One of the comments to my Smart Company column took me to task on how the Australian Communications and Media Authority compiles the website blacklist. I’ve put the comment and my reply which explains the process below.
I should also add the blacklist only applies to sites hosted outside Australia. ACMA will direct an Australian hosting serivce to take down any site rated X18+ or refused classification .
Paul, you incorrectly write that it is up the classification board to decide what is blacked out. That is incorrect as they only have jurisdiction on what is published within Australia. The blacklist is currently maintained by ACMA, so which minor public servant gets the job of surfing the web looking for something they can add (as well as responding to any ministerial hints about “unwanted” material).
If it was a transparent process, the material had been vetted against Australian standards then maybe. Or rules by a court. But not a secret list. No way.
Thanks for your comment, Richard. One of the big concerns about filtering is exactly how an appeals process or independent oversight of a blacklist will work.
ACMA refers any complaint about a website to the Classification Board. The board then classifies the site under the same system used for computer games and movies. If the board refuses classification or gives the site an X18+ rating then ACMA adds the site to the blacklist. The details are on the ACMA and Classification Board websites.
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