When Is Virtual Speech Not Like Real Speech?

Pop quiz: what do Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggar, Bugs Bunny, and the destruction of the US Capitol have in common?

Arguably nothing except this: they all played a part in oral arguments this week before the US Supreme Court in a case that could have a major implications for the limits of virtual and cyber-speech.

Schwarzenegger vs. Entertainment Merchants Association is the highest court’s test of a California state law that bans the sale or rental of video games that feature “deviant” levels of violence to minors.   Enacted in 2005, the law has never seriously been enforced as lower courts have found the ban violated free-speech rights.

As in other free-speech court cases, the issues discussed weren’t always pleasant, with references on both sides of the bench to graphic depictions of human pain and degradation.

But just what constitutes “deviant” levels of violence, and who should set those bounds?  The Justice’s questions, and the answers they got, after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

The Senate Judiciary Committee June 28th starts hearings on whether to confirm Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan to the nation’s highest court. Nominees are typically grilled on traditional issues such as abortion and gun ownership rights.

But a new issue is likely to arise this time: privacy in the digital world.  VOA’s Doug Bernard spoke with Marc Rotenberg, President of the Electronic Privacy Information Center and has this preview.