LOS ANGELES, CA -- First Amendment attorney Paul Cambria will present oral testimony and participate in a panel discussion before a U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on the topic of “Internet Pornography” to be held next Thursday, January 19, in Washington, D.C.

In the invitation from committee chair Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK), Cambria is asked to: “Focus your testimony on what appropriate controls might be placed on pornography on the Internet and whether there is a role that government might play.”

Cambria will be allowed a five minute oral presentation along with a written submission. Free Speech Coalition staff, DC lobbyists and attorneys are providing assistance and documentation in the preparation of these materials.

From an Adult Freedom Foundation press release, 1/13/06

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ALITO CONFIRMATION HEARINGS NOT REASSURING

WASHINGTON, DC – Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito has answered most questions warily during his Senate confirmation hearings, an approach which has done little to reassure civil liberties groups such as the ACLU, which has come to believe that Alito is fundamentally hostile to civil liberties. The ACLU is also concerned that Alito has a history of deference to executive power, and cites these two factors in announcing that the organization opposes his nomination.

Alito’s attitudes about adult entertainment and the First Amendment were not discussed at length during the hearings. However, there was at least one reference to adult entertainment when conservative Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) asked Alito if he didn’t think “pornography” should have less protection under the First Amendment than political speech. Alito did not respond directly to that question, but he did comment that the Internet has created new problems in terms of access to adult entertainment by minors. The following are selected quotes from his discussion:

"With respect to minors, the Supreme Court has said it is permissible to regulate the sale of pornography to them and has greater authority than it does with respect to distribution of pornography to adults.”

"In the pre-Internet world, the job of preventing minors from purchasing pornography was a lot simpler. If they wanted to get it, I guess they would have to go to a store someplace and buy it.”

“…I think there needs to be additional effort in this area, probably by all branches of government, so that the law fully takes into account the differences regarding communication over the Internet and access to materials over the Internet by minors."

Alito sits on the Third Circuit, which court of appeals twice blocked enforcement of the Child Online Protection Act of 1998 (COPA), although he was not a part of the unanimous panel that did so. COPA would have required all commercial online distributors of "material harmful to minors" to protect their sites from access by minors. The definition of "material harmful to minors" included nudity.
The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, Ashcroft v. ACLU, 2004) ruled that COPA could not be enforced until further proceedings by lower courts that considered less restrictive solutions such as filtering.

No doubt Alito followed the COPA case with interest. His comments reveal that he has an interest in the problem of minors having access to adult materials on the Internet, a sticky issue that is sure to come before the court again in one version or another, and a matter that has great significance for freedom of expression and the adult Internet. Alito’s vote on such matters could be critical, although the narrow 5 vote majority in Ashcroft v ACLU included Justices Kennedy, Stevens, Souter, Thomas and Ginsburg, all of whom are still on the court.

From John Eggerton, Broadcasting and Cable 1/10/06
And from an ACLU press release 1/10/06

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SUPREMES REFUSE TO HEAR DANCE CLUB APPEAL

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal by a Deja Vu exotic dance club (located in Union Township near Cincinnati) of a decision by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals (Deja Vu of Cincinnati v. Union Township, 05-374). The appeals court en banc (full court) ruling was split 7-5 and upheld some patently bizarre logic, including regulations requiring juice bars to close at Midnight, even though alcohol-serving exotic dance clubs were allowed to stay open until 2:30 AM. The Township justified this with the argument that they wanted to close adult cabarets before the bars and taverns in the area closed, in order to avoid unruly and intoxicated men from entering during the late night hours. So what about the dance clubs that serve alcohol? How could the Township justify an ordinance that favors alcohol exotic dance clubs over juice bars because of the so-called “secondary effects” of mixing alcohol and exotic dance?

The case has been wending its way through the courts for six years and the process is not over yet. Louis Sirkin, one of the attorneys for the club, said U.S. District Judge Sandra Beckwith still has to rule on the merits of the case.

"We wanted no restrictions on the hours that the club could operate as an adult club, but that doesn't mean that it can't continue to operate with some modifications to its operation. It remains open," Sirkin said.

It may be worth noting that the five dissenting judges in the Sixth Circuit opinion were all appointed by Democrats. The court has recently grown more conservative with Bush appointees.

From The Associated Press 1/9/06
And from Jane Predergast, Cincinnati Enquirer 1/10/06

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DANCE-TEAM CALENDAR DRAWS PROTEST

DETROIT, MI -- The Detroit Pistons Basketball organization is under fire due to a promotional Swimsuit Calendar featuring the club’s dance team, “Automotion.”

The Michigan-based American Decency Association recently started an e-mail campaign to Pistons officials, claiming the swimsuit photos are inappropriate for a pro sports team to market “when the team is supported by many families, women and impressionable young children.”

Pistons president Tom Wilson called the charges outrageous. He says the calendar features artistic, tasteful pictures of the dance team ¬ images that anybody would see on a beach. (Two samples of the Calendar photos are included on the Fox Sports website below.) Wilson says the organization will not back down. The Calendars will continue to be sold.

From Foxsports.com 1/9/06