Bundle o' Joy

There's a reason for my absence over the last several weeks. Her name is Eleanor and she weighs in at 8 lbs., 7 oz. .... and, yes, she's already a member o f the YouTube Nation (click on the image at left to see what I mean).

Some specs:

Eleanor
8 lbs., 7 oz
Born January 26,2007
New York City

The Spirit of Dr. King Lives in Burgeoning Media and Democracy Movement

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose legacy was celebrated and evoked throughout the weekend in Memphis, often challenged the U.S. media to do a better job covering all aspects of the civil rights movement.

Many of his disciples honored Dr. King during the National Conference for Media Reform, by taking up his complaint and calling on activists and organizers to "keep fighting back" against a media that turns it's back on the disenfranchised.

On Friday afternoon, Reverend Jesse Jackson told 3,000 activists and organizers that American establishment media only valued Dr. King as long as he advocated non-violent protest. But when King began to critique American institutions, he "disturbed the status quo."

"When dogs bit and horses kicked and he said, 'Don't fight back,' they said: 'This is the type of leader we've been looking for.' But when he challenged the assumption of white male supremacy, its institutions and war policy, the government then began to attack him."

Light a Flame in the Darkness

Jackson said "[King] brings us to this point today, 40 years later, to define the great issues of our time -- the broken promises, the new schemes of denials, the impact of a media that freezes out democracy, the media that looks at the world through a key hole and not the door."Jackson expressed concern that the media has the capacity "to play a bigger role to make America better. And that's why this idea of media concentration is a bad proposition."Jackson urged the Memphis audience to push for more diversity in media ownership, and more access to media making and independent news in their communities "no matter the difficulty or cost."

Take Back the Pen

While in Memphis, award winning television journalist Bill Moyers spoke of the legacy of Dr. King's struggle when he compared big media corporations to plantation owners and American media consumers to their slaves.

"What happened to radio, happened to television, and then it happened to cable. If we are not diligent, then it will happen to the Interent [creating] a media plantation for the 21st Century dominated by the same corporate and ideological forces that have controlled the media for the last 50 years.""[When a slave says] the boss man has been lying to me. Something is wrong with this system," Moyers said. "This is the moment when freedom begins. The moment you realize someone else has been writing your story and it's time you took the pen from his hand and started writing it yourself."

"When the garbage workers struck here in 1968 and the walls of these buildings echoed with the cry: 'I am a man,' they were writing their story. Martin Luther King came here to help them tell it, only to be shot dead on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel. The bullet killed him, but it couldn't kill the story because once the people start telling their own story you can't kill it anymore."

Build from the Ground Up

Malkia Cyril of the Youth Media Council asked people to consider what it would take to build a movement with the power to tell our own stories and overcome the injustices of the media system.

"Our movement must have leadership from the ground up," she said, advocating that more resources and attention be devoted to supporting local constituencies and genuine grassroots efforts."Our movement is both long and strong," Cyril said. "Backwards and forwards, and our memories and our strategies must be long as well."

In the Conference's closing keynote address, Van Jones asked people if they were prepared to succeed in the media and democracy movement."Can we write that story?" he asked. "We have to begin to say what is our agenda and is our agenda inclusive enough? Will it lift up enough people?"

Dream Hopeful Dreams

Jones, who is the founding director of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, called for a "city-by-city access agenda" outlining a vision to make high speed Internet free to everyone.

We have to think big, Jones said.

"Martin Luther King Jr didn't get famous giving a speech called, 'I have a complaint.' That wasn't the speech … The brother had a dream and we have dreams, beautiful dreams, hopeful dreams, helpful dreams, dreams about a country coming back together."

"The reason we have this pro-democracy movement is because we believe this country can lead the world," Jones said. "We need to be able to have a movement that stands for that."

Markey Pledges to Keep Net Neutrality Wave Rolling

It's not the fear of God, it's the fear of voters that scares politicians in Washington, Congressman Ed Markey said Saturday, during the National Conference for Media Reform in Memphis.

Click Here To Watch Markey's YouTube Speech

The Massachusetts Democrat, who now chairs the House Subcommittee that will oversee all telecommunications legislation, promised to protect Internet freedom in his elevated role within Congress.

"We are going to in Washington have a historic debate over the next two years and I will chair the committee that is having those hearings," Markey told the audience.

"I can promise you this, that unlike the last two years it just won't be the CEOs of the telephone and cable companies who are there. You will be selecting witnesses to testify right next to them on the same day before the same Congressmen so that the voices of the American people will be heard as well."

Markey spoke before a crowded convention hall including many hundred SavetheInternet.com Coalition members. The Congressman praised our Coalition's grassroots campaign, which delivered nearly 1.5 million petitions to Capitol Hill.

"Let me tell you something about Congress," Markey said. "Congress is a stimulus response institution. There is nothing more stimulating than having 1.5 million people who say I don't think I want you to keep your job if you won't keep your hands off the Internet."

Markey blasted the phone and cable company assault on Net Neutrality, pledging to foster openness, innovation and neutrality during his tenure. But, said markey, he couldn't safeguard Internet freedom on his own.

According to Markey, the digital revolution has the potential to change our society only if we "animate these technologies with the human values that represent our highest aspirations for our society."

"The wave of the future is a wave of technological empowerment and innovation. It is a wave of grassroots activism that can make a difference in Washington, D.C. down to every single community in our country. It's a wave of digital democracy the likes of which we have never seen in the history of our country."

Markey closed by promising to work with the public to keep this Net Neutrality wave rolling.

Thomas Grills POTUS

Saturday night's plenary featured an unscheduled visit from George W. Bush, the President of the United States of America.

After brief introductory remarks on plans to "stay the course in Iraq ... no matter where it may change," the Commander in Chief took questions from veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas.

>> Watch it on YouTube

HT: You have enthusiastically supported the mergers of the largest media companies. Why do you support letting big media get even bigger?

GWB: We live in the biggest country in the world and one of the most powerful. That means we have to have a media that's as big as this beautiful country. If we lived in Canada or France we would have a smaller media. But the way the world works is that there are always new folks being born ... And when new folks is being born they need to have louder things talking to them so they have the same understandings.

HT: You have mentioned the problem of the "media filter." What is the media filter and why is it a problem?

GWB: The "media filter" is what is in-between me and truth. Let me explain to you how the media works. There's a level you have here that is … uhh ... POTUS ... After POTUS you have Congress where my laws go to. Then after that there is a message, and the message has to get out there. Then there is the media filter. After the "media filter" there is a drip funnel.HT: You said in the past that you don't read newspapers. Has that changed in the last few months ... What are you reading now?

GWB: I been reading a lot lately. Last summer I read three Shakespeares and a Camus. Right now I'm reading the Constitution. It's pretty good so far. There's a couple of things I'd change. ... I have always believed that the future remains in front. But now with the help of these new medias, we no longer have to get to the future by reading.

HT: What do you say to those who claim that your presidency has amounted to a giveaway to this country's wealthy citizens and corporations?

GWB: What do I say to those people? I say, 'get a job.' And then I say the word freedom over and over again.

Adelstein Calls on Congress to Deep Six Consolidation

FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein on Friday told thousands of people gathered at the National Conference for Media Reform to bury "six feet deep" any attempts by the FCC to roll back media ownership rules.

Adelstein called for a congressional veto procedure known as a "resolution of disapproval," which was originally designed to allow a Republican Congress to quickly repeal regulations by then President Clinton.

"But the winds of change have now swept through Washington," he said. "This time, in 2007, if the FCC passes an Order to increase media consolidation, there's nothing to stop Congress from vetoing it. If it comes to a vote on the Hill, we'll see bipartisan support that's been bottled up come pouring out."

Adelstein said:

"If a bad Order comes out of the FCC, let's not just bury it. Let's bury it six feet deep! When the FCC goes too far in rolling back media ownership limits, if you demand it, Congress can send it right to the dumpster of history where it belongs!

"Even better, let's keep bad rules from coming out in the first place. We have a new Commission, one that has seen the damage you can do to policies that neglect the people we're supposed to serve. You need to send the message loud and clear: if the FCC dramatically rolls back the media ownership protections, it will get vetoed by Congress. So don't even bother trying."

>> Watch Adelstein's full speech on YouTube

Adelstein addressed a series of challenges for media reformers in addition to fighting media consolidation. He mentioned as priorities defeating payola, exposing fake news, stopping Internet gatekeepers, and tuning out "rapacious advertisers preying on the unsuspecting minds of our young children."

"You've already won some key early skirmishes," Adelstein told those assembled in Memphis. "Now you're the battle-hardened veterans about to achieve even bigger victories."

As during previous conferences, Commissioner Adelstein (pictured above) followed his speech with an impromptu jam session with the North Mississippi All-Stars -- with the commissioner on harmonica.

On Saturday morning Adelstein joined Commissioner Michael Copps on a panel on media consolidation and Net Neutrality.

Blogged It:
>> Wicked Blog
>> Ed Mierzwinski
>> Where Are the Candidates
>> Working Class Heretic

Rev. Jackson Honors King, Blast the 'Mass Media Lock Out'

The Rev. Jesse Jackson invoked the legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. when he challenged the U.S. media to do a better job covering the movement for social justice.

In a speech before 3,000 activists and organizers, Jackson said that U.S. establishment media only valued Dr. King as long as he advocated non violent protest. But when King began to critique American institutions, he "disturbed the status quo" and then the establishment turned against the civil rights leader.

"He was idolized by the white media when he absolved the blows. When whites bombed his home in Montgomery and he told blacks not to shoot back, (the media) said, ‘This is our guy.’

"When dogs bit and horses kicked and he said, ‘Don’t fight back,’ they said, ‘This is the type of leader we’ve been looking for.’ But when he challenged the assumption of white male supremacy, its institutions and war policy, the government then began to attack him."

Jackson said "[King] brings us to this point today, 40 years later, to define the great issues of our time — the broken promises, the new schemes of denials, the impact of a media that freezes out democracy, the media that looks at the world through a key hole and not the door.”

"I'm concerned that the media has the capacity to play a bigger role to make America better. And that's why this idea of media concentration is a bad proposition," He said. "We must fight to open up airwaves for all the people."

He told the assembled crowd to "keep fighting back" against a media system that turns it's back on the disenfranchised. He urged people to push for more access to media and independent news media in their communities "no matter the difficulty or cost."

Jackson decried what he called a "mass media lock out" of people of color. "So you go to CNN and you see huge picture of Wolf Blitzer and Paula Zahn and Anderson Cooper and Larry [King] and Nancy Graves and Entertainment Tonight. And you go over and you see O'Reilly and all of that at. All day, all night, all white."

"Because hosts have determined context and subjects, content, guests, bookers, promoters. And so we demand the right to open up access to media."

Jackson urged people to tell the story of racial injustice in mainstream media, "because it's not right and it's not fair."

Jackson concluded his speech by calling on activists to confront the lack of mainstream media reporting on social justice issues. "Challenge the darkness," Jackson said. "Light your match and let it glow."

Blogged It:
>> Venus View
>> SWOPblogger
>> Wicked Blog

Copps Unveils New America Media Contract

On Friday Night FCC Commissioner Michael J. Copps challenged thousands of media reformers to set a bold new agenda for America's media system and "get rid of the bad old rules that got us into this mess in the first place."

Speaking at the National Conference for Media Reform in Memphis, Commissioner Copps released the "New America Media Contract" to, as he put it, "guarantee that our airwaves serve their masters -- we, the people."

Copps then urged Free Press and the other activists and organizers present at the event to "shift from the defense to the offense" and mobilize millions of Americans to make corporate media sign on to the Contract:

"We, the American people have given broadcasters free use of the nation’s most valuable spectrum, and we expect something in return. We expect this.

First, a right to media that strengthens our democracy;

Second, a right to local stations that are actually local;

Third, a right to media that looks and sounds like America;

Fourth, a right to news that isn’t canned and radio playlists that aren’t for sale; and

Fifth, a right to programming that isn’t so damned bad so damned often"

Copps told the audience that it was only right for Americans to strike this bargain with media companies that use publicly-owned airwaves valued conservatively at half a trillion dollars.

"Any way you slice it, that’s an awful lot of money," he said. "In fact, it’s just about the biggest chunk of change that our government gives to any private industry."

Ending the Bad Bargain

Copps called this a bad bargain that returns too little news and useful information and too much "baloney" to the American people.

"Let’s get rid of the bad old rules that got us into this mess in the first place," he said. "And let’s go on from there to bring tough—I’m talking really tough here—public interest obligations back to those who use the spectrum you own."

Prescription for Real Reform

To get there, Copps offered Americans a prescription for media reform. It began with forcing the FCC to stop chipping away at the last standing limits to runaway media consolidation.

Copps' formula also included ending rubberstamp broadcast license renewals, increasing minority ownership of the media, expanding alternative media outlets in each community and protecting Net Neutrality.

'You Are the Instruments'

"Take that Contract down to your broadcasters and let them know you expect them to follow it," He said. " Go out and talk about it, write about it, sing about it, blog about it. Sign up everyone you can and let your representatives know how much this means to you."

"You are the instruments to make it happen," Copps concluded. "And when Free Press and all of us come together again in a forum like this, we can have something really sweet."

Commissioner Copps will elaborate further on the Contract during a Conference panel, Saturday, at 9 a.m. in Memphis.

Blogged It:
>> Newshounds
>> Wicked Blog
>> People Get Ready
>> Willy Ritch
>> Erich Vieth

Bill Moyers: We ‘Lit a Fire’ in Washington

Veteran television journalist Bill Moyers opened the National Conference for Media Reform Friday with praise for SavetheInternet.com's grassroots campaign to keep the Internet open and fair for all comers.

"You lit a fire under people to put Washington on Notice," Moyers said before a packed house of more than 3,000 conference goers.

Click Here To Watch Moyers' YouTube Speech

Net Neutrality, which Moyers dubbed the "Equal Access Provision of the Internet," became a broad public issue "that once again reminded the powers that be that people want the media to foster democracy not to quench it."

Moyers called our campaign critical, as soon virtually all media will be delivered to homes via a single high speed broadband connection.

“This is the great gift of the digital revolution and you must never let them take it away from you,” he said.

"Without equality of access the Net will become just like cable television where the provider decides what you see and what you pay."

Moyers highlighted SavetheInternet.com's grassroots organizing and online lobbying efforts, saying that Washington "hadn't reckoned with this movement."

"Free Press and SavetheInternet.com orchestrated 800 organizations, a million and a half petitions, countless local events, legions of home-made videos, smart collaboration with allies in industry and a top-shelf communications campaign," he said.

"Who would have imagined that sitting together in the same democratic broadband pew would be the Christian Coalition, Gun Owners of America, Common Cause and MoveOn.org. And who would have imagined that these would link arms with some of the powerful new media companies to fight for the Internet's First Amendment."

Speaking about the recent agreement by AT&T executive Ed Whitacre to adhere to strict Net Neutrality as a condition of his company's $86 billion merger with BellSouth, Moyers said, "AT&T had to cry uncle."

"The agreement marks the first time that the federal government has imposed true neutrality -- oops equality -- on an Internet Access Provider since the debate erupted almost two years ago."

Regarding our prospects for 2007 and beyond, Moyers said this:

"I believe you changed the terms of the debate It is no longer about whether equality of access will govern the future of the Internet, it's about when and how.

"It also signals a change from defense to offense for the backers of the open Net. Arguably, the biggest most effective online organizing campaign ever conducted on a media issue can now turn to passing good laws rather than always having to fight to block the bad ones."

>> Watch the video at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhx_15qKoJM.

>> For full video of Moyers' speech, visit the Media Reform Conference Blog.

Plan for a Better Internet Unveiled at Memphis Bash

Last night in Memphis, the SavetheInternet.com Coalition unveiled a visionary plan for a faster, more open and accessible Internet for all Americans.

While Net Neutrality forms the foundation of the "Internet Freedom Declaration of 2007," the plan goes much further, setting forth a broader, more inclusive public agenda for the future of the Internet.

This agenda is built around three fundamental "Internet rights": 1. Universal, Affordable Access; 2. An Open and Neutral Network; and 3. World Class Quality through Competition.

As the SavetheInternet Coalition gets to work with the new Congress, it plans to marry these principles to a broad grassroots lobbying effort in support of legislation that fosters a communications infrastructure that better serves the common good.

Prior to its broad release, the Declaration was signed by Free Press, Consumers Union, Common Cause, the National Association of State Pirgs, Consumer Federation of America, MoveOn.org Civic Action, Media Access Project, Educause and several other charter SavetheInternet.com Coalition members.

>> Click here to sign on your group to Declaration.

The Declaration was released before a crowd of 750 supporters at last night's "Party for the Future" at Memphis' Gibson Guitar Factory. The event kicked off this weekend's National Conference for Media Reform, which will feature workshops and panels on Net Neutrality and discussions of SavetheInternet.com's plan."As the new Congress gets to the business of making law in 2007, we're going to make sure that they stand with us and against any corporate gatekeepers who seek to turn OUR Internet into their private fiefdoms," Josh Silver, Free Press' executive director, said during the Memphis party."

"Thanks to many of you who spoke out in 2006, Congress is now listening."

The party was co-sponsored by SavetheInternet.com Coalition members Free Press and MoveOn.org Civic Action.

Bill Moyers Fires Salvo Against Big Media

Award winning journalist Bill Moyers opened the National Conference for Media Reform Friday with a pointed speech about the negative influence of corporations on American media and democracy.

Watch Moyers' speech on YouTube:
>> Part One
>> Part Two

Before a packed house of more than 3,000 conference goers, Moyers said that the independent press is under sustained attack with a few corporations conspiring with political leaders to create an Orwellian world "in which language conceals reality and the pursuit of personal gain and partisan power are wrapped in rhetoric that turns truth to lies and lies to truth.

These forces "have even managed to turn the escalation of a failed war into a surge, as if it were electricity through a wire instead of blood spurting through veins," Moyers said.

Moyers decried the decline of hard hitting journalism. “The question of whether or not our economic system is truly just is off the table for investigation and discussion, so that alternative ideas, alternative critiques, alternative visions never get a hearing,” he said.

Invoking the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., Moyers compared big media corporations to plantation owners and American media consumers to their slaves."What happened to radio, happened to television, and then it happened to cable. If we are not diligent, then it will happen to the Interent [creating] a media plantation for the 21st Century dominated by the same corporate and ideological forces that have controlled the media for the last 50 years."

The government cut a deal with the industry and soon the public lost control of its media, he said."Something is wrong with this system," Moyers added. "This is the moment freedom begins, the moment you realize someone else has been writing your story, and it’s time you took the pen from his hand and started writing it yourself."

"We now have it in our means to tell a different story than big media. Our story," he concluded. "This is the great gift of the digital revolution and you must never let them take it away from you."

Blogged It:

>> SavetheInternet.com
>> So Many Other Dreams
>> Willy Ritch
>> Mary Mancini
>> Paul Riismandel
>> Ed Mierzwinski
>> KingOneEye
>> Jesse Russell
>> SWOPblogger
>> bxlight
>> Ben Adler

Bipartisan Net Neutrality Legislation Introduced

The fight for Net Neutrality has resumed in the opening days of the 110th Congress as Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) today introduced the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2007.

Olympia Snowe (R-Maine)

The bill reopens the debate in Congress over Net Neutrality -- the fundamental principle that prevents Internet service providers from discriminating online -- and comes less than two weeks after AT&T’s concession to Net Neutrality conditions in its planned merger with BellSouth.

SavetheInternet.com applauds Senators Dorgan and Snowe for reigniting the essential Net Neutrality debate on Capitol Hill. Our elected officials now must act to keep the Internet free of gatekeepers who would destroy this revolutionary platform for free speech and economic innovation.

The American public has an overwhelming interest in seeing this bill pass into law, ensuring that the online marketplace of ideas remains open and vibrant.

"This bill represents the appropriate next step following the Net Neutrality condition the Federal Communications Commission placed on AT&T’s merger with BellSouth," said Mark Cooper, the Consumer Federation of America's director of research.

Byron Dorgan (D - N. Dakota)

“With the leadership of Senators Dorgan and Snowe, the Congress should act swiftly to make permanent the Net Neutrality conditions of the AT&T merger and apply them to all broadband providers," added Jeannine Kenney, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union. "The legislation is the first step towards a national policy that will ensure that all consumers, not just the most affluent, have affordable access to high-speed Internet services."

The Dorgan-Snowe bill also has the support of Senators Patrick Leahy (chairman of judiciary), John Kerry, Barbara Boxer, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Tom Harkin.

In the House, Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) is expected to reintroduce a Net Neutrality proposal, which seeks similar requirements. An aide to the incoming chairman of a House Internet and telecommunications subcommittee, told Anne Broache of CNET News that it was not immediately clear when Markey would take this action. Meanwhile, House Energy and Commerce Chairman John Dingell (D-Mich.) said on Wednesday that passing Net Neutrality legislation would be a "high priority" this year.

= = = = =
Recommended: Harold Feld's legal analysis of the Bill

Un-Spinning the Net Naysayers

The telecommunications giant AT&T, whose chief Edward Whitacre once called Net Neutrality indefinable and its supporters “nuts,” has now signed off on the principle as a condition of its mega merger with BellSouth.

But that hasn't stemmed the flow of rhetoric from Net Neutrality's naysayers, who are readying their lawyers, think tanks and lobbyists for another assault on our position.

AT&T's Ed Whitacre chats up FCC Chairman Kevin Martin

AT&T’s agreement put aside their executive's own argument that Net Neutrality didn’t really exist.

It also puts to rest his bogus notion that Net Neutrality will cripple the phone company's plans to build out broadband services. AT&T agreed to this condition -- and also to offer cheaper broadband services – and yet they continue to expand their networks and offer services to the tune of $24.5 billion in gross profits in 2006.

Net Neutrality is good for smaller businesses as well. Writes the Bangor Daily News on Monday:

"That temporary concession could set a framework for Internet democracy that would benefit not only such huge users as Google and eBay but also small businesses like Maine wreath makers and crafters, protecting them against future discrimination as they market products and services online. It also would keep open the way for new startups to flourish, as YouTube and MySpace have zoomed out of nowhere."

While we’ve cheered AT&T’s temporary concessions as a step in the right direction, and are now looking to make them permanent, Washington's "Astroturfs" and coin-operated think tanks are mounting a new campaign against a free and open Internet.

The AT&T agreement “was a shakedown, no question,” Patrick Ross of the Progress & Freedom Foundation told the San Francisco Chronicle over the weekend.

What Mr. Ross fails to tell the Chronicle's reporter is that his D.C. think tank has been taking AT&T and Verizon money hand over fist to generate phony studies that trumpet as good for consumers the Internet market grab by these same virtual monopolies.

The supreme irony, of course, is that a paid operative of the phone lobby is now labeling "a shakedown" legitimate efforts to put the public before the interests of his corporate benefactors.

Ross seems to have forgotten whom this government is supposed to work for.

Meanwhile, Wall Street has ignored AT&T’s dim predictions that Net Neutrality would choke off investment in their efforts to speed Internet wires to the home. Since the merger was announced the company's stock value has held steady.

“By and large the market did not view (AT&T's concessions) as particularly onerous or even material,” one financial expert told the Chronicle.

To that end, the Wall Street Journal's editorial board got it only half right when they wrote ("Net Discrimination," Jan. 2) that Beltway lobbyists exerted an unfair influence over the Net Neutrality debate.

But they blamed Net Neutrality supporters for wielding a bigger stick in Washington when by far the largest sum of money being poured into PACs, campaign contributions and high spending D.C. law firms comes from the phone and cable companies themselves.

The political contributions of Net Neutrality supporters pales by comparison to AT&T's. Rather our influence is expressed by the number of real people -- more than 1.4 million by my last count -- who have urged their elected representatives to protect Net Neutrality and put the interest of the public before those of the nation's largest phone and cable companies.

The Journal editors added, "the one thing no one should be deceived about is that this ambush has anything to do with 'consumers,'" mischaracterizing Net Neutrality as a war between corporate titans. That all of the nation's major consumer protection groups support Net Neutrality strongly suggests otherwise.

But you won't be hearing that from the Net naysayers.

AT&T Yields to Neutrality, Congress is Next

In a striking victory for Internet freedom advocates, AT&T officials agreed on Thursday night to adhere to strict Network Neutrality conditions if allowed to complete their proposed $85 billion merger with BellSouth.

Neutralized for now: AT&T Chief Ed Whitacre

The phone company filed a "letter of commitment" with the Federal Communications Commission in which it promises to observe Net Neutrality principles for at least 24 months. Now it's left to Congress to follow the FCC's lead and make Net Neutrality permanent under the law.

According to AT&T's letter, the merged company:

"… commits that it will maintain a neutral network and neutral routing in its wireline broadband Internet access service. This commitment shall be satisfied by AT&T/BellSouth's agreement not to provide or to sell to Internet content, application, or service providers, including those affiliated with AT&T/BellSouth, any service that privileges, degrades or prioritizes any packet transmitted over AT&T/BellSouth's wireline broadband Internet access service based on its source, ownership or destination."

AT&T's concession followed more than a week of often pointed negotiations with the two Democrats on the commission, Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein. This was compounded by tens of thousands of letters from SavetheInternet.com and Free Press activists who demanded that the FCC allow no merger without Net Neutrality.

Approval of the merger by the full commission could come as early as Friday, according to the Associated Press.

AT&T's agreement puts to rest their own executives' argument that Net Neutrality doesn't really exist. (Watch AT&T chief Ed Whitacre in action) The phone giant just committed to observing Net Neutrality and defined it in the text of its letter.

It also puts to rest the bogus argument that Net Neutrality will cripple the largest phone companies' plans to build out broadband services. AT&T agreed to this condition -- and also to offer cheaper broadband services – and yet they continue to expand their networks and offer services to the tune of $24.5 billion in gross annual profits in 2006.

AT&T's agreement to these merger terms reduces to industry spin their argument that Net Neutrality and profit are mutually exclusive.

Now It's Up To Congress

Now that the FCC and AT&T have agreed that Net Neutrality is right for the future of the Internet, it's time for Congress to forge legislation that instills this guiding principle into law.

As Free Press Policy Director Ben Scott recently said, "We are no longer having a debate about whether Net Neutrality should be the law of the land; we are having a debate about how and when."

With the help of FCC Commissioners Adelstein and Copps -- who held out for Net Neutrality against intense pressure from Chairman Kevin Martin and AT&T lobbyists -- we have won more than a temporary condition on a mega-merger. They have set the bar for the future of the Internet, and paved our path to success on Capitol Hill.

"Making Net Neutrality a condition of the largest merger in telecommunications history sets an important precedent," Scott said on Thursday. "It's now up to the new Congress to craft a forward-looking broadband policy that will bring the benefits of the Internet to all Americans. For free speech, democratic participation and economic innovation to thrive online, Net Neutrality must be the law."

Huge Victory for Real People as Telco Bill Dies

The gavel has fallen on the 109th Congress marking the demise of entrenched corporate efforts to legislate away our Internet freedoms -- and a stunning victory for real people who want to retain control of the Internet.

The fate of Net Neutrality has now been passed to what appears to be a more Web-friendly Congress.

Our Coalition pledges to work with new Members to craft policies that ensure all Americans can access the Internet and enjoy the unlimited choices it has to offer.

The end of this Congress -- and death of Sen. Ted Stevens' bad bill -- gives us the chance to have a long overdue public conversation about what the future of the Internet should look like. This will not only include ensuring Net Neutrality, but making the Internet faster, more affordable and accessible.

'Huge Victory for Real People'

As the 109th comes to a close, Coalition members today praised our efforts in 2006 and discussed ways we can work towards a better Internet:

"This is a huge victory for real people and a clear signal to the next Congress that standing up for big bold ideas is a winning political proposition," said Eli Pariser, executive director of MoveOn.org Civic Action.

Companies like AT&T, Verizon, BellSouth and Comcast spent more than $150 million to push Congress to gut Net Neutrality. But in the end, they couldn't overcome widespread public opposition.

"The people’s attention to the issue of Net Neutrality is more powerful than any legislation — and this year proves that," said Tim Wu, a professor at Columbia University Law School and author of Who Controls the Internet.

'It's About Fairness'

Network Neutrality has been part of the Internet since its inception, ensuring that the service providers who control the "pipes" don’t interfere with content based on its ownership or source. "Net neutrality is just about fairness and a level playing field," said Craig Newmark, founder of craigslist. "It's that simple."

"Industry will be back with their money and phony grassroots groups," said Jeannine Kenney, senior policy analyst at Consumers Union. "But next time around, with a public now well-informed of what's at stake, we hope Congress will take up broadband policy that advances consumer -- not just industry -- needs."

The more than 850 groups in the SavetheInternet.com Coalition also include the National Religious Broadcasters, the Service Employees International Union, the American Library Association, Educause, Gun Owners of America, Future of Music Coalition, Parents Television Council, the ACLU, and every major consumer group in the country. These are supported by a community of more than a million small businesspeople, bloggers, MySpacers, YouTubers, activists and citizens.

"As an activist and new media advocate, I am encouraged by our prospects in Congress for protecting the egalitarian spirit of the Internet and all people's unfettered access to it," said Christopher Rabb, founder of Afro-Netizen. "This fight has even greater impact on underserved communities, particularly among African-Americans, who rarely own or control the content we consume in mainstream media."

'The Fight for Net Neutrality Has only Begun'

While the defeat of HR 5252 is a major step forward, the future of the Internet remains in jeopardy until Congress passes meaningful, enforceable protections for Net Neutrality. Such legislation will be a top priority for members of the SavetheInternet.com Coalition when the legislators return in January.

"Despite a Congress deeply in the pocket of telecom lobbyists, the public banded together to stop attacks on our free and open Internet," declared Michael Kieschnick, president of the Working Assets. "In 2007, we will continue the fight to preserve this precious public good by making Network Neutrality the law of the land."

"The potent combination of grassroots support and the facts stopped a bad bill," said Mark Cooper, director of research for the Consumer Federation of America. "But the fight for Net Neutrality has only begun."

New Congress Hostile to Ma Bell's Man at the FCC

Incoming congressional leaders are taking a bleak view of efforts by FCC Chairman Kevin Martin to push through a series of Internet and media rulings before the Democratic Congress gains oversight of his agency.

FCC Chairman Martin (right) in bed with corporate lobbyists

Neutrality. To accomplish this he's turning screws on one commissioner, Robert McDowell, pressuring him to violate professional ethics, "un-recuse" himself and rubber stamp the $82 billion deal.

McDowell had opted out of the vote citing a conflict of interest because he used to work for one of the stakeholders in the merger debate.

But that wasn't good enough for Chairman Martin. The former Bush-Cheney errand boy reportedly has his eyes on the North Carolina governor's mansion and he's yearning to deliver on promises to the telecommunications giants that he hopes will return the favor when the time is right. (In the last cycle, AT&T gave 66 percent of their political patronage to Republican candidates.)

If forced, McDowell would cast Martin's deciding vote for the AT&T merger.

Today tens of thousands of Internet freedom activists are taking action to stop Martin's plan. They're signing on to a public letter to Congress, which states in part that:

"The federal government must not permit the reconstitution of Ma Bell without first protecting consumers and the public against anti-competitive activities and market failure. No public interest goals are served by handing out favors to large corporations without any safeguards to maximize public benefit."

You can sign the letter by clicking here.

Martin's move has drawn fire from some of the most powerful politicians in Washington. Tuesday, incoming leaders of the House and Senate Commerce Committee that oversee the FCC, John Dingell (D-MI) and Daniel Inouye (D-HI) both sent letters to Chairman Martin.

Dingell's letter demanded an explanation, and stated that he wants the merger handled "without compromising the ethical standards of the independent agency or the individual Commissioners involved." Inouye questioned Martin's rationale for forcing the vote, and urged him to negotiate with the Democratic FCC commissioners.

Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) wrote the chairman: “When public servants have identified and recused themselves from legitimate conflicts of interest, they should be commended for upholding the highest standards of public integrity.”

Will Martin hear the recent public outcry against political patronage and corruption (loudly delivered via the polls on Nov. 7) and bow to new leadership in Congress?

We'll find out later this month when the Commission is due to move on the merger. In the meantime, keep an eye on Martin as he maneuvers for special interests in a policy climate that has suddenly turned more hostile to his mix of politics and big business.

SavetheInternet Party for the Future

Eight months ago, very few of us had heard of Net Neutrality, and the SavetheInternet.com Coalition didn't even exist. Now, not a day goes by without someone sending me a YouTube video, song, blog post or news clipping supporting Net Neutrality.

The SavetheInternet.com Coalition has enabled more than a million Americans to speak out on the issue, moving Net Neutrality to the forefront of the debate over the future of the Internet.

We have stunned the phone and cable lobby and scuttled its plan to strong-arm Congress and make AT&T and Comcast the ultimate gatekeepers to online content.

By stopping Senator Stevens' massive handout to the network giants, we have opened a path to creating a more democratic broadband framework for 2007 and beyond.

Tom Morello at the 2003 Conference

You're Invited

We're now pleased to invite you to a blowout party to celebrate this historic accomplishment and begin the conversation on where we go from here.

On January 11 in Memphis, many of the more than 6,000 bloggers, YouTubers, Politicians, musicians, celebrities, activists and citizens who form the core of SavetheInternet.com Coalition will come together on the eve of the National Conference for Media Reform in Memphis.

We've booked the Gibson Guitar Factory from 9 p.m. until closing. They'll be a DJ, booze and dancing. We'll be projecting dozens of videos created by YouTube activists throughout the year.

Internet for Everyone

During the party we will unveil SavetheInternet.com's blueprint for the future of the Internet -- a plan not just to secure Net Neutrality in the next Congress but also to build momentum behind a vision of a faster, more accessible broadband for everyone -- returning our country to the digital forefront.

The party will help kick off the National Conference for Media Reform, which is about establishing media reform and Internet freedom as winnable political issues.

2005 Conference Workshop

Speakers on hand over the long weekend include Rev. Jesse Jackson, Bill Moyers, Arianna Huffington, M-1 from Dead Prez, Helen Thomas, Jane Fonda, Davey D, Robert Greenwald, Dan Gillmor, Paul Reickhoff, Matt Stoller, Amy Goodman, Cenk Ugyur and others.

Victory in 2007 and Beyond

SavetheInternet.com members will participate on panels and workshops on online organizing, blogger activism, Net Neutrality, the future of the Internet, and to meet face to face, strategize and build momentum for winning Net Neutrality as a new Congress returns to Washington.

Panel topics include:

• Going Viral -- The power of social networks to make change and circumvent the mainstream media.


• SavetheInternet -- The success of the campaign and the challenges ahead in 2007. (with Free Press)


• Universal Broadband -- Making high-speed Internet available for all.


• Citizen Journalism -- Blogs and beyond, making an impact in the new media landscape. (with Dan Gillmor)


• Media Reform and the Vote


• The Press at War and the War on the Press (with Helen Thomas)


• Trust or Verify -- propaganda and the press


• Media Watchdogs – (with Media Matters)


• From Computer Screens to the Streets -- activism in a wired world (with MoveOn)

Join us in Memphis. Celebrate the future of the Internet on Thursday and stay for a weekend of partying and plotting.

= = = =
Update: Bloggers can learn more about getting credentials for the weekend by clicking here.

Michigan Residents Take Shot at AT&T Lame Duck

Having failed in efforts to pass federal legislation against Net Neutrality, powerful phone companies are now determined to take away Internet freedom at the state level. As reported in today's Los Angeles Times, the SavetheInternet.com Coalition is organizing state-by-state to fight this effort.

Michigan is one of the first states in the Coalition's ongoing campaign to save the Internet from restrictive control by phone companies.

At a rally today inside the State Capitol a broad more than 50 local members of the SavetheInternet.com Coalition joined local Michigan groups to speak out against a “lame duck” vote on the "Michigan Video Franchising Bill" (HB 6456) and demanded that state senators protect the future of the Internet for Michigan residents and businesses.

The event was attended by more than a dozen local media outlets (links to local reports to follow)

The Video Franchising Bill is a revision of Michigan's telecommunications laws being pushed by AT&T. The bill would allow the telecommunications giant to gut consumer protections, cherry-pick which communities receive high-speed broadband and video service, dodge local community access requirements, and ignore Net Neutrality -- the fundamental principle of the free and open Internet.

A committee vote on the bill could happen as early as Wednesday

Click here, to help stop this bill in Michigan.

This is simply a bad bill, written by phone company lobbyists. AT&T tells legislators and the public that it will expand access to the Internet. What they don’t reveal is that unless Net Neutrality protections are added, these corporations will be able to abuse their role as gatekeepers to the Internet — deciding which Web sites open quickly on your computer.

Here's what some had to say about today's rally:

David Pettit. Public Interest Research Group in Michigan (PIRGIM)

“It is critical to our democracy that our two most popular media outlets -- TV and the Internet -- remain diverse and robust marketplaces for ideas. If this bill is allowed to go forward, it will diminish local programming and destroy today’s fair and equal Internet.”

Andrew McLaughlin, Google Sr. Policy Counsel

"Consumers should benefit from full competition. What we're asking for is very simple: protect the consumer by making sure telephone and cable companies don't restrict the services that are available. Google would never have grown beyond a garage project if Internet providers had been able to block or slow access by individuals. It is essential for Michigan to preserve the Internet as an unmatched platform for innovation and job creation."

Mark Cooper, Director of Research at Consumer Federation of America

“This bill would make it easy for big telecom companies to ignore Michigan’s underserved areas and ‘cherry-pick’ only the most profitable customers. To create a level playing field for all consumers, Michigan needs policies that build high-speed broadband and video networks in all communities.”

Laurie Cirivello, Executive Director of the Grand Rapids Community Media Center

Public access stations - and the local communities that depend on them -- would be hit especially hard by Michigan’s proposed video franchising legislation. “Provisions in this bill could silence the voices of over 400 community organizations that use public access in Grand Rapids alone.”

Other participants in today’s press conference included the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA) Michigan Chapter and the Michigan Chapter of the Alliance for Community Media.

Following the press conference, the local groups and SavetheInternet.com Coalition members delivered more than 18,000 petitions supporting Net Neutrality and urged their state senators to vote against the Michigan Video Franchising Bill.

On Net Neutrality: Congress Wakes Up to a Watchful Public

In the coming weeks, major communications companies and their high-spending lobbyists will do everything they can to dismiss the Nov. 7 political result and re-assert their control over the business of policymaking.

But what happened that Tuesday has much deeper ramifications for phone and cable efforts to set the agenda.

In 2006, political corruption tipped over into public view.

It wasn't just the glaring exposure of dirty-dealings by Jack Abramoff, Tom Delay and their cronies -- but of the depths to which greed has become a part of the system. Abramoff was just one fellow traveler along a money trail that led from K Street to Capitol Hill and back again.

The revolving door of congressional staffers-cum-industry lobbyists is a part the same corruption of our democracy that has become loathsome to voters.

The phone and cable lobby is a major player in this scheme. In the past 10 years, telecommunications, broadcasting and cable companies have spent more than half a billion dollars on campaign contributions, political action committees, PR firms and high-spending lobbyists to push through self interested policies.

These regulations – offering massive tax breaks, relaxed ownership rules, and unfettered control of the public airwaves -- all came at the public's expense.

On the issue of Net Neutrality, companies like AT&T, Verizon, BellSouth and Comcast outspent public interest advocates on a scale of 500 to one – pushing Congress to remove the longstanding nondiscrimination rules that enabled the Internet to become the greatest vehicle for free speech and economic innovation.

To do away with these freedoms, the phone and cable lobby will continue to paint issues like Net Neutrality as "unnecessary government regulations" and dismiss the groundswell of public support for this issue as the handiwork of a few "liberal groups."

The public tolerance for this type of "Astroturfing" was tested in 2006. More than 75 percent of respondents to a September CBS/New York Time poll thought that most members of Congress "are more interested in serving special interest groups" than "serving the people they represent."

As much as anything, last week's vote sent a message to Congress to stop currying favor with moneyed interests and return to governing in the public interest.

Near the top of this new agenda will be restoring Net Neutrality. Many in Congress came to this realization after receiving more than a million letters from concerned citizens urging them to maintain a free and open Internet.

Whereas before, the phone companies had been confident that Congress would simply sign-off on industry-written legislation. Now -- as the 109th Congress comes to a close -- no member can vote with the telecom cartel without feeling the full heat of public scrutiny.

Net Freedom Fighters to Take Charge in Congress

Efforts to save the free and open Internet are a political win according to Nov. 7 election results. And the outlook for better, more public-spirited Internet legislation is now quite good.

Reps. John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) -- both strong supporters of Net Neutrality -- are set to take command of telecommunications policy when their party reclaims majority power in the House in January.

According to a report today in Broadcasting & Cable, Dingell said that he will take a new crack at a telecom reform bill, and that it would "clearly" have to better address Net Neutrality and the public interest in general. "Our duty is not just to the Bells, but to good public policy and to protecting the public interest," he told reporters.

Dingell is expected to be seated as chairman of the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee, the panel that oversees phone, cable operators and Internet companies.

Markey will take the helm of the key Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee. He has been an outspoken champion for Net Neutrality. New telecommunications legislation by Dingell and Markey in 2007 would likely include Net Neutrality mandates from the outset.

The victory vindicates soon-to-be-majority leader Nancy Pelosi, who decided over the summer to elevate Net Neutrality in the Democratic Party platform -- a risky move after many a Washington prognosticator declared it a dead issue. Not so.

In the Senate all pro-Net Neutrality Senators won decisive victories in their states. This list includes members of both parties:

>> Sen. Akaka won in Hawaii with 61%
>> Sen. Bingaman won in New Mexico with 70%
>> Sen. Cantwell won in Washington with 58%
>> Sen. Clinton won in New York with 67%
>> Sen. Feinstein won in California with 60%
>> Sen. Kennedy won in Massachussetts with 69%
>> Sen. Menendez won in New Jersey with 53%
>> Sen. Nelson won in Flordia with 60%
>> Sen. Nelson won in Nebraska with 64%
>> Sen. Snowe won in Maine with 73%

They will be joined by newcomers Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), Sherrod Brown, (D-Ohio), Jim Webb (likely-D-Virginia) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota) who have also come out in support of Net Neutrality.

Over the year, more and more politicians came to realize that the public was paying attention to this issue. The blogosphere caught fire and helped shift the momentum in Washington on this issue.

Whereas before, the big telephone companies and their coin-operated lobbyists were confident that Congress would simply roll over and do their bidding, today, no member of Congress can vote with the telecom cartel without full public scrutiny.

The major telecommunications bill pending in the Senate is a massive giveaway to the phone and cable companies, and should be blocked during the lame duck Congress. It’s time to start from scratch in 2007, and begin having a genuine public debate about what the future of the media and the Internet should look like.

Senators Ready Assault on Open Internet

If national polls are right, the upcoming midterm election could bring a dramatic shift of power on Capitol Hill. But that may not save us from a last-minute assault on Net Neutrality by members of the outgoing Congress.

The issue of Net Neutrality has become the most contentious piece of a massive telecommunications bill pending in the Senate. Net Neutrality is the longstanding principle that keeps phone and cable companies from discriminating against the content traveling over their wires.

At issue is whether giants like AT&T, Comcast and Verizon should treat all packets of Web information the same or whether they would be allowed to charge extra fees to guarantee that certain Web sites run faster than others.

These discriminatory tolls would have a chilling effect on the egalitarian Internet, by tilting the net's historically level playing field to favor those companies that pay the most.

It's a predatory scheme has little to do with the free market, It's more like a mafia shake down writes Columbia Professor Timothy Wu. “While it’s one way to earn cash, it’s just too close to the Tony Soprano vision of networking: Use your position to make threats and extract payments.”

In 2006, the nation's largest phone and cable companies have spent more than $100 million on D.C. lobbyists, think tanks, ads and campaign contributions to strip Net Neutrality from the latest rewrite of the Telecommunications Act (H.R. 5252). But this legislation stalled in the Senate after more than a million people contacted Congress opposing its lack of safeguards.

Today, a grassroots movement that barely existed at the beginning the year is on the verge of toppling one of the most powerful lobbies in Washington. But all that could change in the lame duck session.

Confronted with his failure to gain popular support for his telecom bill, Alaska Senator Ted Stevens is determined to force the bill to the floor after votes are counted on Nov. 7 — and before the next Congress convenes.
If Stevens’ succeeds it would be an affront to the millions of Americans who have spoken out in favor of Net Neutrality — and against plans by AT&T, Verizon and Comcast to seize control of the Internet.
The Savetheinternet.com Coalition is keeping a special eye on this lame duck session. But we need your help. You can:

• Visit our interactive Senate map to see where your senators stands;


• Sign the petition telling Congress to protect Net Neutrality;


• Write your hometown paper to tell others in your community about Net Neutrality.

Stevens and outgoing Senate Leader Bill Frist didn’t bring this bad bill to a vote before the elections because it was political dynamite. After Nov. 7, though, many are ready to deliver on promises to their high-spending friends in the telecom lobby. Americans need to stay on alert against any such lame duck maneuver.

It’s time for Congress to tear up this bad telecom bill and start over in 2007 with new legislation that protects Net Neutrality and the free and open Internet.