Henry Manes

University of California, Berkeley

Class of 2014

Part of the USPP course: Politics of Piracy.

The article I will be editing is of the Global Network Initiative. It contains limited information about the NGO overall; missing in particular are the limitations of its policies and the challenges it faces when trying to recruit companies and other organizations to participate. I think it is notable that Facebook and Twitter have been pointedly asked to sign the pact, but will not for vague or unspecified reasons. The NGO struggled to get corporate participants other than the first three that joined: Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft. I think that this organization has the potential to make a significant impact on online free speech and the role of governments that try to control information -- if they get more influential participants. Furthermore, this article does not mention reasons why corporations would be reluctant to sign, like the toughness of the independent auditing process or the lack of financial benefit. A good source of information may be the this NY Times article: Facebook and Twitter Opt Not to Sign a Free Speech Pact.

Check (as opposed to check plus or check minus). This is a solid idea, and I appreciate the specifics of what it's missing, how you'll change it, and the resources you'll use. However, part of the assignment was to record a transcript of a conversation with an online or campus ambassador, so I strongly recommend that as a method of transitioning from goals to concrete changes. PatBerger (talk) 08:44, 15 March 2011 (UTC)