The Move to the Middle: The Enduring Threat of “Harmful” Speech to the End-to-End Principle

This Essay traces the evolution of thinking regarding the technical concept of the end-to-end principle and the legal concept of the regulation of the flow of packets across the Internet. We focus on the manner in which the state, in concert with private parties, has approached the tension between restricting the flow of certain packets and vindicating their citizens’ interests, both legal and otherwise, in free expression. We argue that the primary mode of legal regulation of the Internet has shifted from a focus on outlawing activities at the nodes—end-points in the network—to a growing emphasis on regulating closer to the middle of the network. This trend is, on its face, good for the law enforcement officer, but worrisome to the technologist and the democratic activist; the end-to-end principle, held dear by those who built the Internet for decades, is under threat. In the process, this shift also places corporations, often based in other jurisdictions, in the position of enforcing the rules of the regime in which they are doing business, but whose views on free expression and other civil liberties the corporations’ officers and directors do not necessarily share. We argue that the end-to-end principle, once translated loosely into political speak as “net neutrality,” is a forceful rhetorical concept—and, if done right, sound public policy—but that it no longer describes the Internet on the ground, if it ever did

Exploring Russian Cyberspace: Digitally-Mediated Collective Action and the Networked Public Sphere

This paper summarizes the major findings of a three-year research project to investigate the Internet's impact on Russian politics, media and society. We employed multiple methods to study online activity: the mapping and study of the structure, communities and content of the blogosphere; an analogous mapping and study of Twitter; content analysis of different media sources using automated and human-based evaluation approaches; and a survey of bloggers; augmented by infrastructure mapping, interviews and background research. We find the emergence of a vibrant and diverse networked public sphere that constitutes an independent alternative to the more tightly controlled offline media and political space, as well as the growing use of digital platforms in social mobilization and civic action. Despite various indirect efforts to shape cyberspace into an environment that is friendlier towards the government, we find that the Russian Internet remains generally open and free, although the current degree of Internet freedom is in no way a prediction of the future of this contested space

Explorando o Ciberespaço Russo: Ação Coletiva Digitalmente Mediada e a Esfera Pública Interconectada

Propósito – Este artigo sintetiza os principais achados de um projeto de pesquisa de três anos para investigar o impacto da Internet sobre a política, a mídia e a sociedade russa. Metodologia/abordagem/design – Empregamos múltiplos métodos para estudar atividades online: o mapeamento e estudo da estrutura, das comunidades e do conteúdo da blogosfera; um análogo mapeamento e estudo do Twitter; a análise de conteúdo de diferentes fontes midiáticas, utilizando tanto abordagens automatizadas quanto abordagens baseadas em avaliação humana; e uma enquete com blogueiros; métodos esses expandidos por mapeamento de infraestrutura, por entrevistas e por investigações de contexto. Resultados – Constatamos a emergência de uma vibrante e diversa esfera pública interconectada, que constitui uma alternativa independente ao mais rigidamente controlado espaço midiático e político offline, e verificamos o uso crescente de plataformas digitais na mobilização social e na ação cívica. Implicações práticas – Apesar da existência de vários esforços indiretos para conformar o ciberespaço como um ambiente mais amigável ao governo, constatamos que a Internet russa permanece, em geral, aberta e livre, embora o atual grau de liberdade na Internet de forma alguma possa representar previsão acerca do futuro desse espaço contestado