From: kadie@eff.org (Carl M. Kadie)
Subject: Computers and Academic Freedom News 02.34 (Digest)
Originator: kadie@eff.org
Organization: The Electronic Frontier Foundation
Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1992 19:28:35 GMT

Computers and Academic Freedom News
Vol. 02, No. 34


----------------------------------------------------------------------

From: fnixon@sol.utc.edu (John F. Nixon)
Subject: Article 0 -- Abstract of CAF-News 02.34

[Week ending July 12, 1992

  [This week's guest editor is is John F. Nixon. A critique
   of the Virginia policy given in article 12 is available
   via anonymous ftp from
          ftp.eff.org:pub/policies/virginia.pen.edu.critique.
    - Carl]

========================== KEY ================================
The words after the numbers are a short PARAPHRASES of the
articles, or QUOTES from them, NOT AN OBJECTIVE SUMMARY and
not necessarily my opinion.
===============================================================

Notes 1-3 are about a broadcast on CITY-TV (an independent Toronto television
station) concerning pornography on Usenet.

1. This is a transcript of a portion of a CITY-TV broadcast from 6
July.  A reporter and a student (?) explore the alt.sex newsgroup. A
system administrator (?) states the University is not taking the
position of censor, and does not control the information an individual
may seek out. One female states that this material is harmful to
women, and a different female says that, although offensive, nothing
should be done to restrict the information.
    <1992Jul7.150830.27316@ccu.umanitoba.ca>

2. The lack of a central control within Usenet may prove surprising to
reporters.  "This lack of control is something that, in my mind, would
be very difficult for those in conventional media to grasp." Usenet
mechanisms may replace conventional media, and we should be aware this
may affect the behavior of the press towards Usenet.
    <2A5A5D2D.32D7@telly.on.ca>

3. The misunderstanding of the Canadian background (political and
historical) to the CITY-TV broadcast is debated. "Most Canadians also
seem to support laws restricting certain materials which we deem
pornographic. I dare say that few Canadians perceive any significant
clash between these values and their fundamental rights." Most
Canadians support the "hate literature laws".
    <1992Jul12.152040.9493@alchemy.chem.utoronto.ca>

Notes 4-9 are about sexual harassment on Usenet.

4. "Have there ever been any cases in the U.S. of sexual harassment
charges related to postings on Usenet?"
    <9207082121.AA11628@framsparc.ocf.llnl.gov.ocf>

5. "If some women find Usenet (or some other medium) hostile, what
should be done?  Should they be protected by some authority?" "I think
'protection' from offsensive ideas is paternalism."
    <1992Jul10.010025.6972@eff.org>

6. "...I think most mem do not understand the climate of fear in which
women live in this country. And that fear restricts their freedom of
expression."  Men feel free to post notes requesting rides, for
example, while women do not. "I'm not saying we have to delete the
alt.sex groups from Usenet, but I would like to make men aware of how
I feel ... when attending lecture[s where] gratuitous references [to]
alt.sex.pictures [are made]."
    <Br6H6x.AsL@news.cso.uiuc.edu>

7. "I have never seen any indication that women are subject to
violence for things which they say in a public forum." There is a
disparity between rates of violence for men and women, with men
subject to greater violence.  "I find the assumption that violence
against women should receive some special attention not given to
violence against men rather sexist."
    <1992Jul10.224407.23105@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>

8. (Lars Bader:) "Sorry, my last post was too harsh. Patt Leonard's
remarks were a statement of frustration... not a demand for
censorship." [Ed. - I have included this in fairness to Lars]
    <1992Jul11.020445.1227@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>

9. "...the conputer-mediated environment is proving no more
enlightened than its analog counterpart." The majority of Usenet posts
are by men, and the majority of posts on women's issues are also by
men. "It is obvious that the rule-makers are going by the same old
rules."
    <Br9GBv.5E@news.cso.uiuc.edu>

Note 10 concerns a study by Syracuse University on the role of public libraries
in determining Internet/NREN policy.

10. "Syracuse University's School of information Studies announces the
availability of a year long study inventigating the role of public
libraries in developing and exploiting the next generation of national
networks embodied in the Internet/NREN."
    <199207101342.AA16960@eff.org>

Note 11 presents Virginia's Public Education Network Acceptable Use Policy.

11. The "Acceptable Use Policy" for Virginia's Public Education
Network is presented, with guidelines and policy statements.
"Acceptance of the policies are automatic upon use of the network."
The Public Education Network is accessable to K-12 teachers and
students.
    <199207071841.AA17968@eff.org>

Note 12 is about the Email policy of the State of Washington

12. "The state of Washington has an E-mail policy that divides email
records into 3 catagories: calendars, policy and non-policy
correspondence."
    <199207081837.AA06941@eff.org>

- John F. Nixon]


In this issue:

blunden@ccu      92  Surprise. You've made the evening news again.
Evan Leibovitch 111  >Internet on City TV news...
Marc Roussel     55  >Surprise. You've made the evening news again.
Mark Boolootian  17  Need info on sexual harassment and Usenet
Carl M. Kadie    24  Hostility toward women (w<>ment of women on the Internet)
Patt Leonard     42  harrassment of women on the Internet
Lars Bader       98  >
Lars Bader        8  >
Karen Schneider  14  Harrassment of Women on Internet a Real Problem
Joe Ryan         30  (none)
Dr H Cothern    355  >K-12 Access
Cyndi Merritt    53  email policy (fwd)


Computers and Academic Freedom News

Managing Editor:  Carl M. Kadie (kadie@eff.org)
Administration:   William W. Arnold (caf-talk-request@eff.org, warnold@eff.org)
Associate Editor: Elizabeth M. Reid (emr@eff.org)
Associate Editor: Paul Joslin (joslin@tso.uc.edu)
Associate Editor: Adam C. Gross (ag3j+@andrew.cmu.edu)
Associate Editor: Mark C. Sheehan (sheehan@unixpop.ucs.indiana.edu)

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send acad-freedom README

Disclaimer: This CAF-News abstract was compiled by a guest editor or a
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------------            

------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul  7 17:58:23 1992
From: blunden@ccu.umanitoba.ca
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk,alt.censorship,alt.sex,alt.sex.bondage
Subject: Article 1--Surprise.  You've made the evening news again.
Date: 7 Jul 92 15:08:30 GMT

Following is a transcript of a story originating with CITY-TV, and independent
television station in Toronto.  It was carried on local (Winnipeg) TV station
MTN in yesterday's evening news.

Anchor:    Well it was a problem at the University of Manitoba and it was
           dealt with.  But other universities across the country seem a
           little slower to act.  The issue is computer pornography, and
           as Avi Lewis reports, some schools aren't following the example
           set by the U of M because they're still questioning where to draw
           the line on censorship.

----------------------------------
cut to reporter and a male (student?) sitting at a terminal at the University
of Toronto
----------------------------------

Reporter:  Ok, I'm in the system, what do I do now?

Student:   A L T dot S E X return

----------------------------------
camera zooms in on terminal screen, shows listing of news articles
----------------------------------

           Ok, Japanese bondage, video X-rated animation, 
           RAPE scenes LISTING update ?!!

Reporter:  Alright, let's see what's in that.

Student:   Look at THIS!  An alphabetized LIST!  With COMMENTS!
           And it seems like people are sort of corresponding through this
           thing.  I mean, they're talking to each other about these movies.

----------------------------------
cut to male (system administrator?) seated at desk in front of a terminal
----------------------------------

Male:      The University has taken the position that we are not censors,
           and we are not going to control the type of information an
           individual can seek out.

----------------------------------
cut to female
----------------------------------

Female:    We're not talking about censorship.  We're talking about material
           which is extremely harmful to over half of the population, and
           they're refusing to do anything about it.

----------------------------------
cut to reporter
----------------------------------

Reporter:  Internet is an international computer information network, that
           could be accessed by literally thousands of public and private
           terminals on campus.  Although the pornography only occupies a
           small fraction of the files in the system, in a system as big
           as Internet that's a lot of files.

----------------------------------
cut to another female
----------------------------------

Female:    (With) the key wording sex, you can produce a list of at least
           40 files, some of which have up to 5 or 6 thousand entries.
           As a feminist, it's problematic.  For sure, it offended me.
           But that doesn't mean I advocate doing something about it.

----------------------------------
cut to reporter
----------------------------------

Reporter:  The University of Manitoba, another Internet subscriber, doesn't
           find this issue so complex.  When files about torturing women
           for sexual pleasure showed up on its system, the Winnipeg vice
           squad labelled them pornographic, and the University had them
           deleted from the system.  Here at the University of Toronto,
           it's being treated as an issue of censorship versus free speech.
           At King's college circle, I'm Avi Lewis for CITY Pulse.

**********************************

Interesting anecdote:  CITY-TV started out as a cable TV station in Toronto
      in the early 1970's.  Their main claim to fame was "The Baby Blue
      Movie", shown every Friday at midnight.

Another interesting anecdote:  The University of Manitoba library has the book
      "Sadism in the Movies" by George de Coulteray,
      191 pages plus illustrations.


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul  8 11:52:53 1992
From: evan@telly.on.ca (Evan Leibovitch)
Subject: Article 2--Re: Internet on City TV news...
Date: Wed, 8 Jul 1992 03:12:44 GMT

In article <710490325.17473@zooid.guild.org>
	vid@zooid.guild.org (David Mason) writes:

>Isn't anyone going to comment on City TV's treatment of pornography/censorship
>at U of T of Usenet groups and Internet resources?

[ For those of you joining the discussion late, CITY is a Toronto TV station ]

>Yes, for those who were lucky enough to miss it, they had a nice five minute
>summary of the issue. They were nice enough to comment that alt.sex and
>related items were only a small part of the system, but in typical
>journalistic style they had screen shots of cryptic looking symbols (well, I
>suppose to the uninitiated message headers scrolling by at 9600 baud can look
>cryptic) as well as semi-pornographic language on the screen.

>This was covered in regards to the censoring of alt.sex groups at the
>University of Manitoba. Apparently at U of M it was treated as a pornography
>issue while at U of T it is being treated as a censorship - freedom of speech
>issue.

The media is treating Usenet the way it treats most other parts of
everyday life. The stuff that doesn't bother anyone, or is productive,
or boringly efficient, is ignored. That which irritates someone, or
offends, or provokes outrage, is instantly fair game.

I wouldn't expect much of CITY, as I consider it one of the more
tabloid-type TV news programs. Their "analyst" Colin Vaughan has
all the political savvy of a box of Polyfilla.

It isn't over, though. A week or so ago, I was on the phone for the
better part of two hours with a guy from the Globe and Mail (newspaper),
who intends to do something a little more in-depth than the reports we've
seen so far. So he says.

As the moderator of the erotica group and a Canadian, I guess I was a
reasonable (and probably inevitable) target. What the reporter didn't
expect was that I have been on both sides of this fence, having
completed a graduate Journalism programme along with many of this
reporter's co-workers. So I could be honest in the interview, giving
his intentions the benefit of the doubt whilst keeping my guard up. Even
if he is either sympathetic or merely impartial, that's not to say that
his editors will be.

The impression I got during the interview while getting a feel for some
of the other people this guy has spoken to, is that some people are
scared shitless about Usenet.

Scared? You bet. Unlike a newspaper with its heavily selective letters
to the editor or a broadcaster who has complete editing control over
what makes the 6:00 news, Usenet has no such bounds over one's ability
to respond to what one reads.

Those who wish to be offensive or think offensive things, be they
fans of sex with animals, homophobes, holocaust revisionists or
John Palmer, cannot be silenced per se; Partially because the mechanics
of the system don't make it easy to censor, but also partly because
there's no central authorites to do the censoring.

This lack of control is something that, in my mind, would be very
difficult for those in conventional media to grasp. It is so easy to
keep out the views of the offensive and pretend they don't exist, or it
is possible to bring them into the open and expose them for the shams
that they are.

The point that kept going through my mind during the interview, that I
hope I conveyed well enough to the reporter, is that the individual
news reader/poster has much more influence over the content of the net
than in any other media. As a result, we see some commentaries and
discussions in many subjects that are of better quality and relevance
than the other media are capable of providing. We also see an awful lot
of absolute garbage, but the net is no better and no worse than the
people who contribute to is. Indeed, each site is in total control of
the level of participation they desire, even to the point of ignoring
certain subject groups totally.

"Where does it end?" asked the reporter. "It doesn't," I answered,
pointing out applications like Clarinet which make use of conventional
net mechanisms to *replace* conventional media.

The proportion of Usenet devoted to sex is a much smaller part than, I
would suggest, the amount of sex on DOS BBS systems like Canada Remote
Systems. But that's not news anymore. What is news is that some people
from the outside are starting to see what the net is and what it is
capable of being. Some of us are fascinated by it; others, who see a
potential erosion in the media status quo, or the reduction of the
media as a one-way tool for influencing thought, in my eyes indeed
have much to fear. I don't believe it's far fetched to say that I've
learned more about the gut problems behind that Canadian constitution
from can.politics that from any parade of taking heads on the Journal.

Imminent death of Usenet predicted?

NOT.

In Usenet, I see methods of frustrating those who would censor, of
knocking professional journalists and "experts" down a notch and making
them more responsible for what they say and do.

Indeed, Usenet is not for the overly sensitive or easily offended. It's
more like the floor of the Stock Exchange than an audience watching a
stage play. It's not for everyone, but I don't think it's reached a
fraction of its potential. The more the conventional media attacks it
out of ignorance or fear, the more I believe this to be true.

-- 
 Evan Leibovitch, Sound Software Ltd., located in beautiful Brampton, Ontario
         evan@telly.on.ca / uunet!utzoo!telly!evan / (416) 452-0504
   Said Captain Jean-Luc Picard to the tailor at his machine: "Make it sew!"


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul 12 12:12:25 1992
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk,alt.censorship,alt.sex,tor.general
From: mroussel@alchemy.chem.utoronto.ca (Marc Roussel)
Subject: Article 3--Re: Surprise.  You've made the evening news again.
Date: Sun, 12 Jul 1992 15:20:40 GMT

In article <1992Jul10.172715.2238@r-node.gts.org> marc@r-node.gts.org
(Marc Fournier - Sys Admin) writes:
>	I'm sorry...but I think this whole thing is a stupid waste of
>time and resources...and it goes against what our great (or used to be?)
>country stands for...freedom...to choose, to think, to speak.

     If we, the supporters of Usenet, misunderstand Canadian political
and social history in this manner, we will find ourselves unable to
contribute in an intelligent way to this debate, just as the ignorant
reporters are unable to tell people what Usenet is really like.  Canada's
political culture has always included significant authoritarian
features; this is an outgrowth of the British system on which our own
traditions are modeled.  The Charter of Rights and Freedoms was an
astounding historical departure for Canada when it was introduced.  Prior
to that, the basic premise was that Parliament made laws which the
courts interpreted as straightforwardly as possible.  Note that even the
Bill of Rights introduced by Diefenbaker's government was very rarely
successfully used to override other legislation; being an ordinary law of
Parliament, there was very little opportunity for it to be used in this
manner.  Even the Charter is not absolute; the rights set out therein can
be restricted when this is "justifiable in a free and fair society", i.e.
at the discretion of the courts.  (And then there's the notwithstanding
clause...  Hardly the work of rabid freedom lovers.)
     If you asked a typical jurist or Parliamentarian, or even most
Canadians, what Canada stands and has stood for, I suspect you would
find that freedom is not the first thing that pops into their
minds; I'm sure most people would say the word "freedom" eventually, but
many would qualify it if and when they mentioned it.  Rather, answers
would typically reflect a certain common belief in what one might call
Canadian civility; we would like to think that we respect one another, or
at least that we try to.  Our Canadian political system, our
constitution and traditions, reflect this and not the relatively new (to
us) concept of personal freedoms.
     Let me close this note with a few examples.  Most Canadians seem to
support the hate literature laws.  As an interesting coincidence, I note
that Jim Keegstra was sentenced to a fine last weekend.  The judge's
reasons for not sending Mr. Keegstra to jail were not that the crime was
not considered serious, but that 10 years in court, along with the fine,
is roughly equivalent to the prison sentence he would have imposed had
the matter proceeded more expeditiously.  Most Canadians also seem to
support laws restricting certain materials which we deem pornographic.
I dare say that few Canadians perceive any significant clash between
these values and their fundamental rights.  Our political culture is
simply not such that we can easily see such clashes; the "individual
rights" religion invented by the U.S. and France hasn't yet penetrated
very deeply into our political consciousness.  This is a considerably
different perspective than one finds in the U.S. where even the most
right wing politicians generally acknowledge that some of their programs
clash with basic constitutional rights.

				Marc R. Roussel
                                mroussel@alchemy.chem.utoronto.ca


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul  8 17:21:26 1992
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk
From: booloo@framsparc.ocf.llnl.gov (Mark Boolootian)
Subject: Article 4--Need info on sexual harassment and Usenet
Date: Wed, 8 Jul 1992 21:21:27 GMT


Have there ever been any cases in the U.S. of sexual harassment charges
related to postings on Usenet?  I'd be interested in hearing about such
cases and their disposition.  Even if these issues were settled locally,
e.g. by management, I'd like to hear about them.  Anecdotal or documented.

I need whatever information I can collect in order to educate management
here about Usenet.  We are trying to keep our newsfeed from disappearing
entirely.

Thanks in advance,
mb
--
Mark Boolootian		booloo@llnl.gov		+1 510-423-1948


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul  9 21:01:39 1992
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk
From: kadie@eff.org (Carl M. Kadie)
Subject: Article 5--Hostility toward women (was Re: harrasment of women on the Internet)
Date: Fri, 10 Jul 1992 01:00:25 GMT

leonard@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu (Patt Leonard) writes:

[...]
> I do feel that the general atmosphere of
>the Usenet newsgroups, and the Internet LISTSERV mailing lists, can
>be hostile to women.

If some women find Usenet (or some other medium) hostile, what should
be done? Should they be protected by some authority? Would Usenet
assertiveness training help?

Because I hate articles that ask questions without suggesting an
answer, here is my first pass at an answer. I think "protection" from
offensive ideas is paternalism. It needlessly creates dependence. I
think Net assertiveness is effective and empowering.

- Carl

-- 
Carl Kadie -- I do not represent EFF; this is just me.
 =kadie@eff.org, kadie@cs.uiuc.edu =


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul 10 10:50:49 1992
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk
From: leonard@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu (Patt Leonard)
Subject: Article 6--harrassment of women on the Internet
Date: Fri, 10 Jul 1992 14:49:44 GMT

To Carl Kadie (kadie@eff.org, kadie@cs.uiuc.edu):

     I appreciate your response to my note about the sometimes hostile-
to-women atmosphere of the Usenet news and LISTSERV groups, and the
fact that you suggested women should not be intimidated, but should
empower themselves to use the Internet.

     I'm not saying I disagree with you, but I think most men do
not understand the climate of fear in which women live in this
country.  And that fear restricts their freedom of expression.
Violence against women is so prevalent in this society, women are
not able to act and speak with the dignity and freedom that all
persons deserve.

     For example, I can imagine a man posting a note to a local
Usenet group, saying, "I need a ride to the Grateful Dead concert
in Michigan.  Does anybody want to carpool?"  I don't think that
this man would be too troubled about who might see this message, or
what their motives might be.  However, I _know_ that women are
fearful of posting messages like "I need a ride to the Michigan
Womyn's Music Festival."  What kind of psychopath is going to
see that message, look up the poster's name in the phonebook,
and.... -- we've all seen the slasher movies, and read the real-life
accounts of slasher incidents, so we can imagine the worst
possible scenario.

     I'm not saying we have to delete the alt.sex groups from
the Usenet, but I would like to make men aware of how I feel when
I am attending a lecture by a visiting computer scientist, and
he throws in a gratuitous references alt.sex.pictures, and the
men in the room chuckle.  I think of the vulgar, hateful
pictures of women in the worst pornography, I think of the
fact that I can`t walk outside after dark without being
afraid of rapists, and I feel profoundly alienated from the
men in that room, because they are so insensitive and unaware
of what their chortles say to me.

                                   Patt Leonard
                              leonard@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul 10 18:57:57 1992
From: leb@theory.lcs.mit.edu (Lars Bader)
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk
Subject: Article 7--Re: harrassment of women on the Internet
Date: 10 Jul 92 22:44:07 GMT

some of Patt Leonard's feelings are understandable.  But it doesn't
seem like muzzling people on the Internet would do anything to
ameliorate the problems she has listed.  This is my answer to her:

>      I'm not saying I disagree with you, but I think most men do
> not understand the climate of fear in which women live in this
> country.  And that fear restricts their freedom of expression.
> Violence against women is so prevalent in this society, women are
> not able to act and speak with the dignity and freedom that all
> persons deserve.

1 in 20 black men is murdered in his life time.  1 in 100 white men is
murdered.  1 in 400 white women is.  The disparity in the figures is
growing, not shrinking.  But black men do not have a reputation for
silence, and it is usually white, female feminists who most often
complain of having been silenced.  Am I missing something, or is this
fear of violence just an excuse for seeking to muzzle views that make
you feel uncomfortable?

As a male, my childhood involved being physically beaten at regular
intervals, having a tooth smashed, being knocked out, and some other
unpleasant aspects -- this all at school, where the teachers, male and
female, just assumed that "boys will be boys."  I rarely initiated the
violence; usually it was visited upon me.  I really don't see that
violence against females is greater than violence against males.  It's
just that men learn from an early age that they will experience
violence.  No special protection will be given to them against the
rough and tumble of life.  I find the assumption that violence against
women should receive some special attention not given to violence
against men rather sexist.

I have never seen any indication that women are subject to violence
for things which they say in a public forum.  Almost all violence
against women occurs in rape, robbery, or domestic conflicts.  (These
also make up a large share of violence against men.)  For all the
problems we have in this country, we are fortunate that violence based
on political views is pretty rare.  Where it has occurred, it has
typically involved one man beating another -- no women involved.
Worries about expressing one's political views because of violence
aren't very rational.

>      For example, I can imagine a man posting a note to a local
> Usenet group, saying, "I need a ride to the Grateful Dead concert
> in Michigan.  Does anybody want to carpool?"  I don't think that
> this man would be too troubled about who might see this message, or
> what their motives might be.  However, I _know_ that women are
> fearful of posting messages like "I need a ride to the Michigan
> Womyn's Music Festival."  What kind of psychopath is going to
> see that message, look up the poster's name in the phonebook,

But the psychopath's actions (if indeed such a psychopath exists),
would take place outside Internet.  In fact, you would be better
off letting such a psychopath blow off steam on the Internet, than
muzzle him and have him track you down and....

> and.... -- we've all seen the slasher movies, and read the real-life
> accounts of slasher incidents, so we can imagine the worst
> possible scenario.

I've also seen horror films involving torture of men, too.  But these
don't add to my worries as I understand that they are fictional.

Has anyone ever heard of a psychopath reading Usenet postings and
wreaking vengeance?

>      I'm not saying we have to delete the alt.sex groups from
> the Usenet, but I would like to make men aware of how I feel when
> I am attending a lecture by a visiting computer scientist, and
> he throws in a gratuitous references alt.sex.pictures, and the

He could make a reference to a pornographic magazine if the newsgroup
didn't exist.  Sexual crudity is hardly reserved to computer users
or computer scientists.

> men in the room chuckle.  I think of the vulgar, hateful
> pictures of women in the worst pornography, I think of the
> fact that I can`t walk outside after dark without being
> afraid of rapists, and I feel profoundly alienated from the

Rape is not the product of pornography.  Sexually violent people,
because they are deviant, tend to enjoy sexually violent porn.  But it
doesn't make them, they want it because of what they already are.
Rape has occurred in every society, including ones where no
pornography existed.

Not all porn does degrade women, anymore than all romance novels
degrade men, although I definitely agree that referring to it in a
lecture is grossly unprofessional.

> men in that room, because they are so insensitive and unaware
> of what their chortles say to me.

Would you be happier if they were just as insensitive, but hid it
from you?  Don't you think it's better to know what attitudes
you're dealing with, so you can criticize them?


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul 10 22:25:35 1992
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk
From: leb@theory.lcs.mit.edu (Lars Bader)
Subject: Article 8--Re: harrassment of women on the Internet
Date: Sat, 11 Jul 1992 02:04:45 GMT

Sorry, my last post was too harsh.  Patt Leonard's remarks were a
statement of frustration with things as she sees them, not a demand
for censorship, and it was unnecessary for me to have criticized her
post in the way that I did.



------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul 12 01:25:09 1992
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk
From: schneide@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu (Karen Schneider)
Subject: Article 9--Harrassment of Women on Internet a Real Problem
Date: Sun, 12 Jul 1992 05:23:53 GMT

I concur with Ms. Leonard; the computer-mediated environment is proving no more
enlightened than its analog counterpart.  As a newcomer to Usenet, here are my
observations: 

1.  the majority of posters are men
2.  the majority of posters on subjects pertaining to women's issues are men

The latter observation concerns me the most.  I have already lost interest in 
one area that persists in posting highly offensive messages comparing women to
Nazis.  It's obvious that the rule-makers are going by the same old rules.



------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul 10 09:43:47 1992
Newsgroups: alt.comp.acad-freedom.talk
From: JORYAN@suvm.acs.syr.EDU (Joe Ryan)
Subject: Article 10--(none)
Date: Fri, 10 Jul 1992 13:20:09 GMT

PUBLIC LIBRARIES & THE INTERNET/NREN: NEW CHALLENGES, NEW OPPORTUNITIES

                                 BY

                          CHARLES R. MCCLURE
                               JOE RYAN
                           DIANA LAUTERBACH
                           WILLIAM  E. MOEN

Syracuse University's School of Information Studies announces the
availability of a year long study investigating the role of public
libraries in developing and exploiting the next generation of
national networks embodied in the Internet/NREN.  The study was funded
in part by OCLC's Library and Information Science Research Grant
Program.

For further information and order form contact Joe Ryan or William
Moen at one of the following addresses:

         Joe Ryan <JORYAN@suvm.acs.syr.edu>
         William Moen <WEMOEN@RODAN.ACS.SYR.EDU>
         School of Information Studies
         Syracuse University
         4-206 Center for Sci. & Tech.
         Syracuse, NY 13244-4100
         Phone: (315) 443-2911
         Fax:   (315) 443-5806


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul  8 08:54:51 1992
From: hcothern@VDOE386.VAK12ED.EDU (Dr. Harold Cothern)
Subject: Article 11--Re: K-12 Access
Date: Tue, 7 Jul 1992 18:05:49 GMT

	I have also sat silent for too long regarding student
usage of the Internet.  We in Virginia have also haggled over
this issue, but would rather err on the side of progressivism
and try to apply the "Reasonable Person" theory (often used in
court decisions).  Below you will find not only our complete
Acceptable Use Policy, but administrative guidelines and forms
for all users as well.  This fall we will be administratively
(with system features) limiting certain telnet capabilities for
students. Thanks to Connie Stout for some parts of this which
mirror TENET almost word for word.  I hope some of you find
this useful.  Though student access can present problems for
us, we should see it as an OPPORTUNITY first to enrich the
lives of citizens of the future

Harold "Bud" Cothern
Director, Virginia's Public Edcuation Network (PEN)
Virginia Department of Education
P.O. Box 6Q
Richmond, VA 23216
(804)225-2921
FAX 804-371-8978
Internet: hcothern@vdoe386.vak12ed.edu

Subject: Virginia's PEN Acceptable Use Policy

Date: 13 Apr 92

     The following policies and guidelines have been established for
the network by a committee of node administrators, university personnel,
and Department of Education representatives.  Members of this committee
also included K-12 classroom teachers, student, and school administrators.
Acceptance of the policies are automatic upon use of the network.


             * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
       	     * Virginia's Public Education Network *
             *       Acceptable Use Policy         *
             * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

VIRGINIA'S PEN Purpose

     The purpose of the Virginia's Public Education Network, VIRGINIA'S
PEN, is to advance and promote a world class public education in
Virginia.  VIRGINIA'S PEN is intended to assist in the collaboration and
exchange of information between and among schools, school offices, the
Virginia Department of Education, and other State and educational entities.

VIRGINIA'S PEN Goal

     The goal of VIRGINIA'S PEN is to promote innovation and educational
excellence in Virginia's public schools.  To achieve this, the network
must provide quality, equitable, and cost-effective information and
communication resources to the public education community.

VIRGINIA'S PEN Mission Statements & Priority Listing

1.   To provide electronic mail service and electronic conferencing
     capabilities to public school professional employees;

2.   To provide basic services at no cost to public education end users;

3.   To provide an intuitive user interface which includes an easy to
     use text editor;

4.   To provide accessibility for the user via multi-vendor
     microcomputers;

5.   After first providing basic services, to provide opportunities for
     wider networking (interstate and international) by promoting the
     addition of full Internet services where economically feasible;

6.   To provide for both administrative and instructional file
     transfer capabilities where feasible.

			VIRGINIA'S PEN Use

     All use of VIRGINIA'S PEN shall be consistent with the purpose, goal,
mission, and priorities of the network.  Successful operation of the
network requires that its users regard VIRGINIA'S PEN as a shared
resource, and cooperate to form a community of diverse interests with the
common purpose of advancing a world class public education in Virginia.
It is therefore imperative that members conduct themselves in a
responsible, decent, ethical, and polite manner while using the network.

     The intent of the VIRGINIA'S PEN acceptable use policy is to ensure
that all uses of VIRGINIA'S PEN are consistent with its stated purpose,
mission, and goal.  The policy does not attempt to articulate all required
or proscribed behavior by its members.  VIRGINIA'S PEN is an open network
in both implementation and spirit.  Each individual's judgment of
appropriate conduct must be relied upon.  To assist in such judgment, the
following general guidelines are offered:

I.   Any use of VIRGINIA'S PEN for illegal, inappropriate, or obscene
     purposes, or in support of such activities, is prohibited.  Illegal
     activities shall be defined as a violation of local, state, and/or
     federal laws. Inappropriate use shall be defined as a violation of the
     intended use of the network, and/or purpose and goal.  Obscene
     activities shall be defined as a violation of generally accepted
     social standards for use of a publicly-owned and operated
     communication vehicle;

II.  All use of VIRGINIA'S PEN must be in support of a world class
     public education and educational research in Virginia and
     consistent with the purposes of the network.  Private school
     professionals may secure accounts under the guidelines for Non-
     Public School Accounts.  Private school students are not permitted
     accounts at this time.  Use by private school professionals is
     permitted recognizing the finite resources of the network;

III. Any use of VIRGINIA'S PEN for commercial purposes is prohibited;

IV.  Any use of VIRGINIA'S PEN for product advertisement or
     political lobbying is prohibited;

V.   No use of VIRGINIA'S PEN shall serve to disrupt the use of
     the network by other users;

VI.  VIRGINIA'S PEN accounts shall be used only by the authorized owner
     of the account for the authorized purpose.  Account owners are
     ultimately responsible for all activity under their account;

VII. Unbridled and open-ended use of the network in terms of access time
     can not be accommodated inasmuch as supportive financial resources
     remain finite.  Users are cautioned to exercise prudence in the
     shared use of this resource;

VIII.  All communications and information accessible via VIRGINIA'S PEN
     should be assumed to be private property.  Great care is taken by
     the VIRGINIA'S PEN administrators to ensure the right of privacy
     of users;

IX.  Any VIRGINIA'S PEN user's traffic that traverses another network may
     be subject to that network's acceptable use policy;

X.   * Under prescribed circumstances public school student use may be
     permitted, provided proper supervision is maintained by schools and
     parents;

XI.  * Under prescribed circumstances non-educator use may be permitted,
     provided such individuals provide evidence that their use furthers
     the purpose and goal of the network and public education in general;

XII. From time to time, the Virginia Department of Education will make
     decisions on whether specific uses of VIRGINIA'S PEN are consistent
     with this policy.  The Virginia Department of Education shall
     remain the final authority on use of the network and the issuance of
     user accounts.

     * Such prescribed circumstances and uses shall be defined in
     writing by the Virginia Department of Education, and from
     time to time be subject to change.


*************************************************************

		Guidelines for Non-Public School Accounts
				on
		Virginia's Public Education Network

1.   The primary purpose of the VIRGINIA'S PEN Network is for use by
     the public school professional staff.  The use of an individual
     non-public school account is considered to be a privilege.

2.   Accounts for non-public school persons may be granted for up to
     one academic year at a time, provided they read and agree to
     follow the Acceptable Use Policy.  This agreement is formalized
     through their signature on the application form.

3.   This provision applies only to adults who can demonstrate a close
     tie to public school education.  Furthermore, the applicant must
     demonstrate how his/her use of the network will further the goals
     of world class education for students in the public schools of
     the Commonwealth of Virginia.

4.   Only the director of the network (or designee) may issue accounts
     for special situations which he/she feels appropriate, but which
     may not fall under existing guidelines.

5.   Accounts for all non-public school persons will be issued by the
     local node administrators and will receive final approval by the
     Department of Education which will maintain a list of approved
     applications.  No persons in this category shall be permitted to use
     the network without Department of Education approval.

6.   The above-mentioned use is subject to revision in policy.  In
     all cases, use by professional public education staff shall take
     precedence.  The Virginia Department of Education reserves its
     right as final authority on use of the network.


**********************************************************

		Non-Public School Application
			   for
		VIRGINIA'S PEN Account


Applicant's Name

__________________________________________________________
   (Title) (Last)        (First)        (Middle)

Place of Employment      _________________________________

Job Title                _________________________________

Business Addresss        _________________________________

                         _________________________________

Home Address     ____________________________________

                 ____________________________________

Telephone  (     )      -          (     )      -
                  HOME                  BUSINESS

Purpose(s) for which you wish to use Virginia's PEN (Be sure you state
how your use will further the goals of public education in Virginia):






I have read the Acceptable Use Policy and Non-Public School Account
Guidelines, and agree to abide by those provisions.  I understand that
violation of the use provisions stated in the policy may constitute
suspension or revocation of network privileges.


 ______________________________________________________
          Applicant's Signature              Date

*This application must be renewed each academic year.


Approval by Va. Dept of Education representative

 ______________________________________________________
     Name           Title                  Date



**********************************************************
		 Guidelines for Student Accounts
		on Virginia's Public Education Network

1.   The primary purpose of the VIRGINIA'S PEN Network is for the use
     of the public school professional staff.  The use of an individual
     student account is considered to be a privilege and is permitted to
     the extent that available resources allow.

2.   Students in grades 6-12 may be granted an account for up to one
     academic year at a time provided they:
     a. Read and agree to follow the Acceptable Use Policy.  This
        agreement is formalized through their signature on the
        application form;
     b. Have at least one teacher sign the application form as a sponsor;
     c. Obtain the signature of a parent on the application form.

3.   Students in grade five and below are not allowed individual
     accounts.  Teachers of these grades, however, may apply for a
     class account, but are obligated to directly supervise these
     students with its use according to the Acceptable Use Policy.
     The teacher holding this account is ultimately responsible
     for use of the account and is required to maintain
     confidentiality with the password (not giving it to
     students) and is advised to change the password frequently.

4.   Students may not maintain accounts upon graduation unless they
     otherwise qualify under one of the other acceptable use provisions.

5.   Generally, students are not permitted to enter professional
     Virginia's PEN or Usenet discussion groups.   Under certain
     conditions, posting privileges to specific newsgroups may be granted.

6.   All public school student accounts will be issued by the local
     node administrators and will receive final approval by the
     Department of Education which will maintain a list of approved
     applications.  No students shall be permitted to use the network
     without Department of Education approval.

7.   The above-mentioned use is subject to revision in policy.
     In all cases, use by professional public education staff shall
     take precedence.  The Virginia Department of Education reserves
     its right as final authority on use of the network.


*********************************************************

		Public School Student Application for
			VIRGINIA'S PEN Account

STUDENT SECTION

Student Name ________________________________     Grade ____
               (Last)    (First)   (Middle)

School ______________________ School System ______________

School Address _________________ School Phone No. __________

Purpose(s) for which you wish to use Virginia's PEN:


I have read the Acceptable Use Policy and Student Guidelines, and
agree to abide by their provisions.  I understand that violation of
the use provisions stated in the policy may constitute suspension or
revocation of network privileges.

Student's Signature _____________________    Date ________
-----------------------------------------------------------
SPONSORING TEACHER(S) (Required)
I agree to sponsor the above student and to supervise his/her
responsible use of the network as defined by the Acceptable Use
Policy and Student Guidelines while in my classes.

______________________________________________________
          Teacher's(s) Signature(s)     Date(s)
-----------------------------------------------------------
SPONSORING PARENT or GUARDIAN (Required)
I have read the Acceptable Use Policy and Student Guidelines for
VIRGINIA'S PEN.  I understand that although administrators of the
VIRGINIA'S PEN network have taken reasonable precautions to ensure
that controversial material is eliminated on Virginia's Public
Education Network, I will monitor my child's daily use of the
VIRGINIA'S PEN and his/her potential access to the world-wide Internet,
and will accept full responsibility for supervision in that regard if
and when my child's use is not in a school setting.  I hereby give my
permission to issue an account for my child and certify that
the information contained on this form is correct.

______________________________________________________
          Parent's Signature            Date

______________________________________________________
     Home Address (street,city,zip)     Home Phone No.

*Student application must be renewed each academic year.

Approval by Va. Dept of Education representative

______________________________________________________
     Name           Title                  Date



--
-- 
Carl Kadie -- I do not represent EFF; this is just me.
 =kadie@eff.org, kadie@cs.uiuc.edu =


------------------------------

From caf-talk Caf Jul  8 15:41:18 1992
From: cyndim@U.WASHINGTON.EDU (Cyndi Merritt)
Subject: Article 12--email policy (fwd)
Date: Wed, 8 Jul 1992 04:22:37 GMT

I am forwarding the following message sent out on the Records Management
list to those of you on the Archives list.

CM

---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Tue, 7 Jul 1992 16:29:48 -0700 (PDT)
>From: Cyndi Merritt <cyndim@u.washington.edu>
>To: recman <recmgmt@suvm.bitnet>
>Subject: email policy

The State of Washington has an E-mail policy that divides email records
into 3 categories:  calendars, policy and non-policy correspondence.

Calendars are described as providing a record of appointments, "to-do"
lists, and meeting schedules.  Retention is divided into 3 categories for
calendars:
	elected officials, agency directors and cabinet members are
required to print out the calendars, lists and schedules monthly, retain
in office for 1 year and then tranfer to the archives along with executive
records.
	for other Agency offices, the retention period is 90 days and then they
can be deleted.
	for the IS department, the retention is 90 days and then backup tapes
can be erased.

The second category of electronic mail is Routine and Non-Policy, defined as
"notes, messages, transmittal letters, correspondence, reports, and requests
(routine and non-policy)".  These can be destroyed daily (or until
administrative purpose is served); and the retention period for IS backup
tapes is 30 days.

The third category of electronic mail is Policy, defined as "correspondence
and reports establishing agency policy".  The sender is required to
generate a paper copy and file it with executive records to be
retained for 1 year and then transferred to the Archives.  The receiver(s)
are allowed to delete on a monthly basis (or until administrative purpose
is served).  The retention period for the IS backup tape is 30 days.

Documents transmitted on email but residing primarily in another program
and/or database are to be erased from email as soon as administrative
purpose is served.  Original computer file is to be retained per the
retention schedule applicable for that file.



Cyndi Merritt
Records Management Office
University of Washington
cyndim@u.washington.edu
-- 
Carl Kadie -- I do not represent EFF; this is just me.
 =kadie@eff.org, kadie@cs.uiuc.edu =




------------------------------

End of Computers and Academic Freedom News (Digest)
************************************
-- 
Carl Kadie -- I do not represent EFF; this is just me.
 =kadie@eff.org, kadie@cs.uiuc.edu =
Newsgroups: alt.grad-student.tenured,soc.college,soc.college.grad,soc.college.gradinfo,uchi.general