Pioneers steer the course of cyberspace

0 Comments | USA TODAY, June, 2008 | by Jon Swartz

Some of the most important issues in technology are being debated -- and defined -- in a yellow wood-frame house on the edge of Harvard Law School's campus.

Inside the 3,100-square-foot cottage, technology executives and academics gather to argue, debate and set policy about the Internet's toughest questions. Is the Internet bad for democracy? Should all Internet traffic be treated equally? What happens when much-praised "open" systems are abused? When and how should copyrighted material be shared online?

The conclusions reached at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society have a far-reaching impact on public policy in the USA and abroad. Even more impressive -- the Berkman Center has been a major force for 10 years, an eon in Web time.

"We wanted...