From: jim bell <jimbell@pacifier.com>
Date: Sat, 27 Jan 1996 14:30:53 +0800
To: Alan Olsen <cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: [rant] A thought on filters and the V-Chip
Message-ID: <m0tfzk0-0008xyC@pacifier.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


At 11:56 AM 1/26/96 -0800, Alan Olsen wrote:
>[Not Perry(tm) approved -- Skip of this offends you]
>
>I am waiting for someone to come out with a product that will modify the
>v-ship (or the various internet "protection" tools) in such a way that it
>scans *FOR* pornography.
>
>Porn is big business.  You would think that people would pay for a way to
>sort through all of that non-smuttiness and just "get to the good stuff".  I
>also imagine that as soon as such a product appears, the censors will scream
>bloody murder.

Sigh!  Wonderful idea, but sadly it probably will never be allowed to work,
for exactly the obvious reasons. (I know that sounds like an odd argumnt to
get from ME, considering MY idea...) 

On the other hand, this would be an EXCELLENT "argument" to bring in front
of a Congressional committee considering the adoption of any V-chip type
proposal.  Once they discover that a ratings system could be used for the
diametrically opposite reasons of their reason for having it in the first
place, they'll try to modify their proposal to prevent this.  

If we're lucky, this'll have the effect of killing the whole concept of
government-sponsored (required?) V-chip-type technology.

OTOH, I agree with other posters who think that truly voluntary content
selection would be an excellent addition to television:  In effect, an
automatic, programmable TV-Guide search engine.