Fang writes: "Trump's new FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, a former Verizon attorney,
is pushing to repeal the net neutrality reform by rolling back that
re-classification - and he's getting help not only from a legion of telecom
lobbyists, but from civil rights groups."
Hands typing on a computer keyboard. (photo: hamburg_berlin/Shutterstock)
<https://theintercept.com/2017/02/13/naacp-trump-netneutrality/>
Civil Rights Groups, Funded by Telecoms, Back Donald Trump's Plan to Kill
Net Neutrality
By Lee Fang, The Intercept
14 February 17
Leading civil rights groups who for many years have been heavily bankrolled
by the telecom industry are signaling their support for Donald Trumps
promised rollback of the Obama administrations net neutrality rules, which
prevent internet service providers from prioritizing some content providers
over others.
The Obama administrations Federal Communications Commission established net
neutrality by reclassifying high-speed internet as a regulated phone-like
telecommunications service, as opposed to a mostly unregulated information
service. The re-classification was cheered by advocates for a free and open
internet.
But now Trumps new FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, a former Verizon attorney, is
pushing to repeal
<https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/technology/trumps-fcc-quickly-targets-ne
t-neutrality-rules.html> the net neutrality reform by rolling back that
re-classification and hes getting help not only from a legion of telecom
lobbyists, but from civil rights groups.
In a little-noticed joint letter
<https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3458582-MMTC-Joint-Press-Statement-
Protecting-and.html> released last week, the NAACP, Asian Americans
Advancing Justice, OCA (formerly known as the Organization for Chinese
Americans), the National Urban League, and other civil rights organizations
sharply criticized the jurisdictional and classification problems that
plagued the last FCC a reference to the legal mechanism used by the Obama
administration to accomplish net neutrality.
Instead of classifying broadband as a public utility, the letter states,
open internet rules should be written by statute. What does that mean? It
means the Republican-led Congress should take control of the process the
precise approach
<https://www.wired.com/2017/01/trumps-fcc-pick-signals-end-net-neutrality-ef
forts/> that is favored
<http://www.insidesources.com/congress-aims-to-take-up-net-neutrality-as-fcc
-eyes-repeal/> by industry.
None of the civil rights groups that signed the joint letter responded to a
request for comment.
Its not the first time civil rights group have engaged in lobbying debates
seemingly unrelated to their core missions, but in favor of their corporate
donors. At a time when OCA received
<https://www.thenation.com/article/interns-civil-rights-org-say-they-were-fi
red-disrespecting-walmart/> major funding from Southwest Airlines, the
group filed a regulatory letter
<https://www.scribd.com/document/155550283/Southwest-Airlines-Co-61-Letters-
in-Support-Part-3-of-3> on behalf of the airline in support of Southwests
bid to open flights at Houston airport. The NAACP, after receiving financial
backing
<https://www.thenation.com/article/obamas-top-choice-omb-led-walmart-foundat
ions-targeted-giving/> from Wal-Mart, helped the retail chain during its
contentious bid to open stores in New York City.
Telecom issues, however, are a particular specialty. Last weeks letter was
organized by the Multicultural Media, Telecom & Internet Council (MMTC), a
group funded
<https://www.publicintegrity.org/2013/06/06/12769/civil-rights-groups-fcc-po
sitions-reflect-industry-funding-critics-say> by the telecom industry that
has previously encouraged civil rights groups to oppose net neutrality. MMTC
in previous years reported receiving about a third
<https://www.publicintegrity.org/2013/06/06/12769/civil-rights-groups-fcc-po
sitions-reflect-industry-funding-critics-say> of its budget from
industry-sponsored events; its annual summit, which was held last week
<https://www.cvent.com/c/express/e92aa927-dc80-4f5c-95bc-6784ea32dba3> , was
made possible
<https://custom.cvent.com/7B71D69B8E5B401DA3AE6772BBBF531C/files/176341d395f
54ef3a00db41fb23d7647.pdf> by $100,000 sponsorships from Comcast and AT&T,
as well as a $75,000 sponsorships from Charter Communications and Verizon.
MMTC, which acts on the needs
<https://theintercept.com/2015/08/31/big-telecom-funded-civil-rights-group-j
oins-lawsuit-block-net-neutrality-instantly-contradicts/> of telecom
lobbyists, has been accused of astroturf
<https://www.techdirt.com/blog/netneutrality/?company=mmtc> lobbying by
creating the appearance of grassroots support for the industry.
The civil rights group opposed to net neutrality have employed several
arguments against the proposal. In one filing
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7020916606.pdf> made in 2010, the NAACP
signed onto an argument from MMTC that net neutrality reforms were a waste
of resources because the FCC should focus on more pressing racial
discrimination and exclusionary hiring and promotion practices of certain
Silicon Valley high-tech companies. In a separate filing in 2014, MMTC and
the NAACP argued that reclassification would threaten
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7521706977.pdf> the fragile state of
minority engagement in the digital ecosystem.
While advocating against net neutrality, the organizations on the joint
letter have raked in money from the telecom industry.
The NAACP, which signed letters opposing net neutrality both
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7020916606.pdf> times
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7521706977.pdf> the rule was proposed by the
Obama administration, has named
<https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:xkYaWydzbcMJ:www.naac
p.org/events/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us> AT&T, Verizon, and Comcast as
corporate fundraising partners. After the NAACP endorsed Comcasts merger
with NBC, Comcast disclosed that the NAACP was one of the the recipients of
$1.8 billion
<http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/05/business/la-fi-net-neutrality-minor
ities-20101005> in funds doled out to various community groups.
The Asian-American groups on the letter, including OCA and Americans
Advancing Justice, have similar ties to the largest telecom firms. Verizon,
AT&T, Comcast, and the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, a
trade group for the telecom industry, are listed
<http://advancingjustice-aajc.org/corporate-alliance> as members of the
Corporate Alliance of donors funding AAJC. Comcast and Verizon sponsored
<http://www.ocanational.org/?page=Convention2016Spon> OCAs annual gala
last year.
The National Urban League received $1.2 million
<http://990s.foundationcenter.org/990pf_pdf_archive/133/133319048/133319048_
201412_990PF.pdf?_ga=1.84152347.307174320.1470679500> from Verizon in 2014
alone. As the Center for Public Integrity reported, senior officials from
AT&T, Verizon and Comcast have held positions
<https://www.yahoo.com/news/urban-league-parrots-telecom-donors-165534855.ht
ml?ref=gs> on the National Urban Leagues board.
Net neutrality activists are crying foul.
Net neutrality is based on a communications law that guarantees vital
nondiscrimination rights, said Jessica J. González, the deputy director and
senior counsel of Free Press. This joint statement may seem innocuous but
it actually endangers the communications rights that have empowered people
of color to tell our own stories, organize for racial justice and earn a
living online.
The Congress that tried to destroy net neutrality once would only weaken it
with legislation that fails to adequately protect those it is meant to
serve, says Malkia Cyril, the executive director of the Center for Media
Justice. She noted that the civil rights groups that signed the letter are
now calling for putting the future of the internet into the hands of a GOP
Congress that just appointed white supremacist Jeff Sessions to be attorney
general.
Activists have expressed alarm at the pace at which Commissioner Pai has
already axed reforms enacted by the Obama administration. In his first days
<https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/technology/trumps-fcc-quickly-targets-ne
t-neutrality-rules.html?_r=0> as chairman, Pai rolled back an attempt to
regulate overly expensive prison phone rates, got rid of the proposal to
allow more competition for the cable box market, and blocked nine companies
from providing low-income families with discounted high-speed internet
services. Observers believe net neutrality is next.
But Kim Keenan, the president of MMTC, the group that organized the joint
letter, has showered Pai with praise. He is really focused on closing the
digital divide. As an advocate, I feel so much pride that that it is a
priority for his chairmanship, Keenan told
<http://www.multichannel.com/news/policy/pai-meets-diverse-stakeholders-digi
tal-divide/410427> Multichannel News, a trade outlet.
<http://e-max.it/posizionamento-siti-web/socialize>
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
Hands typing on a computer keyboard. (photo: hamburg_berlin/Shutterstock)
https://theintercept.com/2017/02/13/naacp-trump-netneutrality/https://theint
ercept.com/2017/02/13/naacp-trump-netneutrality/
Civil Rights Groups, Funded by Telecoms, Back Donald Trump's Plan to Kill
Net Neutrality
By Lee Fang, The Intercept
14 February 17
eading civil rights groups who for many years have been heavily bankrolled
by the telecom industry are signaling their support for Donald Trumps
promised rollback of the Obama administrations net neutrality rules, which
prevent internet service providers from prioritizing some content providers
over others.
The Obama administrations Federal Communications Commission established net
neutrality by reclassifying high-speed internet as a regulated phone-like
telecommunications service, as opposed to a mostly unregulated information
service. The re-classification was cheered by advocates for a free and open
internet.
But now Trumps new FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, a former Verizon attorney, is
pushing to repeal
<https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/technology/trumps-fcc-quickly-targets-ne
t-neutrality-rules.html> the net neutrality reform by rolling back that
re-classification and hes getting help not only from a legion of telecom
lobbyists, but from civil rights groups.
In a little-noticed joint letter
<https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3458582-MMTC-Joint-Press-Statement-
Protecting-and.html> released last week, the NAACP, Asian Americans
Advancing Justice, OCA (formerly known as the Organization for Chinese
Americans), the National Urban League, and other civil rights organizations
sharply criticized the jurisdictional and classification problems that
plagued the last FCC a reference to the legal mechanism used by the Obama
administration to accomplish net neutrality.
Instead of classifying broadband as a public utility, the letter states,
open internet rules should be written by statute. What does that mean? It
means the Republican-led Congress should take control of the process the
precise approach
<https://www.wired.com/2017/01/trumps-fcc-pick-signals-end-net-neutrality-ef
forts/> that is favored
<http://www.insidesources.com/congress-aims-to-take-up-net-neutrality-as-fcc
-eyes-repeal/> by industry.
None of the civil rights groups that signed the joint letter responded to a
request for comment.
Its not the first time civil rights group have engaged in lobbying debates
seemingly unrelated to their core missions, but in favor of their corporate
donors. At a time when OCA received
<https://www.thenation.com/article/interns-civil-rights-org-say-they-were-fi
red-disrespecting-walmart/> major funding from Southwest Airlines, the
group filed a regulatory letter
<https://www.scribd.com/document/155550283/Southwest-Airlines-Co-61-Letters-
in-Support-Part-3-of-3> on behalf of the airline in support of Southwests
bid to open flights at Houston airport. The NAACP, after receiving financial
backing
<https://www.thenation.com/article/obamas-top-choice-omb-led-walmart-foundat
ions-targeted-giving/> from Wal-Mart, helped the retail chain during its
contentious bid to open stores in New York City.
Telecom issues, however, are a particular specialty. Last weeks letter was
organized by the Multicultural Media, Telecom & Internet Council (MMTC), a
group funded
<https://www.publicintegrity.org/2013/06/06/12769/civil-rights-groups-fcc-po
sitions-reflect-industry-funding-critics-say> by the telecom industry that
has previously encouraged civil rights groups to oppose net neutrality. MMTC
in previous years reported receiving about a third
<https://www.publicintegrity.org/2013/06/06/12769/civil-rights-groups-fcc-po
sitions-reflect-industry-funding-critics-say> of its budget from
industry-sponsored events; its annual summit, which was held last week
<https://www.cvent.com/c/express/e92aa927-dc80-4f5c-95bc-6784ea32dba3> , was
made possible
<https://custom.cvent.com/7B71D69B8E5B401DA3AE6772BBBF531C/files/176341d395f
54ef3a00db41fb23d7647.pdf> by $100,000 sponsorships from Comcast and AT&T,
as well as a $75,000 sponsorships from Charter Communications and Verizon.
MMTC, which acts on the needs
<https://theintercept.com/2015/08/31/big-telecom-funded-civil-rights-group-j
oins-lawsuit-block-net-neutrality-instantly-contradicts/> of telecom
lobbyists, has been accused of astroturf
<https://www.techdirt.com/blog/netneutrality/?company=mmtc> lobbying by
creating the appearance of grassroots support for the industry.
The civil rights group opposed to net neutrality have employed several
arguments against the proposal. In one filing
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7020916606.pdf> made in 2010, the NAACP
signed onto an argument from MMTC that net neutrality reforms were a waste
of resources because the FCC should focus on more pressing racial
discrimination and exclusionary hiring and promotion practices of certain
Silicon Valley high-tech companies. In a separate filing in 2014, MMTC and
the NAACP argued that reclassification would threaten
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7521706977.pdf> the fragile state of
minority engagement in the digital ecosystem.
While advocating against net neutrality, the organizations on the joint
letter have raked in money from the telecom industry.
The NAACP, which signed letters opposing net neutrality both
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7020916606.pdf> times
<https://ecfsapi.fcc.gov/file/7521706977.pdf> the rule was proposed by the
Obama administration, has named
<https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:xkYaWydzbcMJ:www.naac
p.org/events/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us> AT&T, Verizon, and Comcast as
corporate fundraising partners. After the NAACP endorsed Comcasts merger
with NBC, Comcast disclosed that the NAACP was one of the the recipients of
$1.8 billion
<http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/05/business/la-fi-net-neutrality-minor
ities-20101005> in funds doled out to various community groups.
The Asian-American groups on the letter, including OCA and Americans
Advancing Justice, have similar ties to the largest telecom firms. Verizon,
AT&T, Comcast, and the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, a
trade group for the telecom industry, are listed
<http://advancingjustice-aajc.org/corporate-alliance> as members of the
Corporate Alliance of donors funding AAJC. Comcast and Verizon sponsored
<http://www.ocanational.org/?page=Convention2016Spon> OCAs annual gala
last year.
The National Urban League received $1.2 million
<http://990s.foundationcenter.org/990pf_pdf_archive/133/133319048/133319048_
201412_990PF.pdf?_ga=1.84152347.307174320.1470679500> from Verizon in 2014
alone. As the Center for Public Integrity reported, senior officials from
AT&T, Verizon and Comcast have held positions
<https://www.yahoo.com/news/urban-league-parrots-telecom-donors-165534855.ht
ml?ref=gs> on the National Urban Leagues board.
Net neutrality activists are crying foul.
Net neutrality is based on a communications law that guarantees vital
nondiscrimination rights, said Jessica J. González, the deputy director and
senior counsel of Free Press. This joint statement may seem innocuous but
it actually endangers the communications rights that have empowered people
of color to tell our own stories, organize for racial justice and earn a
living online.
The Congress that tried to destroy net neutrality once would only weaken it
with legislation that fails to adequately protect those it is meant to
serve, says Malkia Cyril, the executive director of the Center for Media
Justice. She noted that the civil rights groups that signed the letter are
now calling for putting the future of the internet into the hands of a GOP
Congress that just appointed white supremacist Jeff Sessions to be attorney
general.
Activists have expressed alarm at the pace at which Commissioner Pai has
already axed reforms enacted by the Obama administration. In his first days
<https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/technology/trumps-fcc-quickly-targets-ne
t-neutrality-rules.html?_r=0> as chairman, Pai rolled back an attempt to
regulate overly expensive prison phone rates, got rid of the proposal to
allow more competition for the cable box market, and blocked nine companies
from providing low-income families with discounted high-speed internet
services. Observers believe net neutrality is next.
But Kim Keenan, the president of MMTC, the group that organized the joint
letter, has showered Pai with praise. He is really focused on closing the
digital divide. As an advocate, I feel so much pride that that it is a
priority for his chairmanship, Keenan told
<http://www.multichannel.com/news/policy/pai-meets-diverse-stakeholders-digi
tal-divide/410427> Multichannel News, a trade outlet.
http://e-max.it/posizionamento-siti-web/socializehttp://e-max.it/posizioname
nto-siti-web/socialize
Attachment:
image001.jpg
Description: Binary data
Attachment:
image002.jpg
Description: Binary data
Attachment:
image003.jpg
Description: Binary data
Attachment:
image004.png
Description: Binary data
Attachment:
image005.png
Description: Binary data
Attachment:
image006.png
Description: Binary data
Attachment:
image007.png
Description: Binary data
Attachment:
image008.png
Description: Binary data
