Papers & Presentations
Internet Regulation: Is It Possible, Is It Practical, Or Just A Political Wild Goose Chase?
Bruce Shearer, Research and Policy Adviser, Communication Law Centre, Melbourne
Internet Regulation: Is It Possible, Is It Practical, Or Just A Political Wild Goose Chase? Governments (including our own) are busy the world over trying to regulate on-line content on the Internet. The Australian Government has introduced the Broadcasting Services Amendment (On-Line Services) Bill in 1999 which is designed to respond to community concerns about illegal and offensive material on-line. The Bill is intended to be consistent with the regulation of conventional media such as print, radio and television.
This is where the problem is, because the Internet is different from conventional media. The Communication Law Centre like so many other groups and organisations, think that the Government have got this regulation all wrong.
As Governments and the law struggle to organise the Internet there are suggestions that the cyberspace should be treated as a separate legal jurisdiction. Logging on would be like crossing a state or national boundary and specific laws would apply while you were there.
There are also arguments that a new legal system will develop on the Net through self-regulation and codes of practice.
Others argue that a United Nations like global federation needs to be set up. Although many might see this as far fetched from where we stand now, the European Union is already applying consistent laws across its member nations, in a way that few would have thought credible but a few decades ago.
Biography
Bruce is a Research and Policy Adviser at the Communication Law Centre's Melbourne office. He has taught the Centre's media law courses for five years, lectured journalism students and community and public broadcasters. His specialist areas are children's media, media ownership, digital broadcasting, Internet regulation, copyright and information poverty. While studying he wrote plays performed at the University of Melbourne, and worked as an extra in the production of many films (Kangaroo), mini-series (Sword of Honour), (Whose Baby) and television programs (Prisoner, Flying Doctors, Neighbours). In his writing career, Bruce has written and produced a number of plays.