YouTubers Support Net Neutrality
August 24th, 2006 by JhowardThanks 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.
August 27th, 2006 at 7:50 pm
As much as I like the looks of savetheinternet.com, on the surface as I preview the vast amount of opinions in the form of blog. And download pdf’s materials. And read the replies of blog. It does not answer the most purposeful question I have. I find that it’s like reading all of the information in a car dealership without seeing the Car.
But I just found I can quickly cut to the heart of savetheinternet and look at the vehicle.
The vehicle sits in the 1.2.3. message to the Senators which savetheinternet pushes for. First of all I check to see if it is indeed the vehicle that brought me to the dealership (savetheinternet) in the first place.
This is what I see here, vehicle (H.R.5252) I’ve been told don’t buy a vehicle that dosn’t work. Does this one run? No. The message to the Senator is no it dosn’t run, dosn’t work, but if it gets running then go for it. Now why should I ask a Senator to do this when there is no guarantee it won’t break down after a mile even after being made stronger. And made stronger is fact if tape is applied where welds should be.
If I am incorrect please correct me. But I am being asked on (Savetheinternet) to ask my senator to stand and support the giant phone and cable companies with H.R.5252. provided that some of their bill is altered.
Here is the text I am asked to support. # Ask your Senator these questions:
* Do you support Network Neutrality — the principle that guarantees that all Web sites and services are treated equally on the Internet?
* Can we count on you to take a stand against giant phone and cable companies and oppose Senator Ted Stevens’ telecommunications bill (H.R. 5252) unless stronger Net Neutrality protections are added?
* Will you make a pledge today to personally guarantee that Net Neutrality is a part of any future telecommunications legislation?
… I am about to leave the dealership in a hurry. But, I’ve been in scary places before, so I’ll wait for reply.
Another point.
The term ‘network neutrality’ is good, or was with no question.
But I feel it has been hijacked and adds a great deal of confusion when is taken and altered and added to the phone and cable companies H.R.5252.
H.R.5252, now with the goodness of ‘internet neutrality provision! Worse, and correct me if I am wrong, but the text of these bills is under constant revision. So what you read today doesn’t apply tomorrow.
This causes the large cable and phone companies to be able to say, yes we support ‘internet neutrality’ it is in our provisions.
I believe there is opposition to this and their chant is; Save ‘internet neutrality’. And they would want to stop H.R.5252.
And to Senators I’ll add a little humour and truth without really giving my confusion away, I say in my own political words. If the outcome of your decision makes people happy and unites them in useful ways then I am for it, if it causes unhappiness and harms them, then I am opposed.
October 2nd, 2006 at 1:01 pm
Nice try, and a great idea, but poorly executed.
The discrepancy in the volume of the voices was very distracting.
I literally could not concentrate on the message. The one guy was really loud, and the others were so quiet I could not hear them.
If you really want to be effective, re-do the video, and make it count this time.