New President Must Prioritize Web Freedom
The Center for Democracy and Technology's Sophia Cope posted an item on the high-tech think tank's PolicyBeta blog on Election Day eve urging the next president -- be it John McCain or Barack Obama -- to devote considerable attention to global Internet freedom, the concept that governments around the world will not interfere with the free flow of information and ideas on global communications networks, particularly the World Wide Web.
Political leaders in many countries are "successfully remaking the Internet into a tool of government control" and the United States has not led by example, Cope argues, noting that "we can’t just be a leader in words; we must also be a leader in deeds." The Bush administration has spoken out of both sides of its mouth: decrying the human rights record of the Chinese government before the Olympics while defending National Security Agency warrantless wiretapping, she said.
"A vow from the highest reaches of the U.S. government to uphold the digital human rights of freedom of expression and privacy on the Internet and other communications technologies will echo throughout the world," Cope wrote. "Repressive regimes will be put on notice that the U.S. government holds itself to a high standard and expects other governments to follow suit." Read the full blog post here.
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