“I don’t really understand what a Web site is.”

by on May 17, 2007 · 8 comments

Wow. More proof that we have a long way to go before public officials really “get” the Internet. From a Reuters story:

A British judge admitted on Wednesday he was struggling to cope with basic terms like “Web site” in the trial of three men accused of inciting terrorism via the Internet. Judge Peter Openshaw broke into the questioning of a witness about a Web forum used by alleged Islamist radicals. “The trouble is I don’t understand the language. I don’t really understand what a Web site is,” he told a London court during the trial of three men charged under anti-terrorism laws. Prosecutor Mark Ellison briefly set aside his questioning to explain the terms “Web site” and “forum.” An exchange followed in which the 59-year-old judge acknowledged: “I haven’t quite grasped the concepts.”

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About Adam Thierer

Adam Thierer is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. He previously served as President of The Progress & Freedom Foundation, as Director of Telecommunications Studies at the Cato Institute, and as a Fellow in Economic Policy at the Heritage Foundation. He is the author or editor of six books on technology and media policy and also writes a weekly column for Forbes called "Technologies of Freedom." Thierer earned his bachelor's degree in political science and journalism at Indiana University and received his master's degree in international business management and trade theory at the University of Maryland. His passions in life (besides technology and liberty, of course) are fast cars, fine cigars, and good beer.

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  • http://www.codemonkeyramblings.com MikeT

    At least he acknowledged his ignorance, rather than complicating the trial through his ignorance.

  • Brian Moore

    I wonder how many judges there are who haven’t acknowledged their ignorance.

    I don’t have a good solution for the ignorance of judges and juries in technology, science or medical cases. Think how bad it would be if the case hinged on some arcane mathematical feature of security algorithms, rather than a “web site.”

    Sometimes the case simply rests on information that the average person does not understand, at which point they must value the claims of the prosecution and defense equally, even if one side’s claims are scientifically false.

  • http://www.codemonkeyramblings.com MikeT

    At least he acknowledged his ignorance, rather than complicating the trial through his ignorance.

  • Brian Moore

    I wonder how many judges there are who haven’t acknowledged their ignorance.

    I don’t have a good solution for the ignorance of judges and juries in technology, science or medical cases. Think how bad it would be if the case hinged on some arcane mathematical feature of security algorithms, rather than a “web site.”

    Sometimes the case simply rests on information that the average person does not understand, at which point they must value the claims of the prosecution and defense equally, even if one side’s claims are scientifically false.

  • http://eckenrodehouse.net nathan

    additionally, besides being able to admit his ignorance in the technical matters at hand, perhaps the judge was also able to get the definition of a website into the record, as it is to apply the case at hand.

    the importance of a judge being able to understand the technical concepts of a website are less important than the judge being able to understand the concepts of the laws of the land some of which predate the magna carter.

  • http://eckenrodehouse.net nathan

    additionally, besides being able to admit his ignorance in the technical matters at hand, perhaps the judge was also able to get the definition of a website into the record, as it is to apply the case at hand.

    the importance of a judge being able to understand the technical concepts of a website are less important than the judge being able to understand the concepts of the laws of the land some of which predate the magna carter.

  • http://anomalyuk.blogspot.com/2007/05/whats-website.html Andrew McG

    He might have been no more ignorant than most people: “website” is a pretty vague term, and he was looking for a precise definition – and apparently frustrated at not getting one. Many people would be surprised at how tricky the concept is.

  • http://anomalyuk.blogspot.com/2007/05/whats-website.html Andrew McG

    He might have been no more ignorant than most people: “website” is a pretty vague term, and he was looking for a precise definition – and apparently frustrated at not getting one. Many people would be surprised at how tricky the concept is.

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