| Chapter 2: | Background |
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Chapter 2
Background
This chapter provides an overview of the history surrounding Internet hate sites. The chapter begins with a discussion about the evolution of U.S.-based hate sites and how legal and communication scholars have responded to the growth of these Web sites. Next, a review of the analyses of hate site content appearing in the literature of communication studies is provided. The chapter concludes with a summary of the communication literature relating to hate site content.
The Evolution of U.S.-Based Hate Sites
The 1990s: Internet Speech and Hate Speech at Issue
Once only accessible by persons working in military or research facilities, the online network that is known today as the “Internet” became available to the general public in 1990 (Lawley & Summerhill, 1993; McKay, 1996). Largely free of government regulation, the Internet allowed for robust and unfettered communication on a global scale. As improvements were made to computer technologies and the communications infrastructure, the number of persons engaging in online communication rapidly proliferated throughout the 1990s.