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For Immediate Release
May, 14 2019, 12:00am EDT
Contact:
Timothy Karr: 201-533-8838,,tkarr@freepress.net
WASHINGTON
On Tuesday, Free Press released "Connecting the Dots: The Telecommunications Crisis in Puerto Rico," a report on how the destruction of communications networks following Hurricanes Irma and Maria contributed to the unfolding tragedy.
The report condemns the Federal Communications Commission for failing to adequately respond to the September 2017 hurricanes, which knocked out 95 percent of all cell sites, 97 percent of radio stations and all local television stations. It calls out the agency's failure to hold wired and wireless carriers to account for neglecting to build resilient networks or respond in a timely or sufficient fashion to restore communications to the islands' residents. The report urges the FCC to form an independent commission to investigate the communications crisis, which contributed to the deaths of thousands.
"The disaster can't be separated from the history of more than 100 years of U.S. colonialism in Puerto Rico," the report reads, "a history of wealth extraction, systemic racism and economic exploitation that left the islands' critical infrastructure -- including the communications networks -- fragile and vulnerable."
Also on Tuesday, Free Press released the FCC's initial response to its ongoing Freedom of Information Act request for consumer complaints received from wired and wireless customers in Puerto Rico following the hurricanes' devastation. The complaints offer a small window into a much larger problem in Puerto Rico, where many of the principal carriers promised automatic refunds and relief for the extensive loss of services but seemingly failed to deliver.
The Free Press report and FOIA response reveal a shocking double standard at the Trump FCC, where the agency has failed to investigate and hold carriers accountable for the widespread and prolonged outages following Hurricanes Irma and Maria. By contrast, the FCC conducted a far more rigorous investigation into the communications failures that followed Hurricane Michael, which struck Florida in October 2018. But the FCC has ignored calls to conduct a similar analysis in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
Connecting the Dots features the perspectives of people living in Puerto Rico. Free Press worked in partnership with Resilient Just Technologies and the Center for Embodied Pedagogy and Action to collect stories from those in the storm's path. The report draws from these accounts to call for an independent investigation and propose a series of policy changes for Congress, the FCC and other federal agencies to adopt to fully understand what went wrong and to prevent the islands' communications networks from collapsing in the future. These recommendations also apply to other parts of the country that suffer from violent storms.
On Wednesday, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai will go before the House Energy and Commerce Committee for an oversight hearing. Free Press has called on members of Congress to pose a series of tough questions about the agency's failure to respond to the crisis in Puerto Rico.
Report co-author and Free Press Senior Policy Counsel Carmen Scurato made the following statement:
"It's deeply troubling how little interest the Trump FCC has shown in analyzing what went wrong in Puerto Rico and using this information to shape its policies on communication rights and public safety. Our report calls attention to the critical need to examine and investigate all of the causes for the collapse of the communications networks. We pose dozens of key questions that Congress must demand answers to if we are to ensure a crisis like this isn't repeated.
"Our report and the FCC's related FOIA response also identify a credibility problem with the carriers, one that raises serious questions about these companies' past conduct. It's crucial for the FCC to adopt policies that require carriers to build more resilient networks.
"FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's indifference to the communications crisis in Puerto Rico speaks volumes about the islands' colonial legacy. When Pai visited Puerto Rico, he met with telecom-company officials but failed to hold a single public hearing. In addition, President Trump has lied repeatedly about the level of federal assistance Puerto Rico has received. The president's underlying message -- that Puerto Ricans don't deserve help -- is reflected in Pai's own failure to respond adequately to the disaster.
"As U.S. government actions -- and inactions -- have worsened a massive humanitarian crisis, it's the FCC's duty to investigate what went wrong and to adopt policies that prevent any future communications blackouts.
"What happened in Puerto Rico is a man-made disaster, exacerbated by the neglect of carriers and the one agency that's supposed to hold these businesses accountable to the public interest. It's Congress' duty to demand answers from the FCC. This is long overdue."
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) 265-1490LATEST NEWS
Iran Blocks Strait of Hormuz as 'Barbaric' Israeli Bombing Kills Hundreds in Lebanon
One senior Iranian official said his country is considering resuming strikes to put Israel's "aggressor regime in its place," while others warned Iran might quit the shaky ceasefire altogether.
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Iran said Wednesday that it is blocking shipping through the Strait of Hormuz over Israel's escalating bombardment of Lebanon, actions that are threatening to unravel the tenuous ceasefire agreed to less than a day ago.
Fars, an Iranian state media outlet, reported that “simultaneous with Israel’s attacks on Lebanon, the passage of oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz has been stopped," while Reuters said that "more than 180 tankers believed to be inside [the] strait, with hundreds more waiting" for access.
The developments came after two tankers were reportedly allowed to pass through the vital waterway—through which around 20% of the world's oil is shipped—in the wake of Tuesday's ceasefire agreement between the United States, Israel, and Iran.
While Israel accepted the two-week truce, it insists that the agreement does not apply to its ongoing war on Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran counters that halting attacks on Lebanon is one of the 10 points in the Pakistan-brokered deal, which Israel is violating.
Over the past 24 hours, Israeli forces have ramped up their already intense bombing of Lebanon to levels described as "apocalyptic." Lebanon's Health Ministry said at least 254 people have been killed and 1,165 others wounded by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) bombing throughout the country, with some official sources telling media outlets that as many as 300 people have been killed.
More than 100 sites across Lebanon were reportedly bombed within a period of just minutes, including densely populated urban areas. In southern Lebanon, the dead include 12 medics, according to officials cited by Reuters.
Israeli forces have targeted civilian structures including apartment towers, claiming without providing evidence they were being used by Hezebollah.
Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam on Wednesday implored sympathetic nations to put pressure on Israel to stop the bombing.
"All of Lebanon's friends are called upon to help us stop these attacks by all available means," he said.
Iran's Press TV reported Wednesday that Iranian leaders are considering resuming full-scale counterattacks in response to Israel's escalation. According to the outlet, a senior Iranian official said that the time has come to "put this aggressor regime in its place."
Iranian and international media outlets also reported Wednesday that Iran might withdraw from the ceasefire altogether if Israel keeps bombing Lebanon.
“The conditions for a ceasefire between Iran and the United States are clear and explicit: America must choose either a ceasefire or the continuation of war through Israel; both cannot coexist,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on Telegram. “The world is witnessing the killings in Lebanon. Now the ball is in America’s court, and global public opinion is watching to see whether this country will fulfill its commitments or not.”
In a Wednesday interview with Al Jazeera, Israeli political commentator Ori Goldberg described Israel's intensified attacks on Lebanon as “a pyrotechnics show meant to demonstrate Israel’s effectiveness while ultimately demonstrating its despair."
“The only entity that can stop it is the international community that will defend Lebanon’s sovereign rights, which have been violated for decades but are now almost nonexistent,” he said.
Goldberg added that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "bet it all" on US President Donald Trump and "lost."
Some Israeli leaders, especially on the far-right, are reportedly furious over their exclusion from Trump's decision to suspend attacks on Iran.
"He thought he could keep Trump on a short leash," Goldberg said of Netanyahu. "He messed that up. So now what he has is Lebanon, which has been Israel’s favorite stomping ground in terms of sovereignty violation and aggression generally."
Since the 1980s, Israeli forces have killed more than 20,000 people, many of them civilians, in Lebanon. Israeli forces have occupied parts of Lebanon several times, including for the last 18 years of the 20th century. Some right-wing Israelis want their country to conquer some or even all of Lebanon, which they consider part of a "Greater Israel" promised to them by their deity figure.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz—who, like Netanyahu, stands accused in an International Court of Justice case of inciting genocide in Gaza—said Wednesday that "the IDF carried out a surprise strike on hundreds of Hezbollah terrorists at command centers across Lebanon" in what he called "the largest concentrated blow Hezbollah has suffered since Operation Beepers," when dozens of people including children were killed by booby-trapped exploding communication devices.
Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant, Katz's predecessor, are wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in Gaza, where 29 months of Israeli war and siege have left more than 250,000 Palestinians dead, maimed, or missing and the Gaza Strip in ruins. More than 700 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since a ceasefire took effect there six months ago.
Regional and international observers condemned Israel's escalation in Lebanon, which Iraqi government spokesperson Bassem al-Awadi called "evidence of its hostile plan to sabotage the truce" and "perpetuate conflict."
Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on the international community "to fulfill its responsibilities by compelling the Israeli occupation authorities to halt their barbaric massacres and repeated attacks on Lebanon, and to hold them accountable for respecting international covenants and laws.”
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Democrats Cautioned Against Baiting Trump Back Into War With Iran With Criticism of Ceasefire Terms
"I’m grateful there’s a ceasefire and scores of innocent people didn’t die tonight," said Rep. Yassamin Ansari, the only Iranian-American member of Congress.
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With a potential US nuclear attack against Iran's 93 million people averted by the ceasefire deal that was reached Tuesday evening, anti-war advocates including the only Iranian American member of Congress urged the Democratic Party to focus first and foremost on the fact that through diplomacy, President Donald Trump had been led away from the brink of disaster—instead of using the high-stakes moment to to score political points.
Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-Ariz.) cautioned against members of either political party joking that Trump had "chickened out" after threatening the "whole civilization" of Iran on Tuesday, hours before the deadline he had set for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which it effectively closed in retaliation for the unprovoked US-Israeli invasion of the country at the end of February.
Taking aim at the use of the acronym "TACO"—for "Trump Always Chickens Out," coined by a Financial Times columnist last year—Ansari issued a reminder that "the president was threatening genocide against 90 million Iranians."
"I’m grateful there’s a ceasefire and scores of innocent people didn’t die tonight," said Ansari.
Branko Marchetich of Jacobin called on Democratic leaders to take "their cues" from Ansari, adding, "There is nothing shameful about de-escalation and peace."
The congresswoman spoke out as Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), whose name has been floated as a potential presidential candidate in 2028, expressed outrage at the 10-point plan the US, Israel, and Iran agreed upon as a starting point for negotiations over the next two weeks as Trump backed off his threat to annihilate Iran.
Al Jazeera's James Bays reported that the 10-point plan allows limited daily passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz for the next two weeks "in coordination with the Iranian armed forces; cancellation of sanctions against Iran; the US and Israel's acceptance of Iran's nuclear enrichment program; and full compensation for damages suffered by Iran during the war, to be secured through payments to Iran by ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Murphy called the deal's inclusion of Iranian control of the strait "cataclysmic" and "extraordinary," while author and attorney Chase Madar argued the outcome is "considerably less awful than what Trump was promising to do on Easter," when he pledged to attack civilian infrastructure across Iran.
"Let's hope Democrats don't bait Trump back into this war," said Ryan Grim of Drop Site News.
On social media and in a CNN interview, Murphy also railed against reports that the deal allows Iran to "keep their missiles," which the Trump administration had been intent on destroying—although the country was permitted to have ballistic missiles under the 2015 nuclear deal that Trump exited during his first term.
"Anyone who thinks Iran's having conventional ballistic missiles isn't acceptable—and this tweet suggests that's Murphy's position—shouldn't be president," said Robert Wright of NonZero Newsletter. "Murphy is shamelessly playing politics at a delicate moment in world history."
The senator rejected criticism from those who said he was being insufficiently laudatory of the ceasefire, arguing that being "glad if this ceasefire holds" is "not inconsistent with pointing out that we are worse off now than before the war started."
Iran's control of the strait is expected to result in higher global oil and gas prices and inflation; since it closed the key waterway over a month ago, US gas prices have risen above $4 per gallon.
On Wednesday, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, joined Murphy in denouncing the deal that allows Iran to retain missiles and continue enriching uranium.
"Leading Senate foreign policy Dem attacks Trump for not achieving his goals... in his criminal war of aggression against Iran," said Erik Sperling of Just Foreign Policy. "The only acceptable goal is immediately ending the illegal war, Senator!"
Sperling noted that prior to the ceasefire deal, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) had spoken with clarity on CNN about the need for Democratic lawmakers to refrain from "play[ing] politics" as the Trump administration engages in brinkmanship with Iran while continuing negotiations.
"There's too much at stake," said Khanna. "I'm going to say, 'Thank you, finally, diplomacy prevailed.'"
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Small Wisconsin City Overwhelmingly Passes First-of-Its-Kind Measure Restricting AI Data Centers
“This is really setting a precedent,” said one activist. "This is something that other communities can look to."
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The nationwide backlash against the artificial intelligence industry entered a new stage on Tuesday after a small Wisconsin city overwhelmingly passed a first-of-its-kind referendum limiting AI data center construction.
According to a Wednesday report in Politico, voters in the Milwaukee suburb of Port Washington, home to roughly 12,000 residents, supported the data center restrictions by a margin of around 2-to-1.
The referendus requires town officials to seek voter permission before approving or providing tax incentives for any future data centers in the community, giving residents veto power over new projects.
Port Washington is already home to a $15 billion, 1.3-gigawatt data center funded by tech giants Oracle and OpenAI, and local residents wanted to ensure that no additional facilities are green lit without their express approval.
The referendum was pushed by a grassroots community organization called Great Lakes Neighbors United, which advocates "advancing transparency, environmental stewardship, and responsible development in Wisconsin."
Christine Le Jeune, founder of Great Lakes Neighbors United, told Politico that she hopes the work done limiting AI facilities' construction can be replicated nationwide.
“This is really setting a precedent,” Le Jeune, said. "This is something that other communities can look to."
Politico noted that similar anti-data center measures are coming up for votes later this year in communities across the US, including in Monterey Park, California; Augusta Township, Michigan; and Janesville, Wisconsin.
Opposition to AI data centers has become a major political issue in recent months, as local residents have objected to the large facilities consuming massive amounts of electricity and water, while also generating significant noise pollution.
Data centers also put a major strain on the US electrical grid, causing a spike in utility bills across the country. PJM Interconnection, the largest US grid operator that serves over 65 million people across 13 states, projected earlier this year that it will be a full six gigawatts short of its reliability requirements in 2027 thanks to the demands of data centers.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) introduced a bill in March that would impose a nationwide moratorium on AI data center construction “until strong national safeguards are in place to protect workers, consumers, and communities, defend privacy and civil rights, and ensure these technologies do not harm our environment.”
At the same time, the AI industry is planning on spending big money in 2026 to influence elections, with the goal of passing legislation setting a single set of AI regulations that will take effect throughout the US, overriding any restrictions placed on the technology by state governments.
CNN reported in February that Leading the Future—a super political action committee (PAC) backed by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, is pledging to spend at least $100 million to ensure AI-friendly candidates get elected to Congress this year.
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