PLSC 481: Freedom of Speech Seminar: CyberSpeech

Welcome to the PLSC 481 Course Wiki! PLSC Comp Comps

Consult the BU Open Mediawiki Policy Guide for information on using the wiki software. You can also try things out in the Sandbox.

To create an account, simply click on the "login/create account" link in the upper right corner of your screen and follow the instructions from there.

= Announcements = All announcements will be posted here and on Blackboard. Please be advised that Blackboard is the main source for class related information; it should be your first stop for announcements.

= About the Class = PLSC 481 is a class offered in the spring semester of 2007 for undergraduate students at Binghamton University--SUNY. The instructor is Geoff McGovern. Class meets from 4:40-7:40 on Mondays, beginning January 22, 2007.

Course Description
This is a class about rhetorical space and the different forms of speech that inhabit such space. In particular, this class is concerned with new media in both a practical and theoretical sense. With the emergence of integrated media spurred on by the rapid expansion in popular use of the Internet, communication has undergone a metamorphosis; not since the Gutenberg press has the method, quantity, and quality of communication been so dramatically altered. Recognizing this development (continuously unfolding with fantastic speed), our class will be motivated by the following questions:


 * What are these new technologies?
 * How are they used, and who uses them?
 * Do new forms of communication re-define previous conceptions of speech? Do they re-define previous conceptions of free speech?
 * How does the current legal regime interact with these new technologies in pursuit of public/private good? Can such restrictions/lack of regulation be reconciled with the freedom of speech?

A step back from such lofty questions is not only desirable, but also somewhat necessary for a deep understanding of new media. And let's face it: for many of us, these new technologies are foreign, putting the use of new media out of reach of all but the techno-savvy. But this need not be the case. Much of our time will be spent understanding new technologies, their uses and their limitations. Students will not only look at how integrated media has been used by others, but also actively make the technology their own. Wiki, podcast, blog, virtual community, and internet video can only be understood in context and through usage. Time permitting, we will adress them each in turn through a series of class projects.

The course is roughly divided into two conceptual parts: The old regime and the new regime. Our first several classes will take a look at classical free speech theory—specifically within the context of democratic governance. What good is free speech anyway? Who needs it? Who uses it? Who has the advantage in speaking? We will look at speech in theory, practice, and as depicted in the popular media.

The new regime expands the scope, demonstrating how "cyberspeech" broadens the inquiry beyond matters of mere governance into new realms of economics and innovation. The democratization and decentralization of communication technology present many challenges, both to the citizens who wish to use the technology, and to the corporations who sense their control over mass communication threatened. We'll deeply explore this tension.

The course is also divided into two pedagogical parts: an investigation of the academic literature addressing, inter alia, legal responses to communication technology, commercial, social, and political applications of new technology, and areas of potential development/concern; and the development of basic skill in using some new technologies.

One quick note: This is not a law class. Although we will bring in some themes from the legal literature, as well as a number of cases and articles from law journals, this is not fundamentally about case analysis, legal development, or jurisprudence. What this class attempts to do is bring together a number of different perspectives: Law, Economics, Politics, Culture, Philosophy, Technology. Each can inform study of free speech and the effects of the rise of cyberspeech--each illuminates the underlying legal theme.

= Class Participants = Geoff McGovern --Instructor

The Changing Face of Communication (and Society)

 * "The Case for Contamination" by Kwame Anthony Appiah.
 * "Six Degrees of Interconnection" by Duncan Watts.

The Old Regime

 * "On Liberty" by J.S. Mill.
 * "The Checking Value in First Amendment Theory" by Vincent Blasi (1977 A.B.F.Res.J. 521).
 * New York Times v. Sullivan, 376 U.S. 254 (1964).
 * "Political Freedom" by Alexander Meikeljohn.
 * Why Societies Need Dissent by Cass Sunstein.

The New Regime

 * "A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace" by John Barlow.
 * "The Cathedral and the Bazaar" by Eric Raymond.(Selected readings)
 * "Cheap Speech and What it Will Do" by Eugene Volokh.
 * Wealth of Networks by Yochai Benkler.
 * Republic.com by Cass Sunstein.

Rights in Cyberspace

 * Code, version 2.0 by Lawrence Lessig.
 * Cyber Rights by Mike Godwin.
 * Free Expression in the Age of the Internet by Lipschultz.

The Challenge of Regulation

 * "A History of Online Gatekeeping", Johnathan Zittrain. Harvard Journal of Law & Technology  Volume 19, Number 2 Spring 2006.
 * "The Day the Internet Met the First Amendment" by Charles Nesson and David Marglin.
 * Reno v. ACLU.
 * "Beyond Network Neutrality" by Christopher Yoo.
 * Bill Moyers PBS show on Net Neutrality.

Redefining Community

 * "The Rise and Fall of Sysopdom" by Johnathan Zittrain.
 * "Virtual Worlds: A First-Hand Account of Market and Society on the Cyberian Frontier" by Edward Castronova.
 * The Infinite Mind on NPR has a three part series on Second Life, called "Through the Looking Glass."

A View from the Ground

 * "Will Congress Kill the Podcasting Star?" by Matthew Astle.
 * "The War Tapes"
 * Citizen Journalism
 * Participatory Media Resources.

= Links =

http://www.10zenmonkeys.com/2007/03/05/john-edwards-virtual-attackers-unmasked/  Second Life = threat to human interaction or hilarious plaything?

Outside Resources
http://blog.secondlife.com/ Second Life Official Blog

http://www.eff.org/ Electronic Freedom Foundation

http://www.epic.org/ Electronic Privacy Information Center

http://www.aclu.org/freespeech/index.html American Civil Liberties Union Free Speech Project

http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/banned-books.html Banned Books Online

http://www.fepproject.org/index.html Free Expression Policy Project

http://www.freedomforum.org/ The Freedom Forum

http://mediabloggers.org/ Media Bloggers' Association

http://creativecommons.org/ Creative Commons information

http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/media/files/copyrightandeducation.html The Berkman Center's White Paper on Digital Learning

http://anonymouslawyer.blogspot.com/

http://www.anonymouslawfirm.com/index.php

http://www.reputationdefender.com/index.php