Two days ago, I found out alongside everybody else that net neutrality was dead. As a history lover intimately familiar with why free press is so important, this decision outraged me. If you were also appalled and incensed by the decision, I have some good news: thanks to a petition on FreePress.net, there is a slim, slim chance that the FCC could still reverse the verdict and get net neutrality back. You can sign the petition here.
If you are new to this story and not sure why everybody’s freaking out about this, I’ll explain. The FCC’s proposed “net neutrality” rule was designed to stop Internet providers from controlling the sites you do or do not visit when browsing the Net. And thanks to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision to kill that rule, Internet providers can now block you from visiting websites that your provider company may not agree with. They can also make deals with websites to ensure you come visit them, because you won’t have any other choice. According to the BBC, the FCC's rule was challenged by Verizon, who claimed that the FCC was “overstepping its legal authority;” a claim the court agreed with.
You could see this online everywhere you look in a year or two
After providing a link to Slate’s article on the topic as well as a link to the FreePress petition, Tumblr user thehpalliance put the impending consequences of the court’s ruling best:
“So, let’s say the only internet service provider in your area is Time Warner Cable, but they decided to block Tumblr from their customers while also deciding to cut a deal with Facebook that makes it run faster. Without any say in the matter, you no longer have access to your blog and have to start spending your time on Facebook, the land without gifs.”
If you are somebody not addicted to Tumblr or any other social media site, this might not trouble you — so you have to switch from Tumblr to Facebook (first-world problems much)?
But what about when Time Warner Cable makes a deal with Bing, so you can no longer search for things on Google? Or if they decide they don’t like the political websites you visit, or if they have a deal with an online newspaper you don’t agree with and block the one that you do?
This isn’t just about accessing your Twitter feed if Verizon decides they hate Twitter. Without net neutrality, Internet service providers can essentially control what you see, hear, and do on the Net—they literally have a legal right to stop you from seeing information they don’t want you to see. If that doesn’t concern you, I strongly suggest you brush up on your history.
Sign the petition below:
Source Slate, FreePress.net, BBC
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