Restore net neutrality, crucial to democracy

The battle for network neutrality (aka the open internet) is back. It’s something that should have been instituted years ago. In fact, it actually was on the books—until then-President Donald Trump’s Federal Communications Commission Chairman, Ajit Pai, ditched the rules, largely at the behest of the big internet service providers like Verizon, AT&T and Comcast. Net neutrality rules were not only on the books, but were also court-approved. That should have been the end of the matter. Instead, today we have no such rules. Without open internet rules, there is nothing to stop the telecom giants from throttling your service, blocking your access to the net, giving priority access to their own subsidiaries or giving preference to wealthy content providers willing to pay high rates for priority carriage. That means fast lanes for the well-to-do and slow lanes for the rest of us. Combining distribution control with content control is the essence of monopoly. It’s time to put the brakes on the ISPs. They should not be free from oversight, free to throttle, free to block, free to deny privacy, free to favor a few at the expense of the many, and free to run roughshod over perhaps the most liberating and opportunity-creating communications tool in all of history. So, get involved. Let the FCC, your elected representatives, your colleagues and friends know this is important to you and your country. Because it is.

[Michael Copps is a former FCC commissioner and chairman. He is special advisor on Media & Democracy Reform at Common Cause.]