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Contributor: Melissa Sex Work Awareness Melissa Sex Work Awareness
Hi everyone,

Sex Work Awareness (SWA) is a new organization looking at the use of content filters on college and public library computers with Internet access, especially what sexual content is blocked. For example, we found in one big city that all searches with the word 'anal' were blocked - not only information about buttsex, but also health.

Please help us out! We're looking for people all over the country who are willing to visit their local public library and do some simple searches using the computers provided by the library. It would be really helpful if you would go to your library and fill out the survey!

Our website also provides more detail about the project and the research team.

Thank you.

Melissa from Sex Work Awareness
03/24/2010
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Contributor: Gary Gary
Quote:
Originally posted by Melissa Sex Work Awareness
Hi everyone, Sex Work Awareness (SWA) is a new organization looking at the use of content filters on college and public library computers with Internet access, especially what sexual content is blocked. For example, we found in one big city that all ... more
I am not saying that I agree with censorship, because I don't... but I can understand this logic to some extent. In college, everyone is over 18, so there should be no filters on anything. However, in public libraries a lot of children under 18 do use the computers.

Realistically, if you search for anything online you WILL find porn. If you search for childrens cartoon characters you will find porn with those characters; even Spongebob & Disney characters. I agree that for health and safety issues there should be full access, but I can also agree with doing whatever it takes to limit the availability of porn to children.

Unfortunately there isn't much of a 3rd option that covers the concerns for both sides. But, the fact that you are looking into this and trying to figure out a way to make it work is GREAT. Good Luck!
03/24/2010
Contributor: Victoria Victoria
Welcome to the community, Melissa! Glad to see you here! I think health and safety info should be available to the public. I hope you get a lot of participants in the study and you will share your findings with us
03/24/2010
Contributor: Melissa Sex Work Awareness Melissa Sex Work Awareness
Thanks, Victoria and Gary!

Gary, your points are exactly why we want to point out the variations that exist. Restricting content can't be perfected. Maybe in the future, but not today. Restrictions are ineffective at stopping what parents want to stop. Librarians have told us some funny stories about people watching porn on library computers. And people who are looking for information lose out.

What we're seeing already with only a little bit of information is that colleges are unpredictable. They could do anything and some of it may depend on what people have brought attention to. But public libraries in small towns may have *less* filtering than in cities. I didn't expect that. The librarian in one small town told me that they know most people in the community and the building itself is smaller and people behave differently because everyone knows what they are doing.
03/25/2010