Spring 2022 Course Schedule

Cyber Flash Points (LAW-795CY-001)
Gary Corn, Divya Ramjee

Meets: 02:00 PM - 03:50 PM (Th) - Warren - Room N102

Enrolled: 7 / Limit: 20

Administrator Access


Notices

There are no notices at this time.

Description

Every sector of society, industry, and the political sphere is dependent upon digital technologies to function—a reality laid bare by the needs to communicate during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The future of free speech, fundamental human rights, national security, and the economy all depend on technology. Yet, core doctrinal and policy issues remain completely unsettled. What is the role of both governments and the private sector in addressing hate speech, malicious foreign influence campaigns, election interference, disinformation and misinformation campaigns? What do we mean by a “free” Internet, and how do we both manage harm and avoid a slide down the authoritarian rabbit hole? How can we and should we respond to the increasing tech dominance, and hence influence of, Chinese-controlled companies?

All of these problems share several features: Internet technologies are cross-border; decisions by the private sector as to how technology is designed and operated have profound implications for individual rights and security; and core public interest issues are mediated by tech.

This weekly seminar will engage students in the interdisciplinary literature and theory around global cyber governance. The seminar’s specific objectives are three-fold: 1) to help students understand the technical infrastructure of the Internet and the distributed ecosystem of actors and systems that now control it; 2) to provide students with in-depth knowledge of some of the most critical contemporary public policy debates over Internet governance and to expose students to some of the best, cutting-edge literature in cyber policy in the process; and 3) to give students the tools to identify and analyze core cyber governance challenges by examining the issues in a holistic way that assesses the relationship between technical design, policy, and practice.

Textbooks and Other Materials

The textbook information on this page was provided by the instructor. Students should use this information when considering purchases from the AU Campus Store or other vendors. Students may check to determine if books are currently available for purchase online.

We will be reading selected chapters from the books below. You are free to purchase or borrow the boo. All other readings available via online links below

  • Tarleton Gillespie, Custodians of the Internet
  • Margaret Roberts, Censored: Distraction and Diversion Inside China’s Great Firewall
  • Danielle Citron, Hate Crimes in Cyberspace
  • Darrell West & John Allen, Turning Point: Policymaking in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
  • James E. Baker, The Centaur’s Dilemma, National Security Law for the Coming AI Revolution

First Class Readings

Class 1 - January 13, 2022. Cyber Disruption – Who Runs the Internet?

Syllabus

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