by Soyini A. Hamit
The academic journal Mass Communication and Society published an article in their May 18, 2012 issue about the frequent use of profanities in Young Adult (YA) books. One of the authors, Dr. Sarah Coyne, assistant professor at Brigham Young University, believes that a rating system should be in place so that parents will know what books are appropriate for their child’s age. The Huffington Post takes a closer look at whether such a system is necessary.
CBLDF is committed to supporting the comics community. Fill out our form to request assistance or report censorship today!
CBLDF is committed to supporting the comics community. Fill out our form to request assistance or report censorship today!
Pakistani Twitter Ban After Cartoon Contest Raises Concerns Over Country’s Commitment to Free Speech
by Mark Bousquet
A recent ban on Twitter by the Pakistani government highlights the growing conflict between conservative governments and dissatisfied citizens over the use of, and access to, social networking sites. On May 20, Pakistan blocked access to Twitter for part of the day, holding the social networking site responsible for an allegedly blasphemous cartoon contest being run on Facebook. Critics argue that Twitter has given a voice to those who oppose the government’s security practices, and that actions like the May 20 ban give credence to the idea that Pakistan is not interested in having a truly free media.
Florence v. Shurtleff – The What’s and Why’s in Plain Language
Earlier this month, a ruling was handed down in Florence v. Shurtleff, a long-disputed internet censorship law that sought to require Utah’s Attorney General to create a blacklist of websites containing “harmful-to-minors” materials, required ISPs to rate content, and included criminal penalties for violations. CBLDF was among the plaintiff group that challenged the law, which resolved last week after seven years of legal action. Christopher Schiller provides a short overview of the case, including what was at stake for the State and for free expression.
Comics, Courts & Controversy: A Case Study of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
Marc H. Greenberg, a professor at Golden Gate University’s School of Law has published an extensive case study of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund and its important work in the Loyola Entertainment Law Review. On the occasion of its publication, Professor Greenberg has prepared remarks about the article and the organization it supports exclusively for CBLDF.org. Read on for Greenberg’s remarks and the full case study.
Access Denied: Library Filter Fail
While researching a story about role-playing-game censorship for CBLDF.org at his local library, CBLDF blog volunteer Justin Brown encountered the cold slap of censorship himself as the result of aggressive filtering software. Brown discusses his experience, and the heritage of filtering laws that requires libraries like his to deny access to content or risk losing public funding after the jump.
New Neil Gaiman & David Mack Print Debuts!
The CBLDF is proud to offer our supporters an exciting new premium by Neil Gaiman & David Mack! This beautiful, exclusive print was contributed by our friends at Neverwear. Silk-screened in Austin, Texas these are the variant blue test run, created in very limited quantities prior to the standard edition grey run.
Printed on a gorgeous French paper called Madero Beach, a 70 weight 8.5 ” x 11″ recycled stock, the prints are full of flecks and bits. Creamy off-white, with 3 colors to show off David Mack’s luscious artwork and lettering.
They are hand-numbered, in an extremely limited artist/printer edition of 90. They are not available anywhere else!
Get yours today!