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Title: A retread of old news
Review: Godwin's book is basically a rehash of previously published work. Pages 171-176, for example, were originally published in an Internet World column, though he acknowledges that nowhere. In fact, the entire book consists of such retread material spliced together, sometimes seamlessly, sometimes not. Many readers who haven't followed the free speech wars won't recognize this; they may simply wonder why the book is occasionally disjointed for no apparent reason. The other significant flaw in the book is that it stops with the CDA decision, in June 1997. For a book published in late 1998, it could have covered later material, especially since most of the book was cut-and-paste rather than new writing. It's a reasonable introduction to the censorship wars on the internet for readers which are completely unfamiliar with the history; but as for me, I'm pleased that I checked this book out from the library rather than purchasing it. -- Michael Sims
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