I take big, big issue with this. The proposed system is essentially intended to protect children from the dangers of the internet by restricting access to adult material, which is certainly a goal I'm sure many parents would applaud, but the implementation and underlying moral message to this bill deeply concern me.
In a nutshell, the government is sending the message sex is bad and wrong and damaging to youngsters. I fully respect the right for parents to want to keep their children from being exposed to this content, but internet filters are already widely available for families to put in place if these issues concern them. The idea of censoring media on a nationwide level like this sets a disturbing precedent for the government to make moral decisions that should be firmly in the hands of individual families. If this system was opt-in, then I'd be much more supportive of it. Offering an easily accessible route for parents to restrict their children's access to adult material is a absolutely fine, but the fact that this system will be "on" by default is going to result in a situation where many families are subject to this filter without necessarily understanding it.
What bugs me so much about the bill is that it hinges on this idea that censoring or hiding information is a good thing, while perpetuating the idea that sex and sexuality are these taboo subjects that corrupt and damage society rather than enriching it. We should not be shoving porn under the couch and pretending it doesn't exist, we should be encouraging youngsters to have a healthy and well informed perception of sex. A huge amount of my sexual education during my teen years came from the internet. I watched porn, I discussed sex online, I visited sites related to sexual health, and as I got older that curiosity expanded into a genuine interest in sex (beyond the norm), playing a large part in me pursuing my current career as an erotic author.
The argument can of course be made that pornography portrays an unrealistic and potentially misleading (or damaging) view of sex. But to that I say: how is this any different from the way the media portrays any other type of subject matter in fiction? Sex, violence, emotional issues, personal relationships, social attitudes, heck, even everyday conversation are all fed to us via the media with varying degrees of realism. Why is the portrayal of sex so special?
Despite the hypocrisy of deeming porn fit for censorship while still airing graphic violence on publicly funded television, this decision perpetuates the bizarre Victorian attitude that sex is something better seen and not heard; that hiding it away and pretending it doesn't exist will somehow result in a more healthy and well-adjusted society than one that cultivates a responsible and well-informed understanding of sex.
This leads on to the more practical issues of implementing such a filter. No internet filter is perfect. Either it is too lax to accomplish the intended purpose, or it is so tight it restricts access to more sites than intended. How will these filters treat websites related to sexual health? Sexual discussion? Topics on sexual orientation? Gender issues? Will young adults whose parents leave this filter on be able to access the sort of information they need as they begin to experience these issues during their teenage years?
It's a worst-case scenario, but the idea of restricting a teenager's access to this sort of information in the digital age is an absolutely deplorable crime in my eyes. Unfortunately, with reports of the filter being even more strict than originally thought, this state of affairs seems more likely than not.
As a new media person, laws like this hit very close to home for me. While I won't be affected directly by this bill should it go through, the idea of allowing this sort of censorship to perpetuate an archaic view of sex across the nation makes me very sad. We as a society should be beyond this fear-mongering view of the media and how it portrays adult subject matter.
I was very tired when writing this post, so hopefully I managed to articulate my points clearly, but this is an issue I feel very strongly on. We need to grow up and stop treating sex and violence in the media as boogeymen corrupting our youth. Parents and education systems that fail to teach children to understand adult topics are the culprits here.
If you're a UK citizen and feel strongly on the issue there is an ongoing petition here that challenges the ISP filtering bill.
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