Vice President Al Gore has come out in favor of allowing schools and libraries receiving universal-service telecommunications discounts to develop their own plans to protect children from indecent material. Rather than a "one-size-fits-all" approach (an apparent reference to a mandatory-filtering bill introduced by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.), "our plan will empower schools to make decisions based on local values," said Gore in a March 23 statement.
After some reports interpreted Gore's remarks as supporting mandatory filtering, White House staffer Tom Kalil posted a clarification on several listservs: "Vice President Gore's statement is being misinterpreted in the press as calling for mandatory filtering. Actually, he's calling for schools and libraries to develop acceptable use policies."
A March 23 article on CNET's News.com quotes a White House spokesperson as saying that legislation supported by the administration "would not require blocking, it would just require that schools and libraries put a plan in place regarding their students and patrons accessing inappropriate material."
Posted March 30, 1998.