Net Neutrality Survival Basic for Womens Media

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Big Companies Winning The battle over preserving net neutrality has been raging for years. And the big companies appear to be winning. In December, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)--the agency responsible for overseeing our nation's communications infrastructure-- passed weak, loophole-filled rules. The rules offer some limited net neutrality protections for wireline Internet, but far fewer protections for wireless Internet that you access through smartphones and other mobile devices. Under these wireless rules, Verizon, for example, would be free to block a streaming application developed by a female-owned radio station or a radio-streaming application that featured content produced by and targeted at women. If this wasn't already a blow to the millions of people who have petitioned the FCC for strong Internet protections, Congress is now considering a move to overturn the rules and strip the FCC of its authority. A House committee has already voted to nullify the FCC's rules, and the full House may vote on the resolution this week. The likelihood that such a resolution will pass the Senate is smaller, though not inconceivable. Net neutrality really is the free speech issue of our time, and if we lose the Internet, we may never have another platform like it. Already, the FCC has given away too much. Congress must not fail women by eroding the protections we do have and effectively muting our voices.