Internet Censorship Pros And Cons Essay

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The Problem of Internet Censorship
Censorship is the control of the information and ideas circulated within a society (“What is Censorship”, n.d). Internet censorship is the same thing; it is the controlling of what you can read, access, or publish on the internet. Internet is expanding day by day which means it has become a place where people share their thoughts and opinions that can be disrespectful, unsafe, or maybe harmful. This causes a lot of issues and problems in a society. However, this topic is debated between people all over the world. Some people argue that internet censorship is safe in a way that it protects their children or society and prevents unwanted information and threats. On the other hand, other people have different opinions in which internet censorship limits people’s knowledge or doesn’t give them the freedom of speech. But just like any other topic, internet censorship has both pros and cons.
Reasons for Internet Censorship
There are many reasons for internet censorship but they all fall into three categories: Political reasons, protecting social norms, and security reasons. Internet censorship is used for political reasons when it comes to countries that do not allow freedom of speech or fair elections or the ruler is trying to hold on to power, internet censorship is used to limit people’s knowledge about what is happening in the country or to censor religious sites so that the country stays safe. However, this type of censorship is mainly about making sure that any threat that may affect the ruling power would not be seen by the people.
On the other hand, when it comes to protecting social norms internet censorship is used in another way. In some countries, sites that can be disturbing for kids are...

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... are making sure that our children can live innocent happy lives without being exposed to many different things.” (Does the internet need censorship, n.d) Some people think that internet censorship is safe for their children and it keeps them from accessing websites that are not for their age.
Conclusion
To sum it all up, internet censorship is a global problem in our time but although it has a negative impact on the society, it can be helpful in ways. Internet censorship is different in each country but it is all for one cause- to protect the society. Forms of censorship that have been implemented or are being considered, include blocking and filtering specific sites and monitoring email and web surfing, should be examined and considered with an eye to both precedent and the historical role of free expression in a free nation(Examining Internet Censorship, n.d)

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