Iowa State Daily Editorial Board: Tim Davis, Jamey Hansen, Tim Frerking, Chris Mende and Keesia Wirt.

This last Wednesday marked the beginning of what will be a historic event for free speech and the Internet. The continual development of technology has brought a new way of communication to the masses in the form of the computers, which is now being put to the test.

A panel of federal judges in Philadelphia unanimously ruled to block enforcement of the Communications Decency Act signed into law by Bill Clinton this February, which made it a crime to place “patently offensive” or “indecent” words or photographs on the Internet.

The ruling has been appealed to the Supreme Court, which will most likely uphold the lower court’s ruling to protect the integrity of the First Amendment.

The federal court stated very clearly the essence and status of the Internet: “Just as the strength of the Internet is chaos, so the strength of our liberty depends upon the chaos and cacophony of the unfettered speech that the First Amendment protects,” said the three-judge panel.

The Internet provides a more interactive medium for communication and exchange of ideas than does the television media or even print media. It offers all the chance to give input and voice their opinion.

In television newscasts, there is little if any feedback from viewers. Newsprint offers the chance for feedback through letters to the editor, though not all are printed. The Internet allows much a much more diverse and complete response from those connected. The response is much more real-time as well, providing true interactivity.

Any restriction of communication on the Internet would be nothing short of restricting free speech in day-to-day interaction between individuals in the “real world.”

The Internet can be related by analogy to the public in general. It is filled with people of all varieties and interests who must all be provided the right to share their minds.

The panel has made the correct decision by striking down the provisions for indecency in the CDA. It is imperative for the Supreme Court to rule the same so that basic First Amendment principles are upheld in this new dimension of free speech.