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New FCC Proposal May Ban Internet Fast-Lanes

Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler waits for a hearing at the FCC December 11, 2014 in Washington, DC. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images)
Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler waits for a hearing at the FCC December 11, 2014 in Washington, DC. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images)

The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission Tom Wheeler on Wednesday proposed new rules that would treat the Internet like a public utility.

The new rules aim to prohibit access to so-called Internet fast-lanes for companies and websites willing to pay for faster delivery of their content.

The commission will vote on the rules later this month. And they could have a widespread impact on how we all use the Internet and the status of what’s known as “net neutrality.”

Timothy Wu, a professor at Columbia Law School who is credited with coming up with the term “net neutrality,” tells Here & Now‘s Jeremy Hobson that he is in favor of the new rules.

But David Farber, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University and University of Delaware who has helped to design parts of the Internet, tells Hobson he has some reservations about this new approach.

Guests

  • Timothy Wu, a professor at Columbia Law School who has been credited with coming up with the term “net neutrality.” He tweets @superwuster.
  • David Farber, a professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon University and at the University of Delaware. He helped design parts of the Internet, and he has also served as the chief technologist at the FCC.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.