July 2017

[Commentary] Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai plans to eliminate net neutrality protections. Without these protections, big internet service providers like Comcast, Verizon, and AT&T will be free to block or slow down content as they see fit. We, as former FCC commissioners, believe that these rules are the only way of preserving real net neutrality that protects the internet as an economic engine and platform for democratic discourse.

If Chairman Pai has his way, we could see an Internet where big cable companies decide who should have a voice and which businesses succeed and fail. Only the current net neutrality rules give the FCC the authority to ensure that the Internet remains open for all, and can remain a watchdog to stop bad behavior before it harms consumers and innovation. Americans in both parties believe the government should prioritize preventing companies from harming consumers before it occurs. Eliminating or watering down the net neutrality rules would do just the opposite, giving companies free reign to control what Americans see and do on the Internet, changing the profound effect the open Internet has on the economy and our democracy.

Strong net neutrality rules are important to the future of continued innovation, free speech, and economic opportunity. Proponents of a free and open internet should ensure their support is heard by filing comments at the FCC. And, if we want an internet that truly lives up to our country’s ideals, the current FCC chairman better listen to the citizens he serves.

[Michael Copps is the Special Advisor at Common Cause and former FCC Commissioner and Gloria Tristani is a Special Policy Advisor at National Hispanic Media Coalition and former FCC Commissioner.]

Congressional Democrats are calling on the Federal Communications Commission to review its cybersecurity protocols following a May cyberattack that knocked the agency’s commenting system offline, and ahead of online activism in support of net neutrality.

Ranking House Democrats on two committees —Commerce and Oversight, as well as their relevant subcommittees — first sent a letter to the three FCC commissioners on June 26, expressing their concerns about the agency’s cyber preparedness and the attack’s impact on net neutrality comments. “Recent events have raised questions about the security of the FCC’s network, and we have serious concerns that the FCC’s website failures deprive the public of opportunities to comment on net neutrality — an issue that affects everyone who uses the internet,” the six Democrats wrote. The same six Democrats followed up with a letter to the Government Accountability Office on July 7 that asked the office to examine the FCC’s “information technology and information security practices.”