Contro il lato oscuro del Web
Dal Wall Street Journal, per la firma di "Jimbo" Wales, fondatore di Wikipedia, arriva l'attacco più duro letto sinora alla mancanza di responsabilità da parte di chi scrive su Internet. Wales chiede nuove leggi («it's time to re-examine the current legal system») per impedire ai peggiori («prevent the worst among us») di imperversare liberamente sul Web.
Concetti che non sono nuovi per frequentatori di questo blog. Anche se la gran parte degli opinionisti italiani non riesce ad andare oltre la frase «Internet deve essere libera», fingendo di non sapere che non c'è libertà senza responsabilità.
What we see regularly on social networking sites, blogs and other online forums is behavior that ranges from the carelessly rude to the intentionally abusive.Il testo integrale dell'articolo di Wales lo si può leggere qui.
Flare-ups occur on social networking sites because of the ease by which thoughts can be shared through the simple press of a button. Ordinary people, celebrities, members of the media and even legal professionals have shown insufficient restraint before clicking send. There is no shortage of examples—from the recent Twitter heckling at a Web 2.0 Expo in New York, to a Facebook poll asking whether President Obama should be killed.
The comments sections of online gossip sites, as well as some national media outlets, often reflect semi-literate, vitriolic remarks that appear to serve no purpose besides disparaging their intended target. Some sites exist solely as a place for mean-spirited individuals to congregate and spew their venomous verbiage. (...)
Finally, it's time to re-examine the current legal system. Online hostility is cross-jurisdictional. We might need laws that directly address this challenge. There is currently no uniformity of definition among states in the definition of cyberbullying and cyberharassment. Perhaps federal input is needed.
The Internet is bringing about a revolution in human knowledge and communication, and we have an unprecedented opportunity to make the global conversation more reasonable and productive. But we can only do so if we prevent the worst among us from silencing the best among us with hostility and incivility.
