this country. There is, perhaps, no right more controversial than the First Amendment in

the Constitution, first introduced on December 15, 1791. The First Amendment states,

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the

free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of

the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of

grievances"(1st Amendment, Internet). Due to the indecisiveness of this Amendment,

arguments over the interpretation of the words written by the founding fathers have

flourished for years. One of the main arguments that has arisen over the years is over the

interpretation of what is meant by free speech and free press. While this argument has

stemmed off in many directions, one of the most recent and heated debates is over the

governments ability to censor material to the public. Some of the major forms of

censorship occur in television, music, literature, and most recently, the Internet.

Censorship has taken place in various forms since the earliest rulers existed. These

Mayor, Federico. Unfettered Freedom. Unesco-Courier, may 1995, p.38. InfoTrac

With this kind of participation from the American public in any kind of medium of

censorship today has taken a different form in the United States, the same basic principles

the beginning and the continued push behind the need for some sort of censorship of

with the nations youth. The Internet, a tool by which great amounts of information can be

libraries as well as public libraries(Zeinert, 109). Some of the books being demanded to

was originally censored much the way free speech was. In the 1700's, New York's

Some common words found in the essay are:
Internet Censorship, Meyer Internet, Roper Center, Netscape Navigator, Instead Internet, Internet Due, United America, Resource Center, King EnglandChafee, Live Crew, parents control, sexually explicit, 1999 internet accessed, forms censorship, explicit material, children view, children watch, free speech, 1999 internet, internet accessed, sexually explicit material, monitor children, material children view, internet accessed 04/23/99, music resource center,
Approximate Word count = 2166
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)