Mainstream Loudoun et al. v. Board of Trustees of the Loudoun County Library et al. - Significance, The Internet Filtering Dilemma, Loudoun Chooses Restricted Access, Protection By Subtraction, Impact

Mainstream Loudoun et al. v. Board of Trustees of the Loudoun County Library et al. - Significance

The ruling upheld constitutional rights of library users by affirming that First Amendment freedoms fully apply to public library Internet access. The decision set a legal standard for assessing Internet use restrictions in future cases. With the clarification of First Amendment protections applied to public Internet use, libraries searched for legal means to control access, particularly for child…

Mainstream Loudoun et al. v. Board of Trustees of the Loudoun County Library et al. - Further Readings

Mainstream Loudoun et al. v. Board of Trustees of the Loudoun County Library et al. - The Internet Filtering Dilemma

In the wake of the Reno ruling, Senator John McCain, R-Arizona, sponsored The Internet School Filtering Act that would require schools and libraries to use filtering or blocking systems for publicly accessible computers. The proposed law would restrict availability of certain telecommunications discounts and withhold funding support to public schools and libraries if filtering or blocking software…

Mainstream Loudoun et al. v. Board of Trustees of the Loudoun County Library et al. - Loudoun Chooses Restricted Access

The Loudoun County public library system in Virginia consisted of six branches and, like many public libraries, provided public access to the Internet and the World Wide Web. A library board of trustees controlled and managed the library. Board members, appointed by county officials, adopted bylaws, rules and regulations to guide operation and use of the library system. In October of 1997, the lib…

Mainstream Loudoun et al. v. Board of Trustees of the Loudoun County Library et al. - Protection By Subtraction

Judge Leonie M. Brinkema wrote that "the central question before this court is whether a public library may, without violating the First Amendment, enforce content-based restrictions on access to Internet speech." The Board had sought to portray the Internet as a vast interlibrary loan system. Restricting Internet access to selected materials was merely a decision not to acquire such materials, no…

Mainstream Loudoun et al. v. Board of Trustees of the Loudoun County Library et al. - Impact

The Loudoun decision was the first major court case challenging public library use of Internet filters. The decision in issuing a permanent injunction against the filtering policy supported unrestricted access to the Internet in public libraries. The Virginia library's policy was considered a form of prior restraint on the distribution of speech. Following the ruling, the Loudoun library board vot…