Last week on Tech It Out, we reported that companies such as Google, Twitter and Amazon are protesting net neutrality rollbacks by the FCC. Of course, this issue is hardly news to those who have followed the net neutrality debate. One of the more knowledgeable and entertaining sources for information about this topic has been former Daily Show correspondent and current Last Week Tonight host John Oliver.
In a segment that aired on HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver on June 2014, Oliver examines the FCC’s (then) proposed restrictions on net neutrality. Oliver notes that one of the biggest issues with the the FCC’s net neutrality rollbacks is that it would fix a system that already isn’t broken and would unlevel the playing field that online companies operate in. According to Oliver, “ending net neutrality would allow big companies to buy their way into the ‘fast lane,’ leaving everyone else in the slow lane.” As Oliver points out, anti-corporate activists and large corporations are against the net neutrality rollbacks, and yet cable companies such as Comcast are staunchly in favor of them. You can find out more about Oliver’s proposal to protest the FCC net neutrality regulations by watching the clip below:
Oliver and the Last Week Tonight crew follow up on the issue of net neutrality in a segment that aired in May 2017. While the first net neutrality segment in 2014 had gotten significant media attention, it wasn’t enough to reverse the FCC’s decision. In his net neutrality update, Oliver expands on his arguments in support of net neutrality: “Net neutrality is about more than just speed. At its heart, it is the principle that internet service providers…should not be able to engage in any sort of [shenanigans] that limits or manipulates the choices you make online.” The issue of net neutrality has historically been boring for many non-tech people, which makes Oliver’s efforts to break it down in a clear, concise and (perhaps most importantly) hilarious way will help a broad audience understand the issues involved. Below you can watch the Last Week Tonight net neutrality follow-up piece:
Networtech plans on following up on the latest developments on the net neutrality case as they develop, so stay tuned to the Tech It Out blog!