Mike Godwin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mike Godwin
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| Born |
Michael Wayne Godwin
October 26, 1956 |
| Education | University of Texas, Austin (BA, JD) |
| Known for | Godwin's law |
Michael Wayne Godwin (born October 26, 1956) is an American lawyer and writer. He is famous for creating something called Godwin's law, which is a rule about online discussions. He also helped popularize the idea of an Internet meme, which are funny pictures or videos that spread quickly online.
Mike Godwin was the very first lawyer for the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). This group works to protect people's rights and freedoms on the internet. Later, he was the main lawyer for the Wikimedia Foundation, the organization behind Wikipedia. He has also worked with other groups that focus on internet rules and privacy.
Early Life and Education
Mike Godwin grew up in Houston, Texas. He went to Lamar High School. After high school, he studied at the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1980.
Later, he went to law school at the University of Texas School of Law and became a lawyer in 1990. While he was in law school, he was the editor of the student newspaper, The Daily Texan.
In 1990, while still in law school, Mike Godwin helped share information about a big event. The United States Secret Service raided a company called Steve Jackson Games. Mike Godwin knew the owner, Steve Jackson, and helped make sure people knew what was happening. This event was later written about in a book called The Hacker Crackdown.
Working for Internet Freedom
Because of his involvement in the Steve Jackson Games case, Mike Godwin was hired by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) in 1990. The EFF was a new group at the time. As their first in-house lawyer, he helped them support Steve Jackson Games in their lawsuit against the Secret Service. Steve Jackson Games won the case in 1993.
As a lawyer for the EFF, Mike Godwin worked on important cases that protected free speech online. One big case was against a law called the Communications Decency Act in 1996. The Supreme Court decided that this law went against the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech. Mike Godwin's work on these cases is described in his book, Cyber Rights: Defending Free Speech in the Digital Age.
Mike Godwin has also worked for other groups that protect digital rights. He was a lawyer for the Center for Democracy and Technology. He also wrote columns for magazines like The American Lawyer and Reason.
From 2003 to 2005, he worked at Public Knowledge, a group that deals with intellectual property law. He focused on how digital rights management (DRM) affects copyright laws. DRM is technology that controls how you can use digital content, like music or movies. While at Public Knowledge, he helped stop a rule that would have put DRM restrictions on television.
From 2007 to 2010, Mike Godwin was the main lawyer for the Wikimedia Foundation. This is the group that runs Wikipedia. He once said that "The best answer for bad speech is more speech." This means that if someone says something wrong, the best way to fix it is for others to share correct information.
In 2010, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) asked Wikipedia to remove their official seal from the website. Mike Godwin wrote a funny letter back, saying no. He explained that the FBI's understanding of the law was "incorrect."
Mike Godwin has also supported net neutrality. This is the idea that internet service providers should treat all data on the internet equally. He was part of the Internet Society board, which helps guide the future of the internet.
In 2021, Mike Godwin worked for TikTok, a popular social media app. He focused on making sure the platform was safe and trustworthy for users.
Personal Life
In 2017, Mike Godwin married Sienghom Ches. They met in Cambodia when Mike Godwin was there helping activists write an "internet Bill of Rights."
See also
In Spanish: Mike Godwin para niños
