Carol Stevens-Yurur

Teachers and students need free and open Internet

Access to open Internet communication has become an essential for democracy in the world. Such open communication is denied in some countries for political or religious reasons. This is not our way. Our government must not listen to the private communication giants who want to control this access. Clearly such a development would eventually bring us to Internet communication for those who can afford it only. In my work as a teacher in communications, I make extensive use of the Internet for research by myself and my students, and often we am consulting small blogs that offer information, ideas and viewpoints not found in the corporate websites. Those blogs are offering a great service and many are not making a profit or making very little money. If they are charged fees many of them will have to close. The FCC needs to protect our free speech and prevent broadband providers from blocking or discriminating against any lawful Internet traffic based on who owns it or who it is being targeted to.