First, libraries have sought to protect patrons (especially children) and staff

members from accidentally viewing sexually explicit images, or other Web pages

containing content deemed harmful, that other patrons are viewing on the Internet.  For

example, some librarians who testified described situations in which patrons left sexually

explicit images minimized on an Internet terminal so that the next patron would see them

when they began using it, or in which patrons printed sexually explicit images from a

Web site and left them at a public printer.  

Second, libraries have attempted to protect patrons from unwittingly or

accidentally accessing Web pages that they do not wish to see while they are using the

Internet.  For example, the Memphis Shelby County (Tennessee) Public Library's

Internet use policy states that the library  employs filtering technology to reduce the

possibility that customers may encounter objectionable content in the form of depictions

of full nudity and sexual acts.  

Third, libraries have sought to keep patrons (again, especially children) from

intentionally accessing sexually explicit materials or other materials that the library

deems inappropriate.  For example, a study of the Tacoma Public Library's Internet use

logs for the year 2000 showed that users between the ages of 11 and 15 accounted for

41% of the filter blocks that occurred on library computers.  The study, which we credit,

concluded that children and young teens were actively seeking to access sexually explicit

images in the library.  The Greenville Library's Board of Directors was particularly

concerned that patrons were accessing obscene materials in the public library in violation

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