Resumen
The Internet may fairly be regarded as a never ending worldwide conversation. The government may not through Communications Decency Act interrupt the conversation. As the most participatory form of mass speech yet developed, the Internet deserves the highest protection from government intrusion. Despite the optimistic view of the Internet expressed by the federal court in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the view of the Internet in minds of policymakers around the world has been decidedly schizophrenic, swinging from wild enthusiasm to repressive efforts at control borne out of ignorance and fear. In the U.S., the diffident public policy response to the Internet has left netizens, both in the U.S. and around the world, in a state of uncertainty with respect to the basic free expression and privacy rights of the people. Still, the judicial reversal of the U.S. Congress's Internet censorship bill holds out some hope that the Internet community can have a positive impact on the public policies controlling the net.