Children and the Internet in a Public Library Setting

By Tuesday Corzine

Children and the Internet

Public libraries should install internet filter software on public computers to monitor minors internet use, then children would have the ability to learn at their full potential without the worry of viewing or using inappropriate material.

Children and the Internet

The percentage of the 8,921 public libraries across the country offering Internet access has more than doubled from 28 percent in 1996 to more than 60 percent today. Outside home, work and school, the Public library is the most common place to access the internet.

Slice 3 4 1996

2011

Children and the Internet

Local communities are deeply concerned about how easily young people are accessing the Internet service to explore pornography and material harmful to minors on public computers. Therefore, public libraries should be required to censor internet material by age levels.

Children and the Internet

The library is a public institution and should monitor what minors are viewing. Public libraries must take responsibility for the material children acquire there. Furthermore, they should be mandated to develop Internet safety policies for minors.

Children and the Internet

In U.S. vs. American Library Association (2003), the Supreme Court upheld the Child Internet Protection Act (CIPA), which mandated that libraries receiving federal funding for public Internet access install content-filtering programs on computers which provide that access. These programs analyze incoming content, and block the receipt of objectionable material, in particular pornography.

Works Cited
Hull, Gordon. "Overblocking Autonomy: The Case of Mandatory Library Filtering Software." Continental Philosophy Review 42.1 (2009): 81,81-100. ProQuest Religion. Web. 21 Oct. 2011. Child Internet Protection Act Library filtering Internet Sexuality Hetero-normativity Privacy Public sphere

Works Cited
Meltzer, Erica. Panel Takes Middle Ground on Porn Filters for Pima Library Computers (with Poll). United States, Washington: McClatchy Tribune Information Services, 2007. ProQuest. The federal Children's Internet Protection Act says libraries -- including Pima County's -- that accept discount Internet-access rates must filter Web access to block obscenity and child pornography. Mandatory filters for all Internet use on library computers.

Works Cited
Pornography Greater Threat to Children and Teens than National Study Indicates. United States, New York: PR Newswire Association LLC, 2007. ProQuest University of New Hampshire researchers reported in the official journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics that 42 percent of Internet users ages 10-17 surveyed said they had seen online pornography in the previous year. Of those, 66 percent said the exposure was unwanted. Includes important statistics.

Works Cited
Preston, Cheryl B. "Making Family-Friendly Internet a Reality: The Internet Community Ports Act." Brigham Young University Law Review 2007.6 (2007): 1471,1471-1533. ABI/INFORM Global. The February 2007 issue of PEDIATRICS, the magazine of the American Association of Pediatrics, reported that 42% of ten- to seventeen-year-olds in the US have been exposed to Internet pornography . Includes important statistics on trends and computer availability to students.

Works Cited
Smith, Ben. "GWINNETT LIFE: IMAGE AVAILABLE: Libraries' Efforts to Block Pornography Access from Computers Aren't Sure-Fire, Officials Admit." The Atlanta Journal Constitution: J.1. ProQuest Newsstand. Nov 19 2007. The Children's Internet Protection Act requires federally funded libraries to install filtering software to block Web sites that contain offensive pictures and information. Library officials acknowledge the software can't totally block access to X-rated Web sites.

Works Cited
"Zoning the Internet: A New Approach to Protecting Children Online." Brigham Young University Law Review 2007.6 (2007): 1417,1417-1469. ABI/INFORM Global. The fight to save children and teens from Internet pornography has been one such endeavor. Younger and younger children learn to use the computer. Minors need the protection of society against Internet pornography.