Anthony writes:
I'm sure they're in the process of changing
their review system to
take
these issues into account. At the same time, requiring *all* images
to be
"found illegal" before taking action, would not be a good idea.
In this particular instance, however, it is worth noting that the
image in question has been widely available, both on the Internet and
offline, and in fact remains widely available. The fact that a
particular image has been presumptively legal for more than three
decades necessarily informs any responsible consideration of the
decision to block it today. If one is familiar with the history of
child-pornography prosecutions (as I happen to be), it's clear that
these controversial album covers (not just the "Virgin Killer" cover,
but that of "Blind Faith" and others) are not the material the child-
porn statutes were designed to discourage and suppress. Moreover,
since the album covers themselves are worthy of encyclopedic
discussion, it seems important to add a context requirement to any
judgment of illegality. Indeed, the Internet Watch Foundation itself
acknowledges the importance of context in its public statement about
the affair: "However, the IWF Board has today (9 December 2008)
considered these findings and the contextual issues involved in this
specific case and, in light of the length of time the image has
existed and its wide availability, the decision has been taken to
remove this webpage from our list."
If the IWF thinks contextual issues are important, who are we to say
otherwise?
--Mike