Assignment task:
1. As the assigned reading (p. 190) explains, U.S. law (Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act) states that companies that provide interactive computer services, such as Facebook, should not be treated as the publishers of the information their users post. This protects these companies from defamation lawsuits based on content their users post. Discuss a circumstance in which you think these companies--Facebook, Twitter, YouTube (Google), etc.-- are ethically entitled (if not obligated) to remove content posted by their users. Or, if you think they should not do so under any circumstances, explain why not.
2. The reading (p. 199) discusses how a Spanish judge included use of an anonymous e-mail remailer among the reasons for jailing seven people in 2014. The judge viewed their use of secure email as evidence of possible terrorist activity. Do you think this is a dangerous legal precedent? Explain why or why not.
3. Discuss an instance when you or another person(s) were censored online. Was the censorship ethically justified? Explain why or why not.