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United States: News and Press Freedom Organizations Stand Up for Real Net Neutrality
an article by Wagatwe Wanjuki, Freepress
Last month, four journalism and
press freedom groups - the Newspaper Association of
America, the American Society of News Editors, the Reporters
Committee for Freedom of the Press and the Association of
Alternative Newsmedia - filed comments to the FCC in support of
true Net Neutrality. This filing highlights how crucial the open
Internet is for news organizations to thrive and for people to access
the information they need. 
click on photo to enlarge
Newspapers and other forms of media are an integral part of a
healthy democracy - which is why these groups decided to take a
stand against FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler’s proposal to allow
discrimination online. Allowing a two-tiered Internet would create a
Web where the content providers with the most money and power
would be the most visible. Without Net Neutrality, we would no
longer have unfettered access to news and information.
As the Internet and related technology have become an essential
part of our lives, journalism has made the shift online. According to the Pew Research
Center, half of all Americans now rely on the Internet as their
main source of both national and international news. The free flow
of information the open Internet enables allows us to access the
pressing news stories of our time. And the Internet has given news
organizations more tools to hold those in power accountable.
The Internet has changed not just how we access media but also
how we consume it. News outlets can offer video interviews,
stunning visual images and interactive websites to accompany their
reporting. There is a level of engagement and immersion available
to audiences that traditional print cannot facilitate.
The ability to access news online has also increased interaction with
others. Social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook have created
infinite hubs within communities that foster conversations about
the world around us. This dynamic creates opportunities to learn
not just from media outlets but from each other.
When we’re able to freely connect and communicate online, we’re
empowered to make informed choices. This is why it’s so important
for news organizations to be able to connect with us on a level
playing field. As the filing notes:
In addition to educating and reporting, the press serves as the
public’s independent watchdog, charged with keeping governments,
businesses and other organizations in check. This work is
increasingly moving online as newspapers and other publishers
move to digital and mobile platforms to provide readers with news
and information when and how they want to receive it. The Internet
is also a key source of information in the newsgathering process, as
these media outlets interact with the public — via their own
websites and others — to acquire and confirm important
information.
That dialogue between news outlets and the public won’t exist
without the open Internet. Indeed, it won’t just be the media that
loses out if we don’t have Net Neutrality. Our democracy will suffer
as well.
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DISCUSSION
Question(s) related to this article:
Is Internet freedom a basic human right?,
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by program area
