News

CRTC Denies Hate Site Request

The CRTC has issued a quick decision on the Warman request to allow Canadian ISPs to block access to two U.S. based hate sites.  The Commission denied the application, basing its decision primarily on the fact that other parties (the carriers, the sites) were not provided with notice and the opportunity to be heard.  I'll be writing on this case in my column next week, but my quick take is that the CRTC is right to ensure that all parties have the opportunity to present their views on the issue and therefore an immediate interim order is impractical.  However, the need for a full consultation does not remove the need to address the issue in a comprehensive fashion.  This case has placed an important issue squarely on the Commission's agenda and important procedural safeguards should not be used an excuse to leave it unresolved.

3 Comments

  1. Dominic Jaar says:

    I just commented Goldberg’s post “psing” that I agree with your previous post… I still agree with this one but for the last sentence: Audi Alteram Partem is not a procedural issue… On the contrary, it is the freedom of speech’s corollary. In some circumstances (death penalty), its last extension!

  2. Open your eyes
    The lawyer for Warmen states on his blog this is equivenlent to the CHOI-FM case and the CRTC/Canadian BroadCasting desion to deny broadcasting rights.

    I fail 100% to see how this is the same.

    A website is not subject to the Canadian Broadcasting act, that I know of. Also, CHOI-FM is within Canada and must repect the regulations set forth here. Does the CRTC control the Vermont station I can get in on my radio? Can they control that Vermont station if I object to their words? Will the CRTC set up an FM channel airwave capturing tool at the border so i can’t hear it?

    Goldberg’s nagging and rant doesn’t even make scense as he said it.

    To have Canadian ISP’s start censoring is to give them too much power. They are bad enough as it is.

    The whole failing here, in my opinion, is the law-enforcers (police ect) who have failed in their job. Having failed in their job forcing Warman to leave Canada for fear of his and/or his families life is the failing of the justice system either here and/or the States where its comming from.

    Do we really need the CRTC to censor? Will a Canada wide ONLY censor do ANYTHING at all? What will it accomplish? It will only bring more attention to the hate site and have all of us censored.

    Its law enforcements job to take care of crimes such as this and murder threats. Not the CRTC.

    Is Warman any safer at all if a Canadian IP can’t read the hate site? please, thats a joke. Of course he isn’t. All it will accomplish is us Canadians being censored and millions of others being able to see his address.

    Block it.. Censor it… Hide it.. what a joke. It does not stop it or prevent non-Canadian IP’s from seeing it.

    This whole things stinks and this run-around-the-truth bullpoopoo that Goldberg, Warman et al want hidden from Canadians is just that.

    Sounds more to me like a cry to net-censorship here in Canada for HIS own false sence of security (which is no security since it will still BE THERE).

    If it was Censored for Canadian IP’s only, would he still leave Canada out of fear for his life? He would be crazy not to.

    I never complained so much online before.. I’ll collect my thoughts and put it to the CRTC, maybe they don’t know about relays, anon proxy, SSL/SSH tunnels and portals.. blocking it does nothing… I better let them know we need to block the world from Canada to truely keep people from seeing it. Who’s the winner now? sheeez.

  3. Dominic Jaar says:

    Professor Geist, we need your participation in a discussion on WIM at [ link ] (Sorry html is not enabled for the comments on your blog).