ACLU calls for public hearings on new top-level domains
Misc.
1/19/2001; 9:58:58 PM

'The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and several other groups championing "cyberrights" this week sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Commerce criticizing the planned addition of seven new Internet top-level domains under a November decision by the organization that manages the domain-name system.'

Observation: "Cyberrights" shouldn't be in quotes!  They're just "rights" that happen to be exercise online.  Do we talk about "public park rights"?

'The letter from the ACLU and its allies, addressed to outgoing Commerce Secretary Norman Mineta, argued that the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) placed artificial limitations on the number of generic top-level domains that threaten freedom of expression for individual Internet users and noncommercial organizations.

'The groups also charged that the processes used by Marina Del Rey, Calif.-based ICANN to select the new top-level domains and the companies that will act as registries for them were "woefully inadequate by any measure." The letter claimed that the selection process was undemocratic and may have violated federal laws designed to ensure openness and public participation.'

Another observation: Do the issues get any more obscure then this? The effects of allocating responsibility for domain names as a free speech issue?