During the film we watched in class about the history of the Internet, someone (I can't remember who and neglected to write it down) made the observation that many of the most important and influential things in life are not regulated or controlled in any way. This got me thinking about net neutrality, which is "the principle that Internet users should be able to access any web content they want, post their own content, and use any applications they choose, without restrictions or limitations imposed by their Internet service providers." (CommonCause.org)
The history of the Internet, obviously, is still unfolding. Proponents of net neutrality believe that if large telecommunications and cable companies are allowed to create tiered pricing for content providers, it would essentially eliminate competition and endanger current freedoms. This seems like a no-brainer to me. We already live in a world where basically five huge media conglomerates control the majority of what we see on TV, hear on the radio and read in print. The Internet may be the last true frontier of free speech and should be fiercely guarded.
Corporations act according to their own interests. In the video we watched, the phone companies were not interested in supporting the people developing the Internet because they didn't think it would work and that people wouldn't want it. Clearly, they were wrong about that. They were also already invested in other communication technology. If history has taught us anything, it doesn't appear that we should leave decisions regarding the Internet to corporations.
It can be confusing and a little overwhelming, so read on if you care to:
You can get a short summary of what we watched on the History Channel's website, History.com.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment