PARENTAL RESPONSIBILITY VS. CENSORSHIP

Opponents of anew Senate planto ban "indecent" material from the Internet and online servicesnow have a powerful ally in House Speaker Newt Gingrich.House members are already planning a far less restrictive approach: Reps. Christopher Cox (R-Calif.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) are pushing a plan to give parents, not the government, the power to block children's access to sexually explicit or obscene materials.TIME's Philip Elmer-DeWittsays the bill also would removeliability for online providersthat try to screen out obscene material themselves. A legal ruling against Prodigy last month held the service accountable for users' electronic postings precisely because the company made aggressive policing efforts.