Just FYI… I’ll be speaking tomorrow in Second Life about “Government’s Place in Virtual Worlds and Online Communities” as part of an ongoing series hosted by Metanomics, “an active community with a passion for exploring the uses and issues related to virtual worlds.” Metanomics takes a serious look at virtual worlds and the evolving use of virtual world technologies. I’m excited to be the guest on tomorrow’s show where we will be discussing free speech and privacy policy, online child protection concerns, and issues related to cyber-bullying and anonymity as they effect online communities and virtual worlds.
Those of you who already have Second Life avatars can be a member of the “live studio audience” at the Metanomics virtual studio, which you can find in Second Life here. Or you can watch and participate in the online broadcast at the Metanomics website where you can text comments to other audience members or ask questions. A video of the virtual broadcast will be made available later and I will post it (or a link to it) here.
In terms of background material, here are a few things I’ve penned that deal with issues that might come up on the show:
- “Parental Controls and Online Child Protection: A Survey of Tools & Methods [VERSION 4.0]“
- “Parents, Kids & Policymakers in the Digital Age: Safeguarding Against ‘Techno-Panics’“, Inside ALEC, July 2009.
- “Five Online Safety Task Forces Agree: Education, Empowerment & Self-Regulation Are the Answer,” PFF Progress on Point 16.13, July 8, 2009
- “Cyberbullying Legislation: Why Education is Preferable to Regulation,” by Berin Szoka and Adam Thierer, PFF Progress on Point 16.12, June 19, 2009
- “COPPA 2.0: The New Battle over Privacy, Age Verification, Online Safety & Free Speech,” by Berin Szoka and Adam Thierer, PFF Progress on Point 16.11, May 21, 2009
- Web 2.0, Section 230, and Nozick’s “Utopia of Utopias”, Jan. 13, 2009, Tech Liberation Front