Dems Go Populist on Net Neutrality
- By Ryan Singel
- October 28, 2010 |
- 3:26 pm |
- Categories: Net Neutrality, Politics, Telecommunications
Nearly 100 Democrats gunning for seats in Congress are trying to turn net neutrality into a campaign issue Thursday. They’re casting themselves as the champions of the people against corporations that want to control the net and divide it into fast lanes and slow lanes.
While net fairness rules were a part of President Obama’s campaign platform, they have not been a major part of this year’s heated election cycle, which has been defined by voter anger over economic issues. Democrats are clearly now trying to position themselves as populists fighting greedy corporations as a way of tapping into that zeitgeist.
The so-called Net Neutrality Protectors campaign, launched Thursday by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, is being led by Ann McLane Kuster, a New Hampshire Democrat in a tight race. She’s campaigning as a populist and progressive, a message reflected in the net neutrality statement signed by the Democratic candidates.
I believe in protecting Net Neutrality — the First Amendment of the Internet. The open Internet is a vital engine for free speech, economic opportunity, and civic participation in the 21st century. I stand with millions of working families and small businesses against any attempt by big corporations to control the Internet and eliminate the Internet’s level playing field. In Congress, I’ll fight to protect Net Neutrality for the entire Internet — wired and wireless — and make sure big corporations aren’t allowed to take control of free speech online.
While President Obama promised to prohibit so-called fast lanes on the net, the drive to have federal regulators enforce internet fairness and openness rules has faltered over the first two years of his presidency.
The FCC’s attempt to extend fairness rules to wireless and to expand prohibition on ISPs interfering with traffic they don’t like was derailed when Comcast challenged a Bush-era directive not to block peer-to-peer traffic. Collateral damage from that suit included pre-existing federal principles that guaranteed Americans could use the software, services and computers of their choice. Those “Four Freedoms” were struck down when the judge found that the Bush-era rules were built on air after the FCC deregulated broadband.
The FCC’s attempts to re-establish its authority quickly ran into fierce opposition from telecoms, Republicans and some Democrats. In May, 75 House Democrats and 171 House Republicans signed a letter to the FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski urging him not to regulate ISPs (.pdf), saying it is a matter best left to Congress. Senate Republicans threatened to de-fund the FCC if it proceeded to re-establish rules prohibiting ISPs from discriminating against services like Skype, Netflix or Pandora.
In September, the FCC extended its deliberations, conveniently keeping any controversial decision from being made before the mid-term elections.
Net neutrality rules do not apply to the content on the internet, though Hollywood is pushing for an exception that would allow ISPs to look for and block pirated movies and music. Free-market opponents of the rules argue that there’s enough competition among mobile and landline ISPs to prevent unfair behavior.
Photo: A series of tubes Credit: wheresmysocks
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….and nobody running from New York….
So how come when Google and Verizon propose a legislative framework for network principles, WiRED is in the frontline crying bloody havoc on threats to net neutrality and corporative control, saying Google has become evil – yet when a political party takes up net neutrality and intends to support it at least for a while, you flip right over and act suspicious and paranoid, painting Democrats as nothing short of opportunistic scoundrels?
I’m rather certain the Democrats aren’t the only populists you can see on this page.
@Raspberry
Democrats are opportunistic scoundrels. So are Republicans, for that matter. They’re politicians, for crying out loud!
@ Raspberry – I don’t see any such tone in the article.
If the Dems want to seriously get behind Net Neutrality, then thank God and ask no further questions.
The democrats on pretending to be for net neutrality because they want to be reelected. If they happen to get re-elected, they will abandon these views and go right back to doing what their corporate overlords tell them to do.
Every single one of the candidates who signed this pledge lost. That settles the issue, doesn’t it?