SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER

Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.

* indicates required
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
The Progressive

NewsWire

A project of Common Dreams

For Immediate Release
Contact:

 

A Dangerous Congressional Overreach on Net Neutrality

Free Press Research Director S. Derek Turner testified on Thursday on behalf of the Free Press Action Fund and the SavetheInternet.com coalition before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology. Turner's testimony was part of a hearing on House Joint Resolution 37, a "resolution of disapproval" that seeks to overturn the Net Neutrality rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission in December.

WASHINGTON

Free Press Research Director S. Derek Turner testified on Thursday on behalf of the Free Press Action Fund and the SavetheInternet.com coalition before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology. Turner's testimony was part of a hearing on House Joint Resolution 37, a "resolution of disapproval" that seeks to overturn the Net Neutrality rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission in December.

In his testimony, Turner criticized the resolution, calling it a "solution in search of a problem."

As advocates for Net Neutrality, Free Press and the Free Press Action Fund opposed the FCC's rules because they failed to adequately preserve and protect the open Internet on both wired and wireless platforms. But in his testimony, Turner called the congressional effort to overturn the rules a dangerous overreach.

He said:

Unfortunately, the debate around nondiscrimination has become immune to the calming powers of historical fact and susceptible to the ills of powerful special-interest politics and false partisan frames.

    This resolution will leave consumers completely unprotected. It will remove the limited certainty that the FCC's rules provide. Most importantly, it will bar the FCC from addressing even flagrant censorship and anti-competitive activities in the future. The principle of non-discrimination, which is the bedrock of Net Neutrality policy, was not always the political football it is today.

Click here for a copy of Turner's full remarks. Click here for Turner's full written testimony.

Free Press was created to give people a voice in the crucial decisions that shape our media. We believe that positive social change, racial justice and meaningful engagement in public life require equitable access to technology, diverse and independent ownership of media platforms, and journalism that holds leaders accountable and tells people what's actually happening in their communities.

(202) 265-1490