To the Point
Should Government Regulate the Internet?
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Should Government Regulate the Internet?

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Should the Internet be left free to empower its tens of millions of users? What are the possibilities for abuse? Is government regulation needed or would that destroy a lot of what's good about the Internet in the first place? We look at this week's so-called "eG8" summit between heads of state and industry leaders. Also, Secretary of State Clinton warns Pakistan that relations are at a "turning point," and the restaurant that catered to all kinds of celebrities — and to all of New York, served its last meal last night. We talk with the writer Gay Talese.

Banner image: Entrance of the e-G8 meeting gathering Internet and information technologies leaders and experts at the Tuileries gardens in Paris on May 24, 2011. Photo: Lionel Bonaventure/AFP/Getty Images

Making News

Clinton Warns Pakistan that Relations Are at a 'Turning Point' ()

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is the highest-ranking US official to visit Pakistan since the killing of Osama bin Laden.  She warned Pakistani leaders today that, "relations have reached a turning point." Matthew Rosenberg, South Asia correspondent for the Wall Street Journal, joins us from Islamabad.

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Main Topic

The Benefits and the Risks of Internet Freedom ()

French President Nicolas Sarkozy says the Internet is so pervasive that governments must regulate it or face what he calls "anarchy." At his so-called eG8 summit, he got push-back from the leaders of Amazon, Facebook and Google, and from other heads of state as well. The pervasiveness of the Internet has empowered millions of people and made it a force for democracy, but it's also a threat to privacy, intellectual property rights, national security and social morality. If they're left alone, will private Internet companies use that power for their own interests? What benefits might be lost if governments decide to step in?

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Reporter's Notebook

New York's Famed Eatery, Social Hub Elaine's Closes Its Doors ()

After its opening in 1963, Elaine's became one of the most famous night spots in America, with regulars ranging from Jacquie Kennedy to Frank Sinatra to Woody Allen. Last night, just six months after the death of Elaine Kaufman at the age of 81, Elaine's closed its doors and ended an era. Today's New York Times reports that "whatever happened in Elaine's not only never stayed in Elaine's, but often found its way onto the pages of newspapers, magazines and books." One of the regulars was writer Gay Talese, whose memories go back to meeting Elaine Kauffman herself just a year after the restaurant opened.

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