"The eruption of grassroots support had an impact, and the bill passed the subcommittee vote without issue," Fight for the Future said in a statement. (Image: Sen. Patty Murray/Twitter)
Mar 26, 2019
The House Communications and Technology Subcommittee Tuesday passed the Save the Internet Act and overcame the telecom industry's last-minute efforts to gut the bill--all as more than 300,000 internet users watched the proceedings throughout the day.
"Politicians are slowly learning that they can't get away with shilling for big telecom anymore."
--Evan Greer, Fight for the Future
"So many people were watching an obscure subcommittee hearing on the Save the Net Act today that it broke the counter," tweeted the digital rights group Fight for the Future.
The subcommittee vote came as major websites, individual internet users, and online communities all spread the livestream of the hearing across the web to stop telecom-backed lawmakers from weakening the Save the Internet Act.
"The eruption of grassroots support had an impact, and the bill passed the subcommittee vote without issue," Fight for the Future, which spearheaded the online campaign, said in a statement. "In the end, only one amendment was introduced, and it was withdrawn after pushback from the majority, emboldened by the swell in activism."
\u201cWE DID IT!\n\nWe set out to make the livestream of the #SaveTheNet committee vote go viral.\n\nIn the end, more than 300,000 people tuned in\n\nto watch an obscure procedural vote\n\non #NetNeutrality\n\nAnd we won!\n\nAnd stopped Big Cable's bad amendments.\n\nOnward!\n\nhttps://t.co/xSJHbLq2Wn\u201d— @team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon (@@team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon) 1553624450
Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future, toldVice that online attention on the hearing "really emboldened the Democrats and shored up the ones that were wobbling."
The Save the Internet Act, "unscathed" by telecom amendments, now heads to the House Energy and Commerce Committee before reaching the full House for a vote as early as next month. If passed, the legislation would fully restore the net neutrality protections repealed by the Republican-controlled FCC in 2017.
"Net neutrality is coming back with a vengeance," Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future, said in a statement. "Politicians are slowly learning that they can't get away with shilling for big telecom anymore. We're harnessing the power of the internet to save it, and any lawmaker who stands in our way will soon face the wrath of their constituents."
\u201cBig win today. But we can't let up for a second. Full committee vote comes next, then House floor, then the Senate. Onward! https://t.co/xP1TlvVGT2\u201d— @team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon (@@team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon) 1553623225
In a statement, Candace Clement--campaign director at Free Press Action--applauded the House subcommittee for "taking the first step toward restoring net neutrality."
"Support for this bill is growing every day, and it's easy to see why," Clement said.
According to Comparitech poll released last week, 80 percent of Americans--including 77 percent of Republicans--support net neutrality protections.
"Companies like Comcast, of course, don't care about any of that. Industry lobbyists are resorting to their usual tricks to torpedo this bill," Clement said. "We thank the subcommittee majority for rejecting any industry-friendly amendments that might have undermined the Save the Internet Act, and we call on lawmakers to keep listening to their constituents and moving a clean bill forward."
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
The House Communications and Technology Subcommittee Tuesday passed the Save the Internet Act and overcame the telecom industry's last-minute efforts to gut the bill--all as more than 300,000 internet users watched the proceedings throughout the day.
"Politicians are slowly learning that they can't get away with shilling for big telecom anymore."
--Evan Greer, Fight for the Future
"So many people were watching an obscure subcommittee hearing on the Save the Net Act today that it broke the counter," tweeted the digital rights group Fight for the Future.
The subcommittee vote came as major websites, individual internet users, and online communities all spread the livestream of the hearing across the web to stop telecom-backed lawmakers from weakening the Save the Internet Act.
"The eruption of grassroots support had an impact, and the bill passed the subcommittee vote without issue," Fight for the Future, which spearheaded the online campaign, said in a statement. "In the end, only one amendment was introduced, and it was withdrawn after pushback from the majority, emboldened by the swell in activism."
\u201cWE DID IT!\n\nWe set out to make the livestream of the #SaveTheNet committee vote go viral.\n\nIn the end, more than 300,000 people tuned in\n\nto watch an obscure procedural vote\n\non #NetNeutrality\n\nAnd we won!\n\nAnd stopped Big Cable's bad amendments.\n\nOnward!\n\nhttps://t.co/xSJHbLq2Wn\u201d— @team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon (@@team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon) 1553624450
Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future, toldVice that online attention on the hearing "really emboldened the Democrats and shored up the ones that were wobbling."
The Save the Internet Act, "unscathed" by telecom amendments, now heads to the House Energy and Commerce Committee before reaching the full House for a vote as early as next month. If passed, the legislation would fully restore the net neutrality protections repealed by the Republican-controlled FCC in 2017.
"Net neutrality is coming back with a vengeance," Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future, said in a statement. "Politicians are slowly learning that they can't get away with shilling for big telecom anymore. We're harnessing the power of the internet to save it, and any lawmaker who stands in our way will soon face the wrath of their constituents."
\u201cBig win today. But we can't let up for a second. Full committee vote comes next, then House floor, then the Senate. Onward! https://t.co/xP1TlvVGT2\u201d— @team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon (@@team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon) 1553623225
In a statement, Candace Clement--campaign director at Free Press Action--applauded the House subcommittee for "taking the first step toward restoring net neutrality."
"Support for this bill is growing every day, and it's easy to see why," Clement said.
According to Comparitech poll released last week, 80 percent of Americans--including 77 percent of Republicans--support net neutrality protections.
"Companies like Comcast, of course, don't care about any of that. Industry lobbyists are resorting to their usual tricks to torpedo this bill," Clement said. "We thank the subcommittee majority for rejecting any industry-friendly amendments that might have undermined the Save the Internet Act, and we call on lawmakers to keep listening to their constituents and moving a clean bill forward."
The House Communications and Technology Subcommittee Tuesday passed the Save the Internet Act and overcame the telecom industry's last-minute efforts to gut the bill--all as more than 300,000 internet users watched the proceedings throughout the day.
"Politicians are slowly learning that they can't get away with shilling for big telecom anymore."
--Evan Greer, Fight for the Future
"So many people were watching an obscure subcommittee hearing on the Save the Net Act today that it broke the counter," tweeted the digital rights group Fight for the Future.
The subcommittee vote came as major websites, individual internet users, and online communities all spread the livestream of the hearing across the web to stop telecom-backed lawmakers from weakening the Save the Internet Act.
"The eruption of grassroots support had an impact, and the bill passed the subcommittee vote without issue," Fight for the Future, which spearheaded the online campaign, said in a statement. "In the end, only one amendment was introduced, and it was withdrawn after pushback from the majority, emboldened by the swell in activism."
\u201cWE DID IT!\n\nWe set out to make the livestream of the #SaveTheNet committee vote go viral.\n\nIn the end, more than 300,000 people tuned in\n\nto watch an obscure procedural vote\n\non #NetNeutrality\n\nAnd we won!\n\nAnd stopped Big Cable's bad amendments.\n\nOnward!\n\nhttps://t.co/xSJHbLq2Wn\u201d— @team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon (@@team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon) 1553624450
Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future, toldVice that online attention on the hearing "really emboldened the Democrats and shored up the ones that were wobbling."
The Save the Internet Act, "unscathed" by telecom amendments, now heads to the House Energy and Commerce Committee before reaching the full House for a vote as early as next month. If passed, the legislation would fully restore the net neutrality protections repealed by the Republican-controlled FCC in 2017.
"Net neutrality is coming back with a vengeance," Evan Greer, deputy director of Fight for the Future, said in a statement. "Politicians are slowly learning that they can't get away with shilling for big telecom anymore. We're harnessing the power of the internet to save it, and any lawmaker who stands in our way will soon face the wrath of their constituents."
\u201cBig win today. But we can't let up for a second. Full committee vote comes next, then House floor, then the Senate. Onward! https://t.co/xP1TlvVGT2\u201d— @team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon (@@team@fightforthefuture.org on Mastodon) 1553623225
In a statement, Candace Clement--campaign director at Free Press Action--applauded the House subcommittee for "taking the first step toward restoring net neutrality."
"Support for this bill is growing every day, and it's easy to see why," Clement said.
According to Comparitech poll released last week, 80 percent of Americans--including 77 percent of Republicans--support net neutrality protections.
"Companies like Comcast, of course, don't care about any of that. Industry lobbyists are resorting to their usual tricks to torpedo this bill," Clement said. "We thank the subcommittee majority for rejecting any industry-friendly amendments that might have undermined the Save the Internet Act, and we call on lawmakers to keep listening to their constituents and moving a clean bill forward."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.