Thanks to a recent video on YouTube, more people than ever are adding their voices to the fight to protect Net Neutrality.

Posted by YouTube director and celebrity Boh3m3, the video titled “Save the Internet!” features a black and white narration pieced together from different YouTubers recording at their computers. In it, they describe how important the Internet has become and what might happen if the Internet were no longer free.

“The Internet. Your world. Where you can buy, sell, watch, show, listen, talk, enjoy. Connect your computer and you are connected to the world. The Internet has given us so much. Let’s keep it that way.”

“Right now big money corporations like AT&T and Verizon are lobbying Congress to privatize the Internet. This means slower connections to sites that are under competing ISPs. If they load at all. … Do you want companies to control your clicks? Keep your Internet free.”

The video was posted on August 17 and quickly bounced to the featured videos list. In less than a week, it has been viewed over 300,000 times, receiving more than 2,000 comments – and both numbers continue to climb.

The “Save the Internet!” video has also inspired YouTubers to post their own creative video responses. From business-owner Fathead to 16 year-old Bananasfordinner, these YouTubers offer their own unique perspective on the importance of Net Neutrality.

Another YouTuber, juicysauce, uses a clever animation to depict a grim world without Net Neutrality in “The Internet of Tomorrow.” The future without Net Neutrality — where minions of telco giant “Concast” eliminate “homegrown blogs” and “pesky small businesses” — offers “dozens of sites and services.”

Online video has become an important tool for the grassroots. In a recent article, the New York Times concedes that video sites like YouTube “may be changing the political process” by creating “more accountability and more democratization of information in the process.”

The success of videos like “Save the Internet!” is a testament to the free and open Internet, where users – not AT&T, Verizon or Bell South – are responsible for promoting the best ideas.

Check out Save the Internet! and The Internet of Tomorrow on YouTube and add your own response.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 24th, 2006 at 10:59 am and is filed under Uncategorized.-->