• They Work for Us

    Megan Tady
    October 16, 2009

    Sometimes you have to remind Washington politicians whom they really work for. Today is one of those days.

  • Does Astroturf Ever Die?

    Timothy Karr
    October 16, 2009

    How do we rid Washington of astroturf? It’s a blight that’s spread over the Capitol like kudzu, smothering genuine public debate under a tangle of misinformation.

  • Harvard Study Supports an Open Internet

    Megan Tady
    October 16, 2009

    We know we’re right, but it’s always comforting when an institution like Harvard thinks so, too.

  • Telecom Industry Should Tell the Truth about Billing

    Megan Tady
    October 14, 2009

    What a steal! Verizon is offering DSL Internet service for just $19.99 per month. I was so excited until I tripped over this asterisk: The “price” doesn’t include taxes and fees; a one-time promotional charge of $55; an obligation to purchase Verizon phone service; a 60 percent increase in fees after the first six months; and a $79 termination fee. By steal, I mean from my pocket.

  • The Buzz about Wireless Internet

    Josh Levy
    October 9, 2009

    The Chairman of the FCC just name-checked the iPhone, Palm Pre and BlackBerry in a speech. Welcome to 2009, Mr. Chairman!

    Here's the text, from Chairman Julius Genachowski's speech at the annual CTIA trade show:

  • AT&T Opens Up, a Little

    Josh Levy
    October 7, 2009

    As we briefly mentioned yesterday, AT&T has agreed to allow its customers to make calls with VoIP apps over its 3G network.

    This is a very big deal. In a just released statement, Free Press' research director Derek Turner said the following:

  • Valuing Journalism

    Josh Stearns
    October 7, 2009

    When it comes to the future of journalism, I often hear us asking the wrong questions and then wondering why we can’t find any reasonable answers. For example, people ask: “Should government get involved in journalism?” The reality is that since the establishment of our democratic system of government, laws and policies have always shaped journalism and media. So we should not ask if government should be involved, but rather how government should be involved.

  • A Legal Look at the Comcast Case

    Chris Riley
    October 7, 2009

    This week brings the latest round of filings in the court case involving the FCC's 2008 order punishing cable giant Comcast for interfering with legal peer-to-peer traffic. In its order, the agency found that Comcast's blocking violated federal law and did not constitute reasonable network management practices.

  • Fess Up, Apple: Why’d You Block Google Voice?

    Josh Levy
    October 6, 2009

    [UPDATE: This is unexpected: AT&T has announced that it will let VoIP applications like Skype make calls over its 3G network. Will this change Apple's behavior toward Google Voice? We'll have to wait and see.]

  • The Internet: It's Not a Truck, It's a Town Square

    Sen. Al Franken
    October 6, 2009

    As you know, I got to the Senate a bit late.

    But I didn’t get here too late. Because we’re debating issues of major consequence right now – health care, the economy, the course of the war in Afghanistan. And one of the issues you don’t hear about as much – but one that will impact our lives, our economy and, yes, the future of music – is Net Neutrality.

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