Press Releases

John Oliver Crashes FCC Website, Grassroots Can Use BattleForTheNet.com Instead

Can’t File Net Neutrality Comments Because John Oliver Crashed the FCC Website? You Can Use BattleForTheNet.com Instead

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 8, 2017
Media contact: Mark Stanley, [email protected], 202.681.7582

The FCC’s comment filing system crashed at length last night after John Oliver aired a segment directing viewers to submit comments to the FCC in support of net neutrality. The filing system has worked only intermittently today.

Those who wish to submit comments may still easily do so, at BattleForTheNet.com, the site that was central to online activism in support of the 2015 net neutrality rules. BattleForTheNet.com is stewarded by Demand Progress, Fight for the Future, and Free Press.

The following statement can be attributed to Demand Progress executive director David Segal:

In 2014, John Oliver’s net neutrality segment was one of many inflection points in the public campaign to secure strong rules. In his segment last night, Oliver exposed the hypocrisies and spin of Chairman Pai and the large ISPs, who continue to make Orwellian claims that they support the open internet while doing all they can to dismantle the legal foundation necessary for strong net neutrality rules.

The grassroots see through this spin too, and will continue to flood the FCC with comments just like they did in 2014 in support of strong net net neutrality protections. Pai’s former employer Verizon and corporate behemoths like Comcast and AT&T might have the resources to hire armies of lobbyists and communications consultants. But as Oliver’s segment made clear, what they don’t have on their side is the truth, or public support.

We are thrilled that Oliver spurred so much pro-net neutrality activism last night, and encourage those who are having trouble filing through the FCC’s site to visit BattleForTheNet.com, which also processes comments in support of strong net neutrality rules.

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