The first Amendment of the United States Constitution grants we the people many inalienable freedoms and protections. Throughout the years, various organizations and political parties, our own government included, have challenged many of these freedoms and immutable rights. Therefore, in order to protect these freedoms to the ever-changing times, our government has ratified numerous acts and amendments via our system of checks and balances. Some of these acts include: the Patriot Act, the E-Government Act, and the Education Reform Act. Our government even has gone so far as to appoint a committee to oversee, update, and post these rights and restrictions, establishing the EPIC.
Knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own governors, must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives. A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy or perhaps both. (Madison).
This quote, made by one of our forefathers, adorns the beginning of the EPIC's web page and clearly demonstrates the power of knowledge and its correct application. This is what the EPIC is all about. The EPIC, also known as the Electronic Privacy Information Center, is a governmental agency that has been established to enable public knowledge to many the rights and regulations that one has to abide by when utilizing electronic media in the United States. Through a website, the EPIC lets" the public become educated about the rights and restrictions that surround them and their freedoms existing in the digital world. Various topics and issues are included throughout their website that can aid the average person in learning more about these rights. Also contained are many publications regarding current media issues, federal agency reports, executive orders, and bills that are trying to make their way through our legislative system.