From: HERZOG, Susan (Library) (HerzogS_at_easternct.edu)
Date: Fri Aug 01 2003 - 07:41:11 EDT
Subject: [CONNTECH] FW: [MEMBER-FORUM:259] Re: CIPA Decision/Response From: "HERZOG, Susan (Library)" <HerzogS_at_easternct.edu> To: "Marge Storrs - FOCL" <mstorrs_at_aol.com>, "CECA" <CECA-L_at_LISTSERV.ACES.K12.CT.US>, "CONNTECH" <conntech_at_stephano.libct.org>, "CEMA" <CEMA-L_at_LISTSERV.ACES.K12.CT.US>, "Christine Sarrazin" <sarrazin_at_libraryconnection.info>, "SPEAK" <speak_at_stephano.libct.org>, "Goodnight Moon" <goodnightmoon-list_at_jonus.thebiz.net>
FYI
Susan
-----Original Message-----
From: Skip Auld [mailto:auldh_at_co.chesterfield.va.us]
Sent: Tue 7/29/2003 4:59 PM
To:
Cc:
Subject: [MEMBER-FORUM:259] Re: CIPA Decision/Response
In light of ALA's priorities and activities identified in last week's
statement from ALA President Carla D. Hayden and the ALA Executive
Board, especially efforts to help libraries make filtering software work
as well as possible for their needs, I suggest review of the resources
noted below. I also recommend that Dr. Resnick and Ms. Mielke be
invited for their expertise to the August 23 meeting of key member
leaders and staff.
(1) "Fighting Filth or Filtering the First Amendment?" at
http://whyfiles.org/181internet_filter/index.html
"Linda Mielke, a former President of the Public Library Association, a
division of the American Library Association, says it's time to accept
filters and move on. Mielke, who directs the Carroll County (Maryland)
Public Library, explains her reasoning: 'Say I didn't filter, what am I
going to argue? I could say the Supreme Court is wrong; I don't think
so. I could say it violates the first amendment; it didn't. I could say
I don't need the money, but I'm not willing as a custodian of the public
library to make any of those arguments -- I'm thinking of the long-term
health of the public library system I run.'
Key to convincing the court, she says, was the argument that adults who
dislike filters can ask a librarian to shut them off. And while many
librarians argue that this is difficult or impossible on short notice,
because a computer technician might be needed, Mielke insists that with
the N2H2 filter at her library, it 'takes 5 seconds. If you go to a
blocked site, and that's pretty hard to do, you ask the librarian to
unblock it for you.' "
(2) Paul Resnick was the project director for last year's Kaiser Family
Foundation study of filters ("See No Evil: How Internet Filters Affect
the Search for Online Health Information"). He is also an ALA member
and teaches at the ALA-accredited School of Information at the
University of Michigan. He believes ALA can play a significant role
helping libraries make good choices about filters "[e.g., informing
members about differences among products and configurations, (maybe
sponsoring competitions among products), working with vendors to
increase transparency without giving away trade secrets, etc.]."
Statement on evaluating Internet filters by Paul Resnick
http://www.si.umich.edu/~presnick/
"Filtering software cannot perfectly discriminate between allowed and
forbidden content, resulting in two types of errors. First,
under-blocking occurs when content is not blocked that should be
restricted. Second, over-blocking occurs when content is blocked that
should not have been restricted. Steps can be taken to reduce the
frequency of errors, and to reduce their costs (e.g., providing easy
appeals processes and quick overrides and corrections) but some errors
are inevitable. Most empirical studies of error rates have suffered from
methodological flaws in sample selection, classification procedures, or
implementation of blocking tests. In 2002, we conducted a study for the
Kaiser Family Foundation to examine the extent of over-blocking of
health information and under-blocking of pornography."
(3) "See No Evil" supplemental materials
http://www.si.umich.edu/~presnick/healthfiltering/index.html#methods
********************************************************************************
Hampton "Skip" Auld, Assistant Director
Chesterfield County Public Library
9501 Lori Road, Chesterfield, VA 23832-0297
(804) 748-1767
http://library.co.chesterfield.va.us/
********************************************************************************
Any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the
author and do not necessarily represent those of the library or county
government.
********************************************************************************
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