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Topic: Obscene Publications Act

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	Internet Watch Foundation - Obscene Publications Act 1959 & 1964
		This act makes it an offence to publish, whether for gain or not, any article whose effect, taken as a whole, is such, in the view of the court, to tend to "deprave and corrupt" those likely to read, see or hear the matter contained or embodied in it.
		An Act to amend the law relating to the publication of obscene matter; to provide for the protection of literature; and to strengthen the law concerning pornography.
		The Act is not available to download from the HMSO, but it can be purchased in hard copy from them, for more information, please visit the HMSO web-site.
	www.iwf.org.uk /police/page.22.38.htm (1083 words)

	[No title] (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		However the Obscene Publications Act 1959 provided that this common law offence should not be pursued against a person publishing an article where the essence of the offence is that the article is obscene.
		Although the Act has not disposed of this offence it still should not be used against an accused in order to circumvent the defence of public good that would be available to him under the Obscene Publications Act.
		The act must be an intentional act by the accused, but he need not have an intention to outrage public decency, or even have an appreciation of the risk of such outrage.
	www.lawcf.org /dox/doc_102.doc (3677 words)

	Obscene Publications Act - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
		Since 1857, a series of obscenity laws known as the Obscene Publications Acts have governed what can be published in the United Kingdom.
		Of these, only the 1959 and 1964 acts are still in force in the UK, as amended by more recent legislation.
		Irish law diverged from UK law in 1929, replacing the OPA 1857 with a new Irish act; see Irish statutes relating to censorship.
	en.wikipedia.org /wiki/Obscene_Publications_Act (144 words)

	censorship. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05
		Nevertheless, there have been examples of official political censorship, notably in the actions taken under the Sedition Act of 1798 (see Alien and Sedition Acts), suppression of abolitionist literature in the antebellum South, and local attempts in the 19th and 20th cent.
		The Communications Decency Act, passed by Congress in 1996 and signed by President Bill Clinton, was overturned by the Supreme Court for the restrictions it placed on adult access to and use of constitutionally protected material and communication on the Internet.
		The Children’s Internet Protection Act (2001), which requires libraries and schools to install antipornography filters on computers with federally financed Internet access, was upheld, however, because it was only a condition attached to the acceptance of federal funding and not a general prohibition on access.
	www.bartleby.com /65/ce/censorsh.html (1233 words)

	Obscene Publications Act -- Encyclopædia Britannica
		Its social importance lies in the history of censorship and legislation for the suppression of obscene acts, especially the publication of sexually explicit or indecent matter.
		In the United States Anthony Comstock lobbied to pass an Act for the Suppression of Trade in, and the Circulation of, Obscene Literature and Articles of Immoral Use.
		Hamlet Act III Scene I: To Be Or Not To Be
	www.britannica.com /eb/article-9056666?tocId=9056666 (860 words)

	ON-LINE ISSUES FOR LIVE ART WEB SITES (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		Publication now specifically covers the transmission of electronically stored data which on resolution into human readable form is obscene; thus covering the argument that digitised images themselves are not actual readable images.
		Section 4 of the Act provides that a person shall not be convicted of the offence where it is proved that publication of the article was justified as being for the public good.
		Once publication of the alleged blasphemous material is proved it is for the jury to decide whether it crossed the line between ‘moderate and reasoned criticism of Christianity on the one hand and immoderate or offensive treatment of Christianity or sacred subjects on the other.’
	art.ntu.ac.uk /liveart/issues/Chapter15.htm (1696 words)

	Your Rights: The Right of Free Expression: Criminal law restrictions on freedom of expression: Obscenity
		The law governing obscene publications is to be found principally in the Obscene Publications Act 1959.
		The Obscene Publications Act requires courts to have regard to the effect of the item taken as a whole.
		The most important change introduced by the 1959 Obscene Publications Act was a new defence that publication - in the case of magazines and books - is in the interests of science, literature, art or learning, or of other matters of general concern.
	www.yourrights.org.uk /your-rights/chapters/the-right-of-free-expression/criminal-law-restrictions-on-freedom-of-expression/obscenity.shtml (901 words)

	Untitled Document (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		Photo-processors should handle the very rare cases when potentially indecent or obscene photographs are received with sensitivity and discretion but if such photographs give serious cause for concern, they will need to consult the relevant authorities so that the authorities may decide whether the material warrants further investigation and or prosecution.
		The Protection of Children Act 1978 (as amended), makes it an offence "to take or permit to be taken any indecent photograph of a child" or to possess such a photo without a legitimate reason.
		That, for example, the decision for referral or non referral to the police is soundly based, that reasons are given, so that the decision is founded on proper grounds, not on the whim or the idiosyncrasies of some unbalanced individual.
	www.pmai.org /international/united_kingdom/uk_legal_objectionable_material.htm (1118 words)

	Artquest > The Artlaw Archive > Censorship > Freedom of Expression: part 2 (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		In cases of both import and export, what is obscene is a matter for the customs officers, in the first place, and then for a jury to decide; it is not the same as the meaning of obscene under the Obscene Publications Act 1959 (see below).
		'Obscene': an article is obscene if its effect is, if taken as a whole, such as to tend to deprave and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all relevant circumstances, to read, see or hear the matter contained or embodied in it.
		There are those who seek to challenge this facet of the administration of public exhibitions and also its relationship with the hoary old chestnut of the exercise of aesthetic judgement in the selection of works, for public exhibition.
	www.artquest.org.uk /artlaw/censorship/freeexp2.htm (2006 words)

	BBC - h2g2 - The Obscene Publications Act, 1857
		One of the chief opponents of the Act was Lord Lyndhurst.
		Secondly, the prosecution was brought on the basis that the pamphlet was obscene per se, and therefore it was for the defendant to prove his innocence, not for the Crown to prove his guilt.
		The Act was officially defined in 1868 as applying to work having 'a tendency to deprave and corrupt those whose minds are open to such immoral influences'.
	www.bbc.co.uk /dna/h2g2/A679016 (1369 words)

	FPB History (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		Section 7 of the Act made it an offence, punishable upon conviction, by a fine of "twenty pounds sterling" and, in default of payment, imprisonment "with or without hard labour" for a period not exceeding six months, "or to both such fine and such imprisonment" to send any indecent or obscene material by post.
		The Act provided that the Board shall not approve any film which, "in its opinion, depicts any matter that prejudicially affects the safety of the State, or is calculated to disturb peace or good order, or prejudice the general welfare or be offensive to decency".
		The Films and Publications Act, 1996, is intended to strike a reasonable balance between the fundamental freedoms and rights enshrined in the Constitution and the duty of government to protect the vulnerable from abuse, exploitation and harm as well as contributing to the development of a democratic and human rights culture in South Africa.
	www.fpb.gov.za /documents/history.htm (1513 words)

	Obscene UK
		All publications--including material available via the Internet--are subject to the Obscene Publications Act 1959, which makes it a criminal offence to publish an obscene article; that is, an article which in the view of the court has a tendency to 'deprave and corrupt' those likely to read, see or hear it.
		Boateng: Under the Obscene Publications Act 1959, it is the responsibility of the police in individual cases to decide whether there are sufficient grounds to launch a criminal investigation, and that of the Crown Prosecution Service to decide whether to prosecute those alleged to be responsible for the publication.
		Under section 3 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959, the police are also granted certain powers of search and seizure with respect to obscene articles.
	www.bermuda.org.uk /obscene_uk.htm (744 words)

	The CPS : Obscene Publications
		public safety, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, protection of the reputation or rights of others.
		Section 2(5) of the Act creates a defence for a person who proves that he or she has not examined the article and had no reasonable cause to suspect that it was obscene .
		Most obscene publications relate to magazines, books, films of less than 16mm and video-cassettes of no literary or artistic merit, and the bulk of these are usually dealt with by way of forfeiture proceedings under Section 3 of the 1959 Act.
	www.cps.gov.uk /legal/section12/chapter_e.html (2261 words)

	DGS - Current News & Events
		The "Obscene Publications Act 1959 and 1964" states that an article shall be deemed to be obscene if its effect is such as to tend to deprave and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all relevant circumstances, to read, see or hear the matter contained or embodied in it.
		It is an offence to publish an obscene article or to have an obscene article in ownership, possession or control with a view to publishing it or, where the data is stored electronically, to transmit that data.
		The "Telecommunications Act 1984" makes it an offence to send 'by means of a public telecommunications system, a message or other matter that is grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character' and is an imprisonable offence with a maximum term of six months.
	www.didcotgirls.oxon.sch.uk /security/law.htm (630 words)

	bfi \| Features \| Salò: Salò and censorship - a history
		Unlike the Obscene Publications Act - which at that stage did not apply to films - gross indecency allowed for no defence of artistic or cultural merit to be mounted on the film's behalf.
		By that time the campaign to bring films within the scope of the Obscene Publications Act, which was led by Ferman, had borne fruit in the Criminal Law Act 1977, and the indecency charges were dropped.
		The Obscene Publications Act requires that any film should be considered as a whole and that its more difficult scenes should not be considered in isolation.
	www.bfi.org.uk /features/salo/history.html (2338 words)

	New Developments in UK Internet Law : Snr Mgt
		The Obscene Publications Act 1964, section 1(2) makes it an offence to have an obscene article "in ownership, possession or control" with a view to publishing it for gain.
		Obscene material placed on a Web server will be caught by the Obscene Publications Act 1964 even when an individual simply makes the data available to be transferred or downloaded electronically by others so that they can access the materials and copy them.
		Innocent publication means that the person who published the material in question did not know that it was obscene and had no reasonable cause to believe that its publication would result in liability under the Act.
	www.jisc.ac.uk /index.cfm?name=pub_smbp10ukinternetlaw (3724 words)

	screenonline: 1959 Obscene Publications Act
		The 1959 Obscene Publications Act was introduced in order to resolve issues whereby previous obscenity legislation could also be applied to entirely legitimate works ranging from distinguished novels (
		The aim was both to clarify the law and to, in the words of the Act itself, "provide for the protection of literature".
		To illustrate this, the opening definition of obscenity stresses that the work "taken as a whole" must "tend to deprave and corrupt" - and later on, a section entitled "Defence of public good", specifically exempts work "in the interests of science, literature, art or learning, or of other objects of general concern".
	www.screenonline.org.uk /film/id/593568 (291 words)

	City University - University Policy on Obscene Material via the Internet
		It is clear that the viewing of obscene material constitutes a breach of the conditions of use.
		Using the University's network to send or receive obscene material is a breach by the user of conditions of use and additionally may render the University liable to criminal proceedings as a distributor of such material.
		Leaving child pornography aside, the act of viewing obscene material on the internet is not a criminal offence, though it contravenes conditions of use.
	www.city.ac.uk /cs/conditions/default_print_1_2989_2989.html (1780 words)

	screenonline: Content Legislation
		Similar legislation includes the 1959 Obscene Publications Act (extended to cover films in 1977), the 1978 Protection of Children Act and the 1994 Criminal Justice Act, all of which cover specific areas such as obscenity, indecent images of children and certain types of criminal activity.
		The Act required all video recordings commercially available in Britain to be formally approved by the BBFC, which massively expanded its operations as a result.
		The 1957 and 1988 Acts established the copyright period of a film as being fifty years from the date of its registration, which was redefined in 1995 by European Union Directive 93/98 to the date of death of the last significant creative contributor plus seventy years.
	www.screenonline.org.uk /film/id/790199 (402 words)

	Libido: Naked Brunch: Un-Banning Books (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		The case testing the act was the prosecution in the 1860s of a militant Protestant.
		Hicklin provided that a search warrant could be issued on sworn information -- by anyone -- that obscene publications were kept for sale or distribution on any premises, and that the owner of these materials had to show cause why they should not be destroyed.
		Her experience as a public health nurse in New York’s tenements in the early 20th century and her study with sexologist Havelock Ellis in London convinced her that family limitation was a necessary step in social progress, especially where poverty was a factor.
	www.libidomag.com /nakedbrunch/archive/unbanning02.html (1272 words)

	House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 2 Nov 1998 (pt 22)
		The Obscene Publications Act 1959, as amended, has shown itself capable of reflecting changing standards and of adapting to developments in technology.
		Provisional data for 1997 show that 189 offenders were convicted in England and Wales under section 2 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 as amended by section 1(1) of the Obscene Publications Act 1964.
		Under the Obscene Publications Act 1959, it is the responsibility of the police in individual
	www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk /pa/cm199798/cmhansrd/vo981102/text/81102w22.htm (1275 words)

	Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001
		The power of seizure conferred by section 9(1) of the Official Secrets Act 1911 (seizure of evidence that an offence under that Act has been or is about to be committed).
		The power of seizure conferred by section 2(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 1987 (seizure of documents for the purposes of an investigation under section 1 of that Act).
		The power of seizure conferred by sections 7(2) and 8(1) of the Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) Act 1990 (seizure of evidence of commission outside the United Kingdom of an arrestable offence or of an offence punishable in Scotland by imprisonment).
	www.opsi.gov.uk /acts/acts2001/10016--j.htm (2038 words)

	Bermuda Arts Council: Student Grants (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		The definition of "obscenity" in art is an emotive and complicated issue for the academics and the law courts to debate, however it is important to note that ultimately it is a community that defines its own boundaries, not an individual¹s opinion that is then enforced by the authorities.
		When dealing with art in the public domain, may we suggest a potentially more appropriate treatment of the situation: that the police register the complaint, the relevant artist/institution be notified and no further action taken unless more complaints are received.
		Where a consultation is neither practical, nor possible, the officer must at least be satisfied that three complainants are known, and that the seizure is in the public interest and that the test of obscenity is likely to be attained given the circumstances of the case.
	www.liquidlight.bm /BermudaArt/ArtsCouncil/police.html (426 words)

	Content regulation \| Business Link (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		The Office of Communications Act 2002 and the Communications Act 2003 established Ofcom as the regulator for the TV and radio broadcasting sector.
		Protection of Children Act 1978 which made it an offence to show, distribute or possess indecent photographs of children under sixteen.
		Sexual Offences Act 2003 which changed the Protection of Children Act 1978 definition of a child from a person aged under sixteen to one aged under eighteen.
	www.businesslink.gov.uk /bdotg/action/detail?type=RESOURCES&itemId=1074504257 (744 words)

	‘The World This Weekend’ feature on Robert Mapplethorpe. (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		But one of the architects of the Act, Lord St John of Fawsley, says it should be the ideal vehicle to decide once and for all, the Mapplethorpe issue.
		But the Mapplethorpe, this particular book, it could be judged quite happily under the Obscene Publications Act and if it was found to have redeeming features of artistic value or literary value, or something of that kind, then the book would be free.
		Barnie Choudhury: The former head of Scotland Yards Obscene Publications Squad, Michael Haynes, knows that enforcing the Act is subjective, a Mapplethorpe exhibition at the Haywood Gallery in London was sanctioned by the Metropolitan Police.
	www.uce.ac.uk /mapplethorpe/press/worldwe.htm (1451 words)

	Electronic Law Journals - JILT 1997 (1) - Akdeniz 1 (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-22)
		Section 43 of the 1984 Act makes it an offence to send 'by means of a public telecommunications system, a message or other matter that is grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character' and is an imprisonable offence with a maximum term of six months.
		Under section 160 of the 1988 Act as amended by section 84(4) of the CJPOA 1994, it is an offence for a person to have any indecent photograph or pseudo-photograph of a child in his possession.
		Pornography is the central focus of public concern in the US about the Internet and with the introduction of the Communications Decency Act 1996 [22], there has been a serious attempt to regulate it by the US government.
	www2.warwick.ac.uk /fac/soc/law/elj/jilt/1997_1/akdeniz1 (11563 words)

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