Al Franken Talks Net Neutrality At SXSW

TechCrunch:

This morning, Senator Al Franken took to the stage at SXSW Interactive to talk about the issue in front of a crowd of tech-savvy entrepreneurs and creatives, where he urged them to reach out to their representatives in Congress and let them know just how important net neutrality is to keeping the web healthy. Franken has previously described it as the most important free speech issue of our time, and he's worried that the equality we've come to expect on the web may soon be undermined by major corporations.

Read the whole story: TechCrunch

Comments

[Marie Russell-Barker]

06:40 PM on 03/15/2011

Call your representative now and let them know that you want net neutrality do it now!

[rotorhead1871]

01:50 AM on 03/17/2011

i want my 40 meg download and my 20 meg up load for 60/month...thats all!!!! dont mess with my neutrality....I guess...

[Mister Grumpy]

04:23 PM on 03/15/2011

Funny........ when Comcast initiated download limits on their internet subscribers over a year ago......... little or nothing was said.......... but now that AT&T is getting ready to do it....... everyone is up in arms..........

Both companies says that their limits affects less than 2% of their subscribers............. expect this number to increase dramatically as more people download their viewing selections instead of purchasing cable.........

Hey........ but both Comcast and AT&T are just being good little capitalists.......... The GOP and stockholders should be thrilled by their actions............

[rotorhead1871]

01:44 AM on 03/17/2011

cable is too expensive already.....

[Grandma Koolfinger]

02:17 PM on 03/15/2011

For a guy that went to a lot of trouble to steal an election so lobby for his point of view, he certainly seems to be inadequate at it. Net neutrality is a euphemism for government control of the Internet.

[jmpurser]

02:29 PM on 03/15/2011

Two strikes on one pitch.

[jmpurser]

01:30 PM on 03/15/2011

It WAS the hot 1st admendment issue 2 years ago.  Unfortunately the Democrats either sided with the Telecoms or decided to keep the issue alive to use as a wedge issue in 2012 so we lost.  Again.

Tell me Senator Franken: Given that the Democrats are CLEARLY either on the other side of this issue or deliberately useless for political reasons why should ANYONE vote for a Democrat again?

[InYourWorld]

12:53 PM on 03/15/2011

Al Franken is just a tool like the rest of DC. After all his rhetoric he voted to extend the patriot act. I am extremely disappointed in him, I though he had great potential.

[jmpurser]

01:43 PM on 03/15/2011

Sadly, I agree.  I don't know if becoming a Democrat makes you useless or  if only useless people get to the top of the party but either way the last two years have convinced me that there's no reason for me to ever vote for a Democrat again.

[InYourWorld]

02:32 PM on 03/15/2011

Both parties are far from useless; the banks, and defense industry find them quite useful. That is the majority of campaign contributions to both parties come from the same sectors and often the exact same corporation (Goldman Sachs funded Mcain and Obama).

As a citizen most politicians are useless to you or I. The populace gets blind by partisanship and issues like gay marriage, abortion, etc, and all the while nothing happens with any of those issues, but the focus is taken off the fact banks own out politicians and largely dictate foreign policy.

[rotorhead1871]

01:47 AM on 03/17/2011

you must be young...

[flinthfp]

12:52 PM on 03/15/2011

Corporate Totalitarianism anyone ??????

[Opus007]

12:51 PM on 03/15/2011

This whole move to restrain the internet (besides the unbridled greed of corporations) is another way to keep the public uninformed and inhibit their organizing. Unions organize the working glass- so there is move against unions. ACORN registered many poor and ethic groups so they were taken down. The same with NPR- they get out a point of view that differs with the corporate media so naturally they are a target. Knowledge is power- so knowledge must be curtailed.

[poochytown]

12:49 PM on 03/15/2011

Ronald Reagan made a lot of conservatives nod sagaciously when he said, "The scariest words in the English language are 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.' " A clever line, but total BS. Is that what you say when you need the cops, or FEMA, or small claims court, or any number of government agencies that serve you? Would you rather these services be provided by for-profit corporations that can turn you down if you haven't kept up your payments? Comcast et al are trying desperately to bottle and sell the net, and if you don't think they will regulate, control, censor and gouge you as much as they possibly can for it you're dreaming.

[westreal]

12:34 PM on 03/15/2011

Ha. A politician actually gets it.

[TurnSeiki]

12:33 PM on 03/15/2011

In other words, the losers want to change the rules of the game so they can better compete. Nope, no rules changing. If you're man enough to be in the market, be man enough to win on your own WITHOUT Uncle Sam choosing the winners/losers. The last time we did that, we have a housing market meltdown.

[CenterStage]

01:24 PM on 03/15/2011

So if Facebook wins and MySpace losses, then Comcast can throttle MySpace out of existence???

[jmpurser]

02:06 PM on 03/15/2011

Way to demonstrate a STUNNING level of ignorance on two topics at once.

[Gatormouth]

12:26 PM on 03/15/2011

Thanks for being there, Al!
Most of the MSM is under corporate control now, but the Republican­s know as long as the people can freely communicat­e with each other there is risk to the security of the Stadt. It must gall them terribly that opinion can still be discussed and formed on a medium they don't control - yet. I am sure the Neo-Cons and Neo-Liberals running the parties for the corporations can put aside their wedge issue diversions long enough to squash net freedom.
Those champions of free speech, the U.S.Suprem­e Court will protect us,though. You betcha! ....
No, I don't think they will. Seems they are bought, too. It's up to the unions!

[Harpo1129]

12:57 PM on 03/15/2011

"Most of the MSM is under corporate control now"

So sadly true. WI had MASSIVE rally last Saturday and not ONE of our local news stations here in the NY/NJ area carried the story AT ALL. If it were a rally where 5 tea partiers had gathered though, it would have been wall to wall coverage. We cannot rely on getting any news from the MSM except what the cons who own the MSM want us to hear. The ONLY way we can get ALL the news is on the internet which is why all the little tr00lies are here today decrying net neutrality. Don't fall for it.

[frank day]

01:12 PM on 03/15/2011

If 500,000 people protest in Wisconsin and the media doesn't cover it, did a Rally really occur?

[jmpurser]

02:08 PM on 03/15/2011

Unfortunately Al and the rest of the Democrats WEREN'T "there" for us when we needed them to be.  They either sat on their hands or caved to the GOP for the last 2 years so they didn't get things like net neutrality done when they could have.

[Electrum 01]

12:13 PM on 03/15/2011

On this issue you will see a concentrated and orchestrated outpouring of outrage by those who seek to decieve the public into believing the exact opposite of the truth. The government boogeyman is a fiction promoted by those who want free reign to run amok and shakedown consumers without restraint. Don't buy it!!

[Opus007]

01:05 PM on 03/15/2011

Most often our government serves the interests of the election bank rollers. If the government actually responded to the will of the people we would not be burning billions in these endless wars and be spending that money here, the rich would be paying up, corporate welfare would cease and we would not be at the mercy of the privately run health care companies. Corporations do not want competition from non profit government run programs. They want eliminate Social Security so all that money can be shifted to the private sector. Same with MediCare, for profit schools and prisions...

They want to keep the playing field tilted way in their favor. Free market- what a joke. If the telecoms were allowed to restrict content- right wing content would rule the day.

[Electrum 01]

02:12 PM on 03/15/2011

Yes, I agree, except the problem lies with the people not exercising control of their government, not government per se.

This issue has a lot of smoke-and-mirrors involved. I trust Al Franken. There, I said it, so all the Franken-haters go ahead, have a field day, but the man has intellect and honesty, and his heart is in the right place, and he's better informed on this than I am.

[Cacey]

11:46 AM on 03/15/2011

At issue is the belief of those on the Right who continually claim loudly "We want our Freedom" is that they falsely belive their freedom to be found in the corporate world.  They truly subscribe to Greedhead Gospel to preserve their rights while condemning the government without realizing that they are not part of the corporate world but can be  a part of the government.
Sen. Franken is among the best examples of the citizen statesmen and one in which we all should be proud.

[Electrum 01]

12:02 PM on 03/15/2011

F&F

[warloch2]

11:21 AM on 03/15/2011

Al Stewart Smalley Franken the poster child for "what massive voter fraud and corrupt friends in charge of elections can do for your political career".

[cordyc]

12:02 PM on 03/15/2011

Sore losers like you do nothing to move the cause of Freedom forward.

I'm glad Al is taking this important issue on so we can continue to have folks like you give us a burst of humor.

[Spiral Architect]

11:13 AM on 03/15/2011

Stop BIG BROTHER. Net Neutrality takes the internet out of the people's hands, and into the Government's nanny state tentacles.

And seriously Al Franken?? W0rst Senator of all time.

[poochytown]

12:40 PM on 03/15/2011

And why is that?

[InYourWorld]

12:54 PM on 03/15/2011

voting for the extension of the Patriot Act. Apparently he is not so civil liberty minded.

[TeaIs4Drinking]

01:51 PM on 03/15/2011

Don't you know? "Libs" are wrong cause Conservatives are right and Conservatives are right cause they said so. Problem solved.