August 5, 2006: Internet and Privacy Issues - Lauren Weinstein
Podcast: The Art Bell ArchivePublished On: Wed Jan 07 2026
Description: Art Bell welcomes internet pioneer Lauren Weinstein to discuss privacy, censorship, and the future of the web. Broadcasting from Manila, Art reflects on online censorship in the Philippines, where religious influence has led to content filtering, and asks Weinstein how such filtering works technically. Weinstein explains the use of network choke points, automated systems, and human monitors, while cautioning that censorship often begins with broadly accepted targets before expanding to political speech.The discussion turns to network neutrality, a battle then unfolding in Congress between telecom giants and internet companies like Google. Weinstein warns that phone and cable companies seek to charge content providers for access to their customers, a move that could reshape the open internet into something resembling the old telephone monopoly. He notes that Americans already pay more for slower internet than citizens in many other countries, including the Philippines.Art and Weinstein also explore government surveillance of internet communications, including the AT&T and NSA controversy and the broader implications of warrantless data collection. They examine broadband power line technology and its threat to the radio spectrum, with both men drawing on their experience as amateur radio operators to highlight potential interference dangers.
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