Administration has 'great trepidation' about the UN governing the Internet

The Obama Administration is working to keep Internet freedom and governance outside the control of the United Nations. Michael Posner, an assistant Secretary of State, said that the State Department does not think the United Nations is the best body for governing Internet freedom, the principle that governments should not block Internet content and access. "We have a range of anxieties about throwing this issue into the United Nations," Posner said. "We have great trepidation that if this becomes a UN-sponsored initiative, all the governments that have the greatest interest in regulating and controlling content and protecting against dissident speech in their own countries would be very loud voices." He said the State Department is looking for "alternatives that provide some form of governance without ... a race to the bottom." Posner added that the UN has a lot of important roles to play in other domains.