the interest of some greater public good. They also learn how the law seeks to protect minors, regulates indecent speech, and has historically treated indecent and obscene speech. This resource guide offers an overview of the way the law has reviewed two classes of speech most relevant to the contemporary discussion of Internet obscenity and decency. The guide is divided into: (1) "How To Use This Resource Guide" (Learning Objectives; Organization of Guide); (2) "Permissible and Impermissible Speech" (First Amendment; Law and Cultural Concerns); (3) "New Media and Youth" (Media Impact on Youth; Internet Filtering; Comics and Movies); (4) "Indecent and Obscene Speech" (Nineteenth-Century Law; Comstock Law; Hicklin Standard; Early Twentieth-Century Law); (5) "U.S. Supreme Court" (Roth: First Contemporary Obscenity Tests; Contradictory Decisions; Pornography); (6) "Internet Speech" (Communications Decency Act of 1996; District Court Decision; U.S. Supreme Court Decision); and (7) "Child Online Protection Act of 1998" (Circuit Court Decision; Future for COPA). Chapters include notes. Attached are a timeline of relevant Supreme Court cases; online lessons, strategies, and teaching activities; lists of additional resources; and terms and vocabulary. (BT)