Internet filter: just geeks beating their chests?

David Heath
Thursday, 31 December 2009 03:57

Opinion and Analysis

Ask the man-in-the-street about Conroy's filter proposal and they'll probably tell you it's a good idea.  Geeks may hold the theoretical high-ground, but right now the electorate doesn't care.

Just before Christmas, Josh Mehlman wrote a thought-provoking piece that essentially said Minister Conroy really doesn't care about the current crop of anti-Filter critics because we are only arguing amongst ourselves in a small room.  The wider electorate doesn't hear the reasons we disagree so strongly.

Amongst the supporting material used by Mehlman is an open letter to Stephen Conroy by Johnathan Crossfield who very clearly shoots down every major point of Conroy's argument in support of the filter.  However, even he agrees that this is not the forum to win the battle. 

In a response to a comment to his article, Crossfield notes, "I feel this is a long game - one about education of the mainstream masses and one that may not see a resolution for months or years after a filter has come into effect. It may well be that letting the filter go ahead and then pointing out the problems it does cause has far more weight in swaying public opinion than trying to convince the man on the street that the sky is falling."

In addition, Scott Steel's Pollytics column in Crikey reached a well-argued conclusion that the current protests will have zero effect on the electorate.  He effectively says that the Filter is very low on the priority list of important issues for voters and there is little that can be done to change that.

So, on the next page, this article will outline some new forms of 'attack' that may improve the impact on the wider voting public.