单选题 A censorship battle between protecting freedom of speech and protecting children from harmful Internet material is being fought on a rather unlikely field—the public library. In almost every city, town and village in the United States there is a public library, and every one of them now has computer terminals for public use. On one side of the battle, the American Library Association (ALA) is opposed to content filters on library computers with Internet access. On the opposing side, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that libraries must install filters to block indecent websites from library patrons under the age of eighteen. For the time being, the battle scene has stilled, but the ultimate winners in the all-out war for access versus control of the Web in public libraries have yet to be declared.
The debate first raged in the U. S. due to the enactment of the federal Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) in 1999. Public libraries, including school libraries, were forced to install content filters on Internet access terminals or lose certain federal funding. In response, the ALA started a legal battle to have the requirement reversed. In its 1943 Bill of Rights, the ALA said that libraries should present materials that represent many points of view on current and historical issues and not remove materials with unpopular viewpoints. At the same time, it is the responsibility of libraries to challenge censorship if they suspect it. However, in 2003, the Supreme Court ruled that the filtering was constitutional, and the law should stand.
In its decision, the Supreme Court found that filters are "at least as effective" as government regulation of website operators. Earlier laws imposed criminal punishments on website operators for publishing harmful material. In contrast, CIPA places the burden on those who receive federal funds—public libraries and school districts—to ensure that children do not have access to obscene, pornographic, or other harmful images and text. According to supporters of the law, filters effectively keep out harmful Web content and do not have a negative impact on users.
Whereas some libraries such as the San Francisco library system oppose the law and have stated they will not abide by it. Other libraries favor the filters and had even used blocking software on their computers before the law required it. In 1998, 15 percent of U. S. libraries used Internet filters, according to one survey. In the middle are libraries that have compromised by installing filters only on library terminals reserved for children.
Opponents rightly argue that legitimate research sites are being blocked by excessive and harmful filters. They point to numerous examples of harmless websites—such as home pages of religious and academic institutions- that are blocked by the filter software. Anti-filter groups also charge that the devices do not filter out a substantial portion of inappropriate Internet material. A recent study found that the filters failed to block the transmission of pornography, violence, and hate speech 25 percent of the time.
Dr. Martha McCarthy, an education professor at Indiana University, expects the Web war between law-makers and librarians to continue to produce court battles. "Despite the Supreme Court decision, there may be challenges to the application of CIPA in some public libraries," said McCarthy. For instance, she said that adults may allege that it is too complicated to turn off the filters when they want to use the computers. She went on to say that the battle between freedom of speech and protection of children is likely to continue with regard to content on the Internet. Clearly, the government needs to find a more viable solution, or the free expression war will continue to rage.

单选题 What is the passage mainly about?

A. The reasons that libraries oppose Internet censorship.
B. The effects of Internet censorship on children in libraries.
C. The debate over blocking harmful Internet sites at libraries.
D. The disadvantages of Internet blocking software in libraries.

单选题 In paragraph 3, the author's primary purpose is ______ .

A. to describe how public libraries use the Internet
B. to contrast the CIPA with earlier censorship laws
C. to identify the recipients of federal funding
D. to explain how earlier Internet censorship laws worked

单选题 In paragraph 5, why does the author mention religious and academic institutions?

A. To show how effective Internet blocking software can be.
B. To illustrate that filters may fail to block harmful sites.
C. To explain what types of research sites library patrons use.
D. To show that the blocking software may target the wrong sites.

单选题 According to paragraph 2, what can be inferred about the ALA’s position on Internet censorship?

A. The ALA has significantly changed its views.
B. The ALA continues to support censorship laws.
C. The ALA has a tradition of supporting freedom of speech.
D. The ALA does not take a strong stand on freedom of speech.

单选题 Which of the following statements about Internet censorship can be inferred from para. 6?

A. It illustrates the larger issue of freedom versus protection of minors.
B. It will become acceptable to most library users in the future.
C. It will not be argued in the future because of the Supreme Court decision.
D. It will probably be put into operation easily in public libraries.