Today we discussed a variety of topics relating to technology in the news. There are so many issues regarding freedom vs. protection of citizens. Of course, I want us to have free access to the internet and a free exchange of ideas. However, there are so many issues regarding safety, especially for kids: cyberbullying, Myspace, e-mail. Unscrupulous people can find our children's physical location through their URL. That's so scary. Education is the key. What's really scary is how little education our kids are getting because so many teachers and parents are uneducated about technology. I know how hard it is to learn new technology, but I feel as a parent and an educator, I am obligated to do so.
On the other hand, there are people who have been arrested in Egypt for expressing their political views on their blogs. People should be able to express their views openly. That's the beauty and benefit of the internet. As long as the person is not directly harming someone, he should be able to express his ideas. We read an article about a 14 year old girl here in the U.S. who attempted to videotape a town board meeting, but was prohibited from doing so. Why? If that is a public meeting, shouldn't she be able to put it on her website so others can view and hear it?
2 comments:
I agree with you strongly that the student should have been able to videotape the meeting and then post it as long as it wasn't edited in a manner to misconstrue the agenda.
Nancy
Public servants at a public meeting and it cannot be recorded? I understand that being videotaped can be a bit nerve racking, but then you should not have become a public servant! It makes me feel that there are inappropriate or unethical behavior going on in those meetings when no one is watching, why else would you fear being recorded on town hall topics? I hope a law gets passed to allow such recordings and that all future public meetings will be put on the internet one way or another.
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