Information Technology Reference
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exclude pornography from their print collections because they deem it inappropriate for
inclusion” [60].
In this section we evaluate CIPA from the perspectives of Kantianism, act utilitarianism,
and social contract theory.
KANTIAN EVALUATION
We have already covered Kant's philosophical position against censorship. He optimisti-
cally believed that allowing people to use their own reason would lead to society's grad-
ual enlightenment. In this case, however, the focus is narrower. Rather than talking about
censorship in general, let's look at CIPA in particular.
The goal of CIPA is to protect children from the harm caused by exposure to
pornography. The way the goal is being implemented is through Web filters. Studies have
demonstrated that Web filters do not block all pornographic material but do block some
nonpornographic Web pages. Some nonpornographic information posted on the Web
is not easily accessible at libraries implementing government-mandated Web filters. The
people posting this information did not consent to their ideas being blocked. Hence the
decision to require the use of Web filters treats the creators of non-offensive but blocked
Web pages solely as means to the end of restricting children's access to pornographic
materials. This analysis leads us to conclude that CIPA is wrong.
ACT UTILITARIAN EVALUATION
Our second evaluation of CIPA is from an act utilitarian point of view. What are the
consequences of passing CIPA?
1. While not all children access the Web in public libraries, and while Web filtering
software is imperfect, it is probable that enacting CIPA results in fewer children
being exposed to pornography, which is good.
2. Because Web filters are imperfect, people are unable to access some legitimate Web
sites. As a result, Web browsers in libraries are less useful as research tools, a harmful
consequence.
3. Adult patrons who ask for filters to be removed may be stigmatized (rightfully or
not) as people who want to view pornography, a harm to them.
4. Some blocked sites may be associated with minority political views, reducing free-
dom of thought and expression, which is harmful.
Whenever we perform the utilitarian calculus and find some benefits and some harms,
we must decide how to weigh them. This is a good time to think about utilitarian
philosopher Jeremy Bentham's seven attributes. In particular, how many people are in
each affected group? What is the probability the good or bad event will actually happen?
How soon is the event likely to occur? How intense will the experience be? To what extent
is the pain not diluted by pleasure or vice versa? How long will it last? How likely is the
experience to lead to a similar experience? Actually performing the calculus for CIPA is
