People use the Internet every day to do important tasks. Even for those who do not do important tasks for work or business but instead perform personal tasks or play games the Internet serves as an escape from reality and functions as an all-encompassing media source. People depend upon the Internet for information. However, recently the Internet has come under fire because it is seen as not protecting people from viewing unwanted content and providing content that is illegal such as pirated music.
The government plans to take this issue and resolve it by any means possible. The government has always had its hands in censorship matters and recently has taken a more proactive approach by introducing a new bill that may threaten the freedom that the Internet presents to everybody. When the Internet was created it was mainly used as a means of transferring messages between those that worked at the Pentagon. Since then, it has blossomed and accomplished some amazing things between people.
Of course, the Internet has a dark side. Many people know about media pirating but there are only a small amount of people who actually take part in it. Pirating media means ripping or extracting the media from CDs, DVDs, etc. and putting it on the Internet for other people to download for free. While this is understandably a very illegal and unethical process, it is not exclusive to the Internet. People have been exchanging media ever since the invention of portable devices such as tapes.
However some in higher positions of authority have been trying to take care of this issue and issue legislation to eradicate it. But, this leads to eradicating many of the good parts of the Internet as well. It also brings into question of who has the ability to control the Internet as many are viewing the current bill that is being introduced as a means for the government to gain more power and control. The Internet was designed as a means of communication and interaction between people and some have vehemently opposed the new bill.
This act, named the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) aims to give the government power over certain aspects of the Internet. One of the most immediate and striking features of this bill is the power for the government to shut down specific websites that violate copyright laws. This sounds like a good idea until the fine print is read. The extent of this power goes to websites that even vaguely mentions media that is copyrighted.
This could lead to the closing of many legitimate websites or message boards that have members who mention media that does not specifically belong to the website owners. The bill’s aim is to shut down media sharing websites such as Rapidshare and Megaupload, but even these websites have the potential to be used legitimately.
The problem that many people see with this bill is the fact that it gives the government power over something that they should not have control over. The Internet has grown to become something bigger than itself. Many people use it daily to take care of important business matters and have fun. The original creator of the Internet, Vint Cerf has even vented his displeasure with the new bill. The Internet is a fantastic tool that has helped spread knowledge across the world and has proven to be an incredible media source for those who are seeking out knowledge.
However, many people have taken it a step further and have started to distribute copyrighted material that they do not legally own. This has caused a lot of problems for those that use the Internet and for those who hold higher positions as they are often forced to make legislation based on how out of control the problem is. This has led to the Stop Online Piracy Act, which aims to shut down any website that hosts illegal content.
Many people have stated their displeasure with this act for many reasons, chief among them the fact that the government will have control over the content as they see fit. Regardless, one can hope that those in the government will make the right decision and will have the general public’s interests in mind as the bill ventures forth.
Web designer Mark Williams also writes for mintleaf studio in Melbourne, Australia. As a freelance writer, he is able to bring a fresh perspective on many topics like this one.
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