THE FEDERAL Trade Commission recently has filed lawsuits against the originators of illegal chain letters and pyramids via SPAM e-mail. The FTC's attack should expand to include legal standards that temper Web ads and pop up windows. University students and faculty should petition the FTC and lawmakers to restrict such problematic advertising.
Advertisers currently are protected from regulation under arguments of free speech and unregulated commerce. In an academic community, however, the Web is used increasingly as a means for undergraduate research, and pop-up ads can be nauseatingly counter-productive. Schools and universities are great examples of Web users that are harmed by excessive advertisement. Furthermore, proposed FTC regulations would allow advertisers to continue advertising, only with less obnoxious methods.
Pop-up advertisements have increasingly negative effects for students who don't make purchases over the Internet. Some students may devote special time to shopping around for the best deal on home security cameras, but not everyone is looking for one that is hypersensitive to women prowling around in swimsuits. Likewise, although many students have used the Internet to book a great spring break deal, advertisers shouldn't resort to sending photos from the last wet tee-shirt contest to students' computers to lure them away from their purpose in searching the Web.
Advertising on the Internet has greatly proliferated in the last year or two. While initially banners and sidebars were necessary evils that easily could be ignored, the current inconvenience of pop-up windows and windows behind windows can be likened to a chronic hemorrhoid.
These advertisers are incorrigible. In one instance, an advertisement for the popular Nintendo X-box hovered in front of the mouse as I tried to browse a certain Web site. It was as if Nintendo had done psychological tests to follow the eyes of average Web users to determine where they would seek to use their mouse. Instead of wanting to buy an X-Box, I was tempted to ram one into the windshield of a car.
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In another instance, as a Web site was loaded on the screen, I noticed four more windows open underneath the primary window. The objective in this scheme is that when the primary window is closed, there are four more advertisements that the user must evaluate and close before he can log off the Web browser. In this case, however, all the advertisements were exactly the same. The woman in the short skirt appeared to be taunting me as she bent over and back up again, welcoming me to whatever sexual lair lay one click away.
Like a responsible Web user, I quickly found the "x" in the corner and left this temptation only to find 3 more waiting beneath it. When on the last similar advertisement, I couldn't find the traditional "x" in the top right corner, I clicked the close button written into the advertisement. This, I found, was some demonic trigger that brought me to just 3 more chances to enter the seductress' lounge. Only later did I come to find that "alt" plus "F4" is the magic keyboard combination that closes all windows. Regardless, I escaped the series of temptations and avoided mortal sin.
When informative text is the primary goal of Internet searches, advertisements for Bahamas cruises only serve as an annoyance. Furthermore, as students strive to meet ITC guidelines of proper computer usage, or maintain good moral choices while surfing the Web, these advertisements easily lead them astray to wasteful and derogatory Web usage.
As more and more relevant information about our quickly changing world becomes available on the Web, top institutions like the University must stay on pace. As students look for an update on the war against terrorism, the evils of female degradation and unseemly decadence threaten to undermine the fabric of our integrity.
Student Council candidates should take this issue up in the current campaign. Our students and faculty should demand a more efficient electronic academic community. They can begin by petitioning for a federal commission to regulate Web advertisements.
The Board of Visitors is appointed by the governor and confirmed by the General Assembly. They should use what political influence they have to convince lawmakers to protect the University from these vulgar attempts at costly commercialism. By voicing real concerns over the rules on the Internet, students could call to the Board and FTC's attention the tangible problem with which they wrestle.
The Internet, as a source of information, should not disintegrate into an onslaught of seedy advertisements. Without rules and regulations, the power of a profit will override the University's academic pursuits.
This University was architecturally designed for the most effective educational experience. This design encompassed formal classrooms and extracurricular activities. The Web often is a primary source of student research, and is an integral part of the modern academic community. It should be preserved for the greatest possible environment of learning and living.
(Matt West's column appears Thursdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at mwest@cavalierdaily.com).
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