On Freedom of Press:

Dear Daniel,

Today we sent an alert asking for public comments to the FCC in support of net neutrality. Hours after we sent the e-mail, the D.C. Court of Appeals issued a ruling that has made our cause more urgent. I wanted to briefly explain what happened and why, more than ever, we still need you to submit public comments to the FCC by Thursday's deadline if you haven't already.

In 2002, the FCC, working in alliance with the Bush administration and its corporate backers, went on a deregulation binge. The FCC decided to classify and treat broadband Internet service providers outside of the legal framework that traditionally applied to the companies that offer two-way communications services.

Today, the court held that as long as that Bush-era reclassification stands, the FCC lacks the authority to impose on broadband providers certain important regulations, including net neutrality. Because both the D.C. Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court are consistent allies of corporations over citizens, it is unlikely that this will be overturned.

Despite the ruling, the FCC can still impose net neutrality rules. But first the FCC must reclassify broadband companies as telecommunications carriers. The FCC has the ability to do this, but it needs to see strong public support to justify revisiting the Bush-era decision. It is now even more urgent that we speak out in support of net neutrality before Thursday's deadline if you haven't already done so.

Matt Lockshin, Campaign Manager
CREDO Action

P.S. For more information, check out articles in the Los Angeles Times and Washington Post and a Huffington Post blog from Free Press.

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