Dear John,

Net neutrality is the idea that internet service providers (ISPs), such as Verizon and AT&T, must treat all content that streams through them in a neutral manner: no “fast lanes” or “slow lanes,” no censorship or “throttling” of content, no blocking access to competitors.

Under President Obama, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) enacted the Open Internet Order, establishing strong regulatory oversight to protect net neutrality. But in 2015, President Trump’s FCC Chair, Ajit Pai, repealed the entire order, so corporate ISPs once again became the final arbiters of what we, the people, will and will not be able to access online.

It seemed President Biden would be able to restore net neutrality in a straightforward way, but Ted Cruz aligned with telecom lobbyists and other Republicans to smear and block the confirmation of President Biden’s first pick for the FCC, leaving the commission short of a quorum and unable to do its work.

Help us to restore net neutrality! Sign and send a letter to your Senators today, urging them to fully staff the FCC and reverse Trump’s evisceration of internet protections by confirming Geoffrey Starks now.

This month, the Senate is scheduled to vote on reconfirming Geoffrey Starks to another term at the FCC. We must urge the Senate to stand up against the telecom lobbyists and confirm this candidate, so the FCC will have the necessary authority to restore net neutrality and protect consumers.

Don’t let any nasty smear campaigns undo the important work that we need from the FCC. Tell your Senators to vote for Commissioner Starks. We need him to get to work on this as early as yesterday!

Sign and send your letter today, and urge the Senate to get the FCC back on the job!

Thank you for fighting for the free exchange of ideas in the online public domain.

In solidarity,

Robert Reich
Inequality Media Civic Action