NNSquad - Network Neutrality Squad
[ NNSquad ] Feds extensively involved in secret Internet copyright crackdown talks
Feds extensively involved in secret Internet copyright crackdown talks
http://j.mp/pcnh25 (Wired)
"Top-ranking Obama administration officials, including the U.S.
copyright czar, played an active role in secret negotiations between
Hollywood, the recording industry and ISPs to disrupt internet access
for users suspected of violating copyright law, according to internal
White House e-mails."
- - -
My problem with this process isn't so much that the White House was
involved in these discussions -- that may have been entirely
appropriate. What seems wrong is that the process itself was treated
like a nuclear weapons construction planning committee, where any
leakage of info might have serious negative consequences on the world
at large. This seems completely inappropriate for the topic actually
under discussions.
In fact, while it can certainly be argued that there are kinds of
negotiations that must rightly take place in private among the
stakeholders to assure that everyone can speak freely, in the case of
these Internet copyright matters those key stakeholders clearly should
have *included* the main public interest groups concerned about these
issues, who should have been allowed to participate in the discussions
as essentially *equal partners throughout* the negotiations.
Not having done so creates the appearance (which seems accurate in
this case) of an "us" vs. "them" mentality, where Internet users in
the public at large would be presented with a fait accompli like a
medieval Lord reading new draconian laws to his serfs, retainers, and
thralls -- that's you and me.
--Lauren--
Lauren Weinstein (lauren@vortex.com): http://www.vortex.com/lauren
Co-Founder: People For Internet Responsibility: http://www.pfir.org
Founder:
- Network Neutrality Squad: http://www.nnsquad.org
- Global Coalition for Transparent Internet Performance: http://www.gctip.org
- PRIVACY Forum: http://www.vortex.com
Member: ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
Google+: http://vortex.com/g+lauren
Twitter: https://twitter.com/laurenweinstein
Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800 / Skype: vortex.com