Net Neutrality; the principle that Internet service providers should enable access to all content and applications regardless of the source, and without favoring or blocking particular products or websites.
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On Thursday, The Federal Communications Commission took a vote on whether to repeal Net Neutrality. Many people (including myself) did not really know much about net neutrality, until this whole thing came up in the news. The vote came out to be a yes to repeal, so many are wondering, “sh*t, does this mean I have to pay for Twitter now?!”
Some platforms have released statements saying that they will still stand by Net Neutrality and not charge for their services. However, that does not mean they are being honest at this time and that they will not change their mind down the road from now. It also doesn’t mean that any company will charge for their services. If so, it could take months to even take effect.
This also gives the power for a person’s internet usage to be heavily monitored. You could be controlled to the point of what you look at online, what you say online, and what you do online overall. This could really take away a lot of personal freedoms you now have, and if that doesn’t concern you, then you don’t understand this.
As someone who is a heavy user of numerous social media platforms as well as the internet overall (hello, I’m in college I need Quizlet and other study sites), I am terrified at what lies ahead. What does this mean for everything online?
Thanks Trump, you’re always full of great ideas.