Berkman Center

A collaborative project between the University of Toronto, University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, and Harvard Law School, the OpenNet Initiative investigates, analyzes, and reports upon Internet filtering, surveillance, and censorship by states worldwide. more >

The Berkman Center is a member of the OpenNet Initiative (ONI), a joint collaborative project between the University of Toronto, University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, and Harvard Law School. ONI investigates, analyzes, and reports upon Internet filtering, surveillance, and censorship by states worldwide. The project produces country studies, regional overviews, a map of filtering worldwide, a blog on the latest issues regarding the research, and more.

The OpenNet Initiative is also expanding its research into the area of Internet surveillance by government actors. This project seeks to answer similar questions to those posed above: Which government agencies have the capacity and authority to conduct Internet surveillance? What outside parties such as ISPs or technology providers are necessary participants in surveillance efforts? How does surveillance impact civic and social life?

Internet Filtering: 2007 Year in Review

In the thick of Berkman@10's uninterrupted series of major events, announcements, and releases, we feted and discussed the OpenNet Initiative's landmark book on global Internet filtering, Access Denied, published earlier this semester. In anticipation of the OpenNet Initiative's new, greatly expanded data set, which will be rolling out soon, we invite you to review some of the filtering that took place in 2007.

12 may 2008

Debating democratisation and the Internet

Dust off your British spelling guides. As part of the Berkman Center’s ongoing tenth anniversary celebration, Berkman@10 (conference and gala next week!), we’re retrieving some multimedia classics from our past, including, to date, six notable moments that were saved on tape. This week, for the last in our series, we step back one year, linking across the pond to debate whether "the Internet is the greatest force for democratisation in the world."

9 may 2008

Harry Lewis discusses digital censorship in the US as part of the Man Hong Kong Literary Festival

On Tibet

Protests in Tibet - and the Chinese crackdown and troop build-up in Lhasa and elsewhere - have dominated headlines this week. China's blocking of YouTube and other measures against Internet expression have been part of the story. Berkman projects and people weigh in...

25 mar 2008

BBC - (Un)Blocked By China, and a take on Access Denied

Today the BBC News website ran a story about the OpenNet Initiative's new book, Access Denied: The Practice and Policy of Global Internet Filtering. They say: "[The Book] challenges the long-standing assumption that the internet is an unfettered space where citizens from around the world can freely communicate and mobilize. In fact, the book makes it clear that the scope, scale and sophistication of net censorship are growing."

25 mar 2008

Berkman Buzz: Week of March 17, 2008

Tibet, a victory for community journalism, youth and innovation, Harry Potter, human rights and the World Bank, and Berkman@10...all in this week's BUZZ!

21 mar 2008

Access (still) Denied

Yesterday, OpenNet Initiative Principal Investigators Ron Deibert, John Palfrey, and Jonathan Zittrain spoke about their book, Access Denied, on Public Radio International's The World.

20 mar 2008

Tibet, China and the information gaps between

From the OpenNet Initiative... Despite the approaching Olympic Games, it should come as no surprise to most observers of China that information about the spreading protests in Tibet (Autonomous Region) and other far western provinces is subject to vigorous censorship.

17 mar 2008

John Palfrey discusses Internet filtering on NYT podcast Tech Talk

Berkman Executive Director and OpenNet Initiative (ONI) Principal Investigator John Palfrey is featured this week on the New York Times podcast Tech Talk. Host Bettina Edelstein asks John about the state and future Internet filtering, and they explore the results of the ONI's work as documented in Access Denied.

14 mar 2008

YouTube and the rise of geolocational filtering

From the OpenNet Initiative... YouTomb, a project of the MIT Free Culture group that studies takedown notices by the video-sharing website YouTube, has identified a mechanism used by Google to restrict video content in specific countries. This appears to be the method YouTube is using to filter videos on behalf of governments and private actors that request it.

13 mar 2008

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