Stephen Conroy was in the news again, and as usual, the topic was internet censorship.
It seems that three of our biggest ISPs — Telstra, Optus and Primus — have decided to voluntarily filter material related to child sexual abuse. In a bit of black eye to Conroy, they’re using a list of sites provided by Interpol rather than by the Australian Communications and Media Authority, specifically citing legal issues regarding the authority of the ACMA.
Everyone involved was quick to say that this is not censorship, despite it meeting every part of the definition of the term, and Conroy tried hard to spin this as a victory for his policy, calling it an interim measure while certain issues regarding the jurisdiction of the ACMA were worked out, i.e. the fact that it doesn’t have the legal authority to do what Conroy wants it to, and that the government doesn’t want to try changing the laws when they can’t do it without the cross-benchers’ support.
The lies can be this blatant, because after all, who’s going to stand up and argue against measures aimed at preventing child abuse? — via redwolf.newsvine.com
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