A left-wing group pushing to reinstate Obama-era “net neutrality” regulations on internet service providers (ISPs) has scheduled a “day of action” to coincide with Breitbart News’ “Masters of the Universe” town hall on big tech.
In a post titled “It’s recess but we’re not playing: defend net neutrality on April 5th,” the left-wing “Team Internet” group called on its activists to attend a series of events around the country outside the offices of senators and congressmen, demanding the reinstatement of Obama’s internet regulations.
Team Internet includes two groups, Fight for the Future and Demand Progress, that are linked to big tech. The former has reportedly accepted funds from Silicon Valley venture capital firms, including Union Square Ventures, a funder of Twitter, Tumblr, and Cloudflare. Both FTFF and Demand Progress have also accepted funds from the Consumer Technology Association, a big tech trade group which counts Google, Facebook, and Twitter among its membership.
Team Internet’s day of action occurs on the same day as Breitbart News’ first town hall event, aimed at addressing the growing power of Silicon Valley’s “Masters of the Universe.” Team Internet’s event was announced after Breitbart News’.
Breitbart News’ town hall will be hosted in New Orleans by Breitbart News editor-in-chief Alex Marlow, and will feature the following speakers:
- Ann Coulter, political commentator, author, syndicated columnist, and lawyer
- Peter Schweizer, President of the Government Accountability Institute and best-selling author of Clinton Cash and Secret Empires
- Robert Epstein, Senior research psychologist at the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology
Breitbart News’ town hall will address the real threat to a “neutral” internet — the dominance of platforms like Facebook, Google, and Twitter. Left-wing activists argue that the ISPs, who have never engaged in political censorship, are somehow a danger to a free and open internet. They have paid little regard to Google, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter as they have taken control of the web and imposed ever-greater restrictions on content.
The FCC agrees that tech giants, not ISPs are the main problem. As they overturned Obama’s internet regulations, the FCC also called out companies like Twitter, Cloudflare, and Google for their role in censoring political content online.
“Recent evidence suggests that hosting services, social media platforms, edge providers, and other providers of virtual Internet infrastructure are more likely to block content on viewpoint grounds” concluded the FCC.
FCC chairman Ajit Pai has specifically called out Twitter, calling them “part of the problem” when it comes to an open internet.
Team Internet is backed by several left-wing groups including Fight for the Future, FreePress Action Group, and Demand Progress. As Breitbart Tech previously reported, Fight for the Future’s deputy director, Evan Greer, once campaigned on behalf of a convicted Al Qaeda supporter. Greer called the Al Qaeda supporter a “political prisoner” and blamed his conviction on a “racist court.”
Allum Bokhari is the senior technology correspondent at Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter, Gab.ai and add him on Facebook. Email tips and suggestions to allumbokhari@protonmail.com.