American Libraries Association v. Pataki - Significance, Negative Commerce Clause Applies To Internet, Impact, Ralph Nader, Mayhem Manuals, Further Readings

American Libraries Association v. Pataki - Further Readings

American Libraries Association v. Pataki - Significance

By invalidating New York's attempt to regulate Internet communications, the court made it clear that the broad, national character of the Internet renders such communications susceptible only to regulation by the federal government. Thus, state attempts to regulate Internet communications will always be invalid. Viewed in conjunction with the Supreme Court's decision in Reno v. American Civil Libe…

American Libraries Association v. Pataki - Negative Commerce Clause Applies To Internet

Judge Loretta Preska began her analysis by noting that while the Internet is certainly an innovative technological field, "the innovativeness of the technology does not preclude the application of traditional legal principles provided that those principles are adaptable to cyberspace." Judge Preska first concluded that the Internet, and the New York law, relate to "commerce" under the Commerce Cla…

American Libraries Association v. Pataki - Impact

The court's decision in American Libraries Association is extremely important. If followed by other federal courts, the decision means that only Congress, and not the states, will be able to regulate the flow of information over the Internet. This impact is particularly important given the Supreme Court's subsequent holding in the 1997 case of Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union. In American Li…

American Libraries Association v. Pataki - Ralph Nader

Born in 1934 in Winsted, Connecticut, Ralph Nader is an attorney and consumer rights advocate who is considered to be the founding father of the consumer rights movement. In the 1980s Nader campaigned against car insurance rates in California and a 50 percent wage increase for members of Congress. His success with these two high profile issues stand as vivid illustrations of the consumer rights mo…

American Libraries Association v. Pataki - Mayhem Manuals

The explosion in Internet usage has raised new questions about whether all information therein has a guarantee of Freedom of the Press under the First Amendment. The Constitution guaranteed a free and uncensored press; later expansions provide similar coverages to other print and broadcast media. The 1986 Communication Privacy Act protects individual privacy rights in using email, bulletin boards,…