"Egalitarian Values" of Internet at Stake in Net Neutrality Debate, Argues Prof. Kevin Howley

December 1, 2017

"Net neutrality is essential for free inquiry, democratic debate, and political dissent," Kevin Howley, professor of communication (media studies) at DePauw University, tells the Christian Science Monitor. "If advocates of Title II repeal have their way, any semblance of these more egalitarian values will be ruthlessly pushed aside in favor of a top-down model of political communication and cultural production."

Dr. Howley adds, "In an era when much of our political discourse takes place in digital space, we can ill-afford the loss of the horizontal communication made possible by an open internet. Likewise, local, grassroots cultural expression, which in recent years has enjoyed something of a renaissance, will once again be stifled by dominant cultural institutions."

The article by Harry Bruinius is headlined "As fears cloud net neutrality debate, is common ground being overlooked?".

Howley states, "Reconciliation is possible -- both sides value innovation. This bit of common ground might provide the basis for resolving the debate."

Access the story at the publication's website.

Earlier this week, USA Today carried Professor Howley's letter to the editor on net neutrality.  Read it here.

Howley is the editor of Media Interventions and Understanding Community Media and authored Community Media: People, Places, and Communication Technologies.  He wrote a 2011 column on the potential ramifications of a "tiered internet."

Source: Christian Science Monitor

Back