Posted by
conservative news blog on Tuesday, February 20, 2007 3:13:16 PM
Maybe you haven't noticed, but the blogosphere has been taking the political world by storm... and it isn't slowing down. Grassroots political activism has found a new home on the internet, making noise and getting attention from influential lawmakers in the process. In fact, if you take a close look at the democratic presidential candidates, you'll see a nod given to these technologically savvy warriors of the world wide web. This Washington Post article says it nicely:
"Armed with massive e-mail lists and high-speed networks, these activists are bypassing the familiar campaign tactics of door-knocking and phone-banking. They are also using their new-age technologies for an old-fashioned purpose: making politicians take note of their legislative priorities.
One of those is "net neutrality." Hardly a household term, it has no overtly partisan or ideological dimensions. Yet it is shaping up as a Democratic issue this year, largely because its most fervid advocates are liberal bloggers and other Internet activists who play a big role in the early stages of choosing a Democratic presidential nominee.
Unlike their Republican counterparts, every major Democratic presidential candidate has endorsed net neutrality. The move keeps them in good standing with powerful grass-roots groups, such as MoveOn.org, and costs them little in return -- perhaps a bit of space on campaign Web sites to promote a matter that comparatively few voters might explore."
Net neutrality is shaping up to be an important issue in the coming years, especially among bloggers. The WaPo article explains a bit more about the controversy surrounding this issue:
"Net neutrality is a principle that bars Internet providers, primarily phone and cable companies, from charging higher rates to Web-based firms in return for giving their content priority treatment on the pathways to consumers. Without such restrictions, proponents say, a user might find it time-consuming, or even impossible, to call up a favorite site that carriers have relegated to slower lanes for economic or even philosophical reasons.
Net neutrality is a principle that bars Internet providers, primarily phone and cable companies, from charging higher rates to Web-based firms in return for giving their content priority treatment on the pathways to consumers. Without such restrictions, proponents say, a user might find it time-consuming, or even impossible, to call up a favorite site that carriers have relegated to slower lanes for economic or even philosophical reasons."
However, there may be reasons to limit this regulation. James Gattuso of the Heritage Foundation speaks about the benefits of limiting the regulation of this industry, and about the recent AT&T/Bell-South merger that finds itself at the center of this controversy.