Aki Namioka Interview in the Seattle Press (fwd)

[Doug Tooley]

Hi all:

Here's one version of the my interview with Aki in the Seattle Press
(circulation 25,000 N. of Denny in ?Seattle)  The print version is
available at nearly 700 locations in the North End. 

-Doug


*****
Computer activist Aki Namioka may not be well known to people here in
Seattle outside the circles of the computer and internet cognoscenti.  Her
impact though, like that of the tools she works with, are becoming
increasingly important to all of us. 
 
Here in Seattle we are fortunate to have many of the gurus of the computer
world.  The contributions of Bill Gates and Paul Allen to the computer
business have been and will remain legendary.  Yet as with any technology
it is not the inventor that determines the final impact of the tool, but
the users of it.  Alexander Graham Bell may have invented the telephone,
but the true value (as well as profitability) of the invention is made
with each and every use of the device.

Namioka may well have as much influence over the final adoption of
computer technology as a Gates or Allen.  Namioka's influence will not be
built through well funded corporate public relations strategies but rather
how each and of us uses this technology.  And just as
importantly how our government uses it.
 
She brings the right spirit to the task.  Raised in Montlake she stands as
testimony to the strength and depth of that neighborhood's well thought
out approach to activism.  She is an established professional, working as
a project manager in the computer programming field.  This experience
provides a solid foundation for these after work endeavors, those that
are left after taking care of her Greenwood home.

Namioka is a 1977 graduate of Garfield High school and has obtained two
degrees from the University of Washington.  She is currently employed with
IBM Global Services as an Object-Oriented Application Development
consultant.

Namioka serves as the president of two grass-roots organizations.  The
national organization Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility
(CPSR) and the Seattle Community Network (SCN), a local grass roots
oriented internet organization.

The mission of CPSR is to provide the public and policymakers with
realistic assessments of the power, promise, and problems of information
technology.  Founded in 1981 by a small group of computer scientists
concerned about the use of computers in nuclear weapons systems, CPSR has
grown into a national public-interest alliance of information technology
professionals and others.  CPSR has 22 chapters in the U.S.

Perhaps better know locally is the Seattle Community Network, SCN,
currently with over 10,000 members in the greater Seattle Area.

For our interview we met at the Speakeasy Cafe - Seattle's bohemiam
internet cafe modeled on those of Paris.  We had the opportunity to
discuss many issues of importance to our emerging technological future,
from a perspective decidely different from the voluminous coverage of the
corporate media.  Our conversation ranged over the twin issues of privacy
and censorship, from our local neighborhoods to the international
marketplace, arriving at a cursory overview of current internet and
computer concerns, from the perspective of a responsible citizen.

Though these printed pages don't allow you to join this particular
conversation these issues are being discussed all over the internet.  Feel
free to join in!

*****

Seattle Press - You serve as President of the national
organization,  Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility, CPSR. 
The organization is somewhat unusual in that it is dedicated to acting
as a watchdog an industry by the employees of that industry.  How does
CPSR balance activism and professionalism?  

Aki Namioka - We focus on issues.  CPSR has focused on asking questions i
about what we do on our jobs, for example computers and ethics as well as
reliability and risk issues.  We started out talking about reliability and
risk in military computer systems, specifically the 'Star Wars' nuclear
development effort.

People join CPSR because of a belief in certain policies and to use CPSR
as a vehicle to advance that belief.
 
Caller ID is a great example of a recent issue we've focused on.  With
Caller ID every Regional Bell Operating Company (RBOC), including US West,  
owns the data that is generated and they can do whatever they want
with it, even if you've paid for unlisted service. 

The various RBOC's said we can't do anything about it.  CPSR's response
was to say that it is just a computer program.  They were using the word
can't when the word should have been won't.  Rhetorically we were able to
say - give it to us and we'll 'debug'' it, which had the effect of helping
them to implement a policy they didn't want to implement.

SP - the Communications Decency Act was a major issue this past year.  Are
there any specific risks to privacy or freedom of speech left over from
this initiative?
 
AN - Over the last 2 years in Washington State we've seen similiar
efforts.  There's a significant risk that with a Republican controlled
Legislature that it could happen again.  We are fortunate that Governor
Lowry vetoed both of those efforts and hopefully Governor-elect Gary
Locke will do the same.

At the national level we may see additional efforts as well.  Rick White
(R, 1st Congressional District)  tried to modify CDA to something we
dubbed 'Censorship Light'.  I think we will see attempts again to
implement some form of 'Censorship Light'.
 
Another question is the fallout from the Telecommunications Reform Bill
of 1996.  With the deregulation of the communications industry you are
going to see a lot of mergers which are already starting to happen.  It
will also make it harder for the smaller publishers to be represented, to have access to
the airwaves and other medium.  So I think you are going to see a clamp
down on freedom of speech just from an access standpoint.

SP - Peter Marshall of radio station KSER has accused you of working on
behalf of US West on regulatory issues.  Is there any truth to this?
 
AN - I've never worked on behalf of US West and I've spoken out against
their recent 30% tariff raise request.

SP - US West donated approximately $100,000 to State Legislators in the
last year leading up to their current effort to disband the
Washington Utilities and Telecommunications Commission (WUTC), the
regulatory body here in Washington State.  (Author's note:  This effort
was just abandoned ... at least for now.)
 
AN - I'm certainly opposed to that.  I'm a big supporter of the WUTC.
It's not the case in every State that the telephone company and the
regulatory commission are so separated.

SP - Is the internet competition to US West?

AN - No.  I think the internet is good for US West.  Look at all the
people ordering additional phone lines for internet service as well as fax
lines.
 
SP - There are a lot of local companies offering internet service.  What
sorts of things should one check out when looking into these firms?
 
AN - The Internet as a whole is not a completely reliable infrastructure
right now, certainly not as reliable as other networks, like our road or
electrical distribution networks.
 
Signing up with a smaller company is no different from engaging a small
firm for anything.
 
For a neighborhood group or other non-profit, Seattle Community Network,
SCN, is a great choice.  You can find out more information about them at
any Seattle Public Library Branch. 
 
SP - You also serve as President of the SCN Association - Seattle's
Freenet.  SCN works closely with the Seattle Public Library.  Do you have
any observations about the recent controversy over the termination of SPL
Director Liz Stroup?
 
AN - We've not been impacted.  We are sorry to see Liz go as she has
always been a strong supporter of SCN. 
 
SP - Do you see any risk to the the historical role of the Library as a
provider of open information through these current events?
 
AN - No.  The Liz Stroup concerns seems to be an issue with the Library
Board. Until they find a new Librarian it will be hard to say.
 
Liz had a vision for the Library of the future that included integration
with the internet.  Any public librarian worth their salt is going to have
to be thinking about that.
 
SP - SCN currently receives some of its funding indirectly through the
Seattle Public Library.  Have you been able to use the internet to
advocate for more funding?
 
AN - SCN doesn't receive any direct support.  We see it more as an ally
type of relationship.  For example we're working with Tina Podlodowski on
the "Community Space and Cyberspace" conference.
 
SP - Do you have any favorite internet information resources for
activists?
 
AN - If you are interested in Washington State info go to their home page
and start there.  They also have a service call leginfo which is great way
to keep up on a bill if you know the bill number.  The City of Seattle has
PAN, the public access network. 

For national issues there is also the usenet, which has specific
discussion groups on over 10,000 different topics.  The usenet also has
two forums for local discussion, seattle.general and seattle.politics.
 
I'm serving as the outreach chair for a major conference in March
sponsored by CPSR as part of their series on Directions and
Implications of Advanced Computing called "Community Space and Cyberspace
- what's the connection"  We've got a great list of speakers including
Howard Rheingold, as well as a growing list of co-sponsors.

Local activist Doug Schuler has also written a great book for activists  -
it's called 'New Community Networks, Wired for Change' published in 1996
by Addison Wesley.
 
Lastly I'd really encourage people to send e-mail.  Often legislators
don't hear from public interest people.  It's almost always worthwhile to
send an e-mail message to your representative or City Council person.
 
SP - How do you find e-mail addresses for elected officials?
 
AN - For the Seattle City Council it's firstname.lastname at ci.seattle.wa.us
- so for example Charlie Chong would be 'charlie.chong at ci.seattle.wa.us .
(Author's note: The King County Council is the same format so for example
to send e-mail to Brian Derdowski you'd address it: 
'brian.derdowski at metrokc.gov'.) 

SP - Do many neighborhood organizations work with SCN? > 

AN - Yes.  We work with several neighborhood organizations - I believe our
most recent addition with an ad-hoc group for the Meridian neighborhood at
55th and Meridian.
 
SP - Do you see any risk of the internet becoming a bureaucracy of
activists as opposed to opening up the bureaucracy to more citizen
communication?
 
AN - The bigger threat to the internet is commercialization rather than
too many activists.  
 
SP - Are there other Cities to look at as models?
 
AN - There are several other freenets, like SCN, around North America. 
The National Capital Freenet in Ottowa, Canada is a great example.
Virtually Wired is doing some great work in Boston, just next to the
Boston Commons. 
 
SP -  Are you aware of any situations where the internet has influenced an
election?
 
AN - Clinton/Gore certainly made an issue out of the information
superhighway in '92 and it was important in that election.
 
SP - Both Rick White and Maria Cantwell made the internet an imporant
issue in the First Congressional District - from different parties.  Are
computer issues bi-partisan?
 
AN - Certainly freedom of speech is not breaking down along party lines.
Both very conservative and very liberal people believe in freedom of
speech. 
 
Then of course you get classic liberals like Diane Feinstein and the
Christian Coalition who are both opposed to free speech on the internet.
 
Another example is Paul Zimmerman, author of PGP, Pretty Good Privacy, a
security program.  He received a lot of donations to his legal defense
fund from Republicans and he's been quite grateful for it even though he's
not of that particular political persuasion.
 
Of course it didn't appear to help Maria Cantwell in her election,
unfortunately, because I did like her.
 
Hopefully in the future we'll have more legislators that are technically
savvy.
 
SP - Do you have any political ambitions yourself?
 
AN - No.  There's a long line of people that have asked me that question
and you can join that line.  I don't have any political ambitions myself.
I like the freedom of being able to state my opinion without worrying
about stepping on anybody else's toes.
 
SP - Should the government have any role in the internet?

AN - Government does have a role.  They need to legislate public interest
policy.  I would also like to see Government insure access to the internet
for everyone.  School's should get funding for updated wiring.  Libraries
should get funding.
 
Perhaps corporations and Government should work together, like the
highways were built, to bring the information highway to every home.
 
I think the biggest role for the government is to pass smart laws that
are workable on the internet that insure our continued freedoms on the 
information superhighway as it is built. 

SP - The philosophy of the City of Seattle under Mayor Rice has been to
use government subsidies to support big business to the detriment of small
business.  Do you see the internet as being a threat to small business?
 
AN - As far as I know the fast growing cottage industry around here is web
publishing and Internet Service Providers.
 
The biggest threat is going to come from government not standing up to big
business.
 
SP - Some people say that the internet makes the world a single community,
that it takes down all boundaries.  How can we as individuals, residents
of neighborhoods or small business people maintain our identity in light
of this?
 
AN - Right.  We don't want to become one big electronic blob.  I don't
think the internet is going to cause us to lose our identities.  Some
things are going to breakdown a bit - for example currency and national
boundaries.
 
But there's still so much value in face to face communication and
communities geographically where you are located.  You still have to
participate somehow where you live.
 
One fear that I have is that a lot of cultural identity is based on
language.  The internet, by default, makes English the language of the
world.  Are people going to lose their language or just aquire another
one?

 
 ********* 
Aki Namioka can be reached via e-mail at aki at scn.org.  The
author can be reached at dltooley at speakeasy.org.  For more information
about Seattle Community Network visit your local library; for group web
page information on SCN e-mail nancyk at scn.org






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