Really, you'll have to, because there's no definition around.
Morality in Media Inc. (Inc!) has a page devoted to reporting obscenity crimes on the internet. It's a "resource for educating the public and for reporting possible violations of internet obscenity laws."
Educating the public...such an admirable goal. But guess what isn't to be found on the main page. That's right, any information about what laws actually govern internet obscenity. Oh, but you say, it must be just a click away. Actually, no. Three clicks into "make a report" of an obscenity is where we finally get a little guidance about what obscenity might be. This is two clicks after we have been discouraged from sending them porn, and after we have seen a sad looking older white man behind bars (the pornographer? the porn lover?) behind bars.
Finally, the definition:
Under the Supreme Court's three-part obscenity test, sexual material is obscene and unprotected by the First Amendment if:
1. The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the material, when taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest; and
I think we've just identified about 90% of the internet.
2. The material depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive manner, when applying contemporary community standards; and
3. A reasonable person would find that the material, when taken as a whole, lacks serious artistic, literary, political, and scientific value.
If by "reasonable person" we mean someone is opposed to teh sex teh gays an teh evolution, now we're up to about 99.5% percent of the internet.
To make a report it is not necessary to have seen pornography.
Note the last paragraph. I guess my title was wrong then. Apparently you'll know it even if you don't see it.
Posted by binky at September 17, 2005 06:02 PM | TrackBack | Posted to Blogorama