Introduction

Should public library computers allow access to hardcore pornography,¹ or should libraries use filtering software to block hardcore porn sites? Many American taxpayers believe that hardcore porn makes the public library hostile and unsafe, that pornography-viewing is an inappropriate use of publicly funded library resources, and that installing Internet filters is preferable to allowing hardcore pornography into the library. Increasingly, politicians at the local, state, and national level are listening to these concerns. Anti-filtering librarians usually respond with arguments based on intellectual freedom, one of the most traditional and central of public library values.

The American Library Association's Intellectual Freedom documents "condemn as a violation of the Library Bill of Rights any use of filtering software by libraries that blocks access to constitutionally protected speech".² Given the current state of filtering software, that means that the use of practically any Internet filter violates the Library Bill of Rights. (In 1998, 85.3% of public library outlets did not use filtering software.)³ But public libraries have not traditionally included hardcore pornography in their collections, so community members may wonder why libraries would allow access to hardcore porn now. Is filtering software an acceptable solution to the problem of hardcore pornography on the Internet? Does hardcore porn have anything to do with "intellectual" freedom? How can communities address these concerns?

Next:
If Libraries Don't Collect Hustler, Then Why Allow Internet Pornography?

Table of Contents