http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/nov/01/governments-must-not-censor-internet
My Mass Communications professor gave me an essay:
"Write an essay developing the concepts behind media regulation. Provide a specific example."
At a loss, I Googled 'media regulation'. The first five pages of results? China. China and TV, China and the Internet... it seems that China's not handling the advent of social media well. One concept that I found highly improbable that was proposed? International Regulation of the Internet. Say what? I looked it up, and found this- according to the UK newspaper 'The Guardian', China's not the only one wanting to regulate the internet. Russia's on the bandwagon, too. In this article, British Parliament's Foreign Secretary William Hague is arguing against this- which I agree with. He states that the internet shouldn't be regulated for a multitude of reasons- namely, our privacy and our freedom of speech. He mentions the idea of cooperation, citing that 'cultural differences are not an excuse to water down human rights'. Fundamental issue? I certainly think so.
In a conference fabricated and created by Hague, The London Conference on Cyberspace, hundreds of internet users and influential member of the cyberspace society got together and discussed the future of the global economy, culture accommodation, and what potential regulations might be necessary. For almost three weeks, the problems posed by the advent of social media were speculated about by people from almost 25 different countries, giving countless cultures and opinions a voice in the matter. The common consensus? Internet needs to be monitored- for such a rapidly growing industry, countless problems and dangers could and will arise- but regulation? Sorry, China. That's a bit much.
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