Source: http://carlosfalchionline.com/u-s-community-decency-act.html
Timestamp: 2018-04-25 00:31:17
Document Index: 264065886

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 223', '§ 223', '§ 223', '§ 223', '§ 223', '§ 1462']

47 U.S
By invoking the overboard and vague
term “indecent” as the standard by which electronic communication should be
Editor's Note: Since the time that this article waswritten and edited, the United States Supreme Court has decidedthe validity of portions of the Communications Decency Act in (Slip Opinion: 521 U.S.). Readers may wantto review the Court's ruling after reading this article in orderto have a better understanding of the impact that the Court'sruling has on the issues discussed by Ms. Herndon. The decisionis available on-line at:
Not only does this ban unconstitutionally restrict the First Amendment rights of minors and those who communicate with them about important issues, but, because of the nature of the online medium, it essentially bans "indecent" or "patently offensive" speech entirely, thus impermissibly reducing the adult population to "only what is fit for children".
129. Communications Decency Act, sec. 502, § 223(a)(1), 110 Stat. at 133 (amending 47 U.S.C. § 223(a)(1)); S. 652, sec. 402 (amending 47 U.S.C. § 223 (a)).
128. Communications Decency Act, sec. 502, § 223(d)-(e), 110 Stat. at 133-34 (to amend 47 U.S.C. § 223(d)-(e)); H.R. Conf. Rep. No. 104-458, at 191.
The opposition movement made a last ditch effort to stop the CDA. Congress was determined, however, to protect the minds of the youth of America. Represenative White proposed a compromise amendment, using a "harmful to minors" standard in place of indecency. This compromise was passed and undone in the blink of an eye. At about that time, Senator Leahy stated his fear that the conferees would take the easy way out and incorporate both the Cox/Wyden Amendment and the CDA into the final version of the Telecommunications Act. That is exactly what happened. With minor adjustments, the Cox/Wyden Amendment was exposed for the nonevent so many had said that it was and Senator Exon stood proud knowing that his fight was near victory.
According to the ACLU, the CDA extends the reach of the19th-century Comstock Act, which long suppressed informationabout birth control and abortion, so that it will apply to thelatest state-of-the-art communications technologies. (2)
12. 18 U.S.C. § 1462 (Supp. 1995)(amended by the Telecommunications Act of 1996) (The1996 amendments are in ).