Free Speech Shouldn't End at Verizon's Door

We Need Policies Not Apologies

Verizon got caught blocking pro-choice text messages on Wednesday. The phone company backpedaled on Thursday and lifted the ban. It was a simple glitch a Verizon spokesman declared, and they felt really, really bad about it.

Today, Verizon is in full damage control, hoping this cloud will blow over in time for its next assault on free speech.

But apologies aren't cutting it anymore. Verizon's censorship of the national pro-choice organization NARAL is just the latest example in a laundry list of phone company efforts to block, filter or interfere with the free flow of information on cell phones and the Internet.

Rep. Dingell: Verizon must stop discriminating

In August, AT&T censored a live webcast of a Pearl Jam concert just as lead singer Eddie Vedder criticized President Bush. AT&T said this was a glitch and then scrambled to cover their tracks.

Earlier in the year, both Verizon and AT&T were caught handing over private customer phone records to the National Security Agency. The phone companies first denied it and then started a secret campaign with the White House to gain immunity from any lawsuits.

Getting Our Message Through

This pattern of abuse shows that powerful phone companies cannot be trusted to safeguard our basic freedoms. The democratic principles of free speech and open communication are too important to be entrusted to corporate gatekeepers. Whether it's liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican, pro-choice or pro-gun, the phone companies can't pick and choose what messages get through.

Thankfully, a few leaders in Congress have had it with phony apologies from phone companies. Rep. John Dingell, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, reacted to Verizon's ban - and reversal - with strong words: "I am particularly concerned by [Verizon's] ability and apparent willingness to interfere when customers choose to receive legitimate and legal communications from an organization...I ask Verizon to decisively state that it will no longer discriminate against any legal content its customers request from any organization."

Sen. Dorgan: Protect network neutrality

Rep. Ed Markey of Massachusetts said that consumers not phone companies elect to receive wireless text messages, "so the blocking of such messages by a corporate gatekeeper was deeply concerning." Markey urged Verizon and other phone companies "to ensure that their company policies do not interfere with the delivery of any lawful content, nor discriminate on the basis of who the sender of such messages may be."

"Verizon may have reversed its initial decision in this case, and I'm glad they did. But the fact that they were willing and able to take their initial action is very troublesome," Sen. Byron Dorgan of North Dakota told eWeek. "The network service providers often claim that the effort to ensure network neutrality is a solution in search of a problem, but this is fresh evidence that the problem is real and with us now," Dorgan said. "We need to protect network neutrality by law."

No Apologies

Indeed, the blocking of text messages and interfering with Web traffic is perfectly legal under the current rules - a regulatory offspring of some of the most intense phone company lobbying in history.

Censorship by AT&T and Verizon shows us what we can expect in a future if these lobbyists are successful - and network gatekeepers lock up their full control of both Internet and wireless markets.

Much is at stake. This week, Verizon squelched free speech. Before they're forced to apologize for another glitch, we need to put in place laws that protect our rights not only to speak out on the streets, but on the Internet, on cell phones -- everywhere.

Follow Timothy Karr on Twitter: www.twitter.com/TimKarr

Comments

[AlwaysAmused]

Verizon can choose to allow or disallow any message they wish and it has no bearing whatsoever on free speech. The Bill of rights only guarantees the Government will not infringe upon your abillity to express youself. Just as The Huff and Puff post and its members may choose to allow or disallow any comment they wish upon these blogs without infringing upon anyones right to free speech. I have had many message here that were not posted despite being legal and "legitimate" (whatever the hell that means) and that was not a infringment of my rights to free speech either. None of the Ammendments gives you the right to have your speech disseminated bya any private entity wheter its a TV station, A Telco, or a Website.
Try actually learning what your rights are before you erroneously complain that they are being infringed upon.

[Fewkes]

Corporations have always failed to live up to the promises they make to legislators in order to get the legislation and tax breaks that they want. After they get what they want they forget about their promises. If they are so willing to make promises about network neutrality then why would they object to codifying it into law.

[BluePatriotWoman]

As a corporate decision, this one makes no sense and if I were a member of the board of directors I´d damn well want to know why this company is turning away paying customers.

This seems to me more in the way of a high ranking individual (or a group of individuals) who have the power to dictate a policy that promotes their presumed right-wing Christian agenda.

[sime0n]

"Switch to Working Assets Wireless today; you'll keep your phone number, and we'll cover your early termination fee (up to $200) with those other carriers."

http://www.workingassetswireless.com/?event=showSpecialOfferHome&pageID=109

[Oldchef]

I am apalled at Verizon and ATT's behaviors. We obviously need laws passed to protect internet and satellite communication neutrality. It seems obvious these companies know they've done things that expose them to legal problems even with the relatively lax laws in place today, or they would not be lobbying so hard for legal protection. We need strong laws to protect the public, not laws to protect corporate thuggery. Call your congressperson!

[ChristianEcon.com]

Verizon is an incredibly arrogant corporation. They have set up a revenue stream of ripping off customers in minute amounts in various ways, building a wall of insulation including training reps to turn away, berate, and infinitely defer customers who try to straighten things out, counting on the fact most customers will give up and let it go, and that even fewer still will have the wherewithal to take legal action for small sums.

I realize Verizon isn't the only corporation implementing this tactic as a large revenue stream. But there's, incredibly, no watchdog or check and balance countering this systematic theft flying under the radar.

Corporations are way out of control and need to be reigned in.

[CarmanK]

It is not just the network neutrality that is at stake. We need a Democratic government that will replace the so called free traders on the FCC and SEC who have forgotten their first and only obligation is to protect the American people and its constitutional rights of free speech, assembly. I know how disillusioned we have become when we see how impotent US government agencies have become in the last 30 years. But this downsizing of our government to the level of incompeteccy has been orchestrated, deliberately by neocons and extremist free traders who have forgotten that society without government is chaos. But, We the People, like Job under the broom tree, must not give up on our democracy. We must let the multinationals know, that they are in business to serve the needs of the people and if they are unable to do that, then they need to be gone. They are still the public airways, people. By the way, I'm not buying toys made in China this Christmas.

[Scooter Wawrzyniec, DDS]

Simple answer.
Boycott Verizon.

[PAFirefighter]

Get in the faces of your senators and house reps anad DEMAND Net Neutrality!

If you don't, Verizon's cute little attack on Freedom of Speech will look like an anthill on a mountain.

Call these elected morons! Send an e-mail. The e-mail's even free.

PA Firefighter
"BUCK FUSH!"

[Superfelo]

"Censorship by AT&T and Verizon shows us what we can expect in a future if these lobbyists are successful - and network gatekeepers successfully lock up their full control of both Internet and wireless markets."
It is ok, because the last I heard from
Mrs Clinton, "lobbyists are people, too."
And people would not want to hurt, censor,or
eavesdrop on other people.
Let's make one thing perfectly clear
"Lobbyist are people, too." Thank you,
Mrs Clinton for pointing that out.

[Scarabus]

Over the doorway of the library at the college where I teach are inscribed the words "Education is power." The converse is equally true: "Denial of education is denial of power."

For those not in a formal educational institution, "education" means mostly "access to reliable information." The traditional media no longer can be trusted to provide fair and complete access to such information. [That's what Dan Rather's lawsuit is about. (MSM are piling on Rather, when the fact is his story was right. Check Media Matters for conformation.) That's what Abrams's squelching of Shuster's calling-out of Blackburn's ignorance about the names of those members of her district her own votes are sending to their deaths is about.]

The "fourth establishment" have been suborned by the managers, who are puppets for the owners, who are major business conglomerates. The reporters (apart from Fox--there are no true journalists on Fox) might want to report with integrity. But, as Shuster's and Rather's slap-downs demonstrate, journalists are not allowed to follow the story and report with integrity.

The reporters and producers are controlled by managers, who are controlled by big brass, who are controlled by business conglomerates, who ... Well, we all know what follows.

The so-called "fourth estate" is now owned, effectively, by those committed to a specific social/political/economic set of policies. Individual producers or reporters might wish personally to speak truth to power, but they are hamstrung by their bosses. Rather was fired for refusing to play along. Shuster has thus far been retained at the expense of kissing ass and voicing an "apology" dictated--literally!-- by his boss, Abrams.

The only hope for democracy is free, community-wide, high speed access to the internet. As recent examples of censorship by Verizon and others demonstrate, the cause of democracy absolutly cannot allow that access to be filtered by mega-conglomerate business interests. The internet must be free. That is absolutely the last hope for democracy.

[paulmedina]

From experience and from others, Verizon routinely cripples basic functions in cell phones so that you have to use their network to perform said functions and thereby pay them for that functionality. So, it's not surprising that they would also try to dictate what messages can or can't be sent through their network.

I constantly hear from people who have bluetooth cellphones with Verizon wireless that they can't use it to transfer files from their phone using bluetooth. Sick.

That's why I don't use Verizon or Sprint or any non-GSM carrier. I buy unlocked phones directly from the manufacturer that can be used on any GSM network (i.e. the rest of the world). I buy a cell phone because of its features and I don't want some suit and tie telling me which features I can or cannot use.

[PDQ]

Personally I think it's time to break up the monopolistic telecom, media and cable industries like we did with AT&T so many years ago. Business can't be trusted to do right by its own customers. Choice will encourage more transparency and customer friendly business practices.

[rain39]

Because of their actions, we are leaving Verizon. I also don't buy drugs or groceries from pharmacies and grocery stores who don't have birth control pills and the "plan B" pill in stock even though I'm 68 and not a consumer at this age.

It's a small thing and sometimes a bit inconvenient to ask and then stop shopping in popular places but if I just flap my mouth and don't take a little stand, then what am I worth? We don't need a movement, just do it! Don't purchase from companies whose policies offend you!

[Snakeback]

VBerizon doesn't care about the public, about free speech, about its employees, about its customers, or anything else. I have known too many people who have worked for them.

Verizon is a company that regularly forces employees to train people to replace them for lower wages.

They don't care about you, your phone, or your problems. Just pay the goddamm bill.

That's what they care about.