Public Libraries Dismayed at Supreme Court Decision on Internet Filters

by Judy Silberstein

(June 26, 2003) “I am disappointed, dismayed and disheartened by the Supreme Court ruling that upholds the federal CIPA [Children’s Internet Protection Act] and requires public libraries to filter internet terminals or eschew federal funding," said Diane Courtney, Director of the Larchmont Public Library and President of the New York Library Association. “Upholding CIPA places an undue burden on all libraries, especially smaller ones, and is, yet again, an example of imposing unfunded mandates on local jurisdictions - this time, the public library.”

The Court’s decision on June 23, 2003 is a blow to the American Library Association that viewed the software filtering requirement as unconstitutional. (See: UNITED STATES et al. v. AMERICAN LIBRARY ). Arguments on both sides ranged from the pragmatic (the software does/doesn't work) to the philosophical (the software unconstitutionally/appropriately limits access to information/objectionable material). The judges were persuaded that children could be protected without unconstitutionally limiting adult access.

The Larchmont and Mamaroneck librarians and their many colleagues will be studying the ruling to determine what impact, if any, there will be on local practices. They receive almost no federal monies, but they do benefit - either directly or through their association with the Westchester Library system – from federal “e-rate” funds meant to assist with connecting libraries to the Internet.

"CIPA is a complex law and the Larchmont Public Libary is still studying the ramifications of it," reported Courtney. The library will be waiting for answers from the the Federal Communications Commission which relies on instructions from the Supreme Court, which are expected sometime in July.

"Once we get those answers, the Library's Board of Trustees will make the decision about whether or not to install filters," said Courtney.

Currently, neither Larchmont nor Mamaroneck libraries employ filters. “Things seem to be working out pretty well without them,” said Grott.

Like almost all schools, the Mamaroneck School district does use filters throughout its computer system – in the library and also for e-mail. Outgoing high school librarian Diane Romm finds the district’s “Web Sense” filter to be more intuitive than most. It flags terms that have both pornographic and educational associations, for example “breast cancer,” and allows a student to conduct legitimate research on the term.

Unlike schools, however, most public libraries serve both adults and children. Turning the filters on and off depending on the age of the patron would require assistance by a staff person.

“My staff is already stretched so thin,” said Mamaroneck Library Director Joan Grott. “It will take more work for an already overworked staff to turn the filters off and on.”

"Clearly, Justice Kennedy has never been in a busy, and likely understaffed, urban library trying to get a librarian to assist him" said Diane Courtney. "Since most libraries must, of necessity, limit a patron's time on the terminals, any wait for library staff to turn off the filter will negatively impact a person's search time. In these cases, any delay becomes significant.

The librarians are also concerned about the number of legitimate sites that children will no longer be able to access because a filter has incorrectly assumed them to be pornographic.

"The Supreme Court has based its judgment on a mistaken belief that filtering software can and does work. In effect it has put its faith in a technology that is flawed and ineffective," averred Courtney. Adult guidance is what protects children, she declared.

“Libraries would probably welcome filters that work effectively to block adult sites. The problem is, they do not,” she said. For example, many filters block sites with titles that include “X” or “sex.” Along with porn, they block sites on Super Bowl XXX, or Middlesex. In the meantime, pornographers are increasingly savvy about ways to evade filters, librarians have found.

"The best technology to prevent the display of illegal or innappropriate materials is a well-informed human mind," Courtney concluded.