.xxx Domains Approved for Porn-Friendly Sites

Listening to the Howard Stern show this morning, Robin Quivers reported in her daily news segment that the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) says that .xxx domains should be available by the end of this year.

"ICANN's vote represents an abrupt turnabout from the group's earlier stance. In November 2000, the ICANN staff objected to the .xxx domain and rejected ICM Registry's first application."

Since then, Politicians lashed out in a debate to use .xxx domains so Internet users can "flag" adult websites and protect children from pornographic material. However, the American Civil Liberties Union is worried that some nations may force sites dealing with sensitive topics like homosexuality or birth control into a .xxx domain where they can be easily blocked.

I'm all for protecting children from porn and explicit material but I would hate to see politicians go overboard on censoring the "World Wide Web."

Get the full story over at CNET.