A day after the repeal of net-neutrality rules, which classified the internet as a utility, Wall Street Journal was quick to tout the ruling as ‘freedom.’ In response, social media took the phrase and turned it into a backlash.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted 3-2 to repeal the net-neutrality rules.
“By effectively deeming the internet a utility, former chairman Tom Wheeler turned the FCC into a political gatekeeper,” the Wall Street Journal editorial board wrote in an article entitled ‘The Internet Is Free Again on Friday.’
“The rules prohibited broadband providers from blocking, throttling and favoring content, which Mr Wheeler ostensibly intended to help large content providers like Google and Netflix gain leverage against cable companies.”
The phrase #InternetIsFreeAgain quickly prompted a swift backlash on social media, which was critical of the ruling and Wall Street’s glee.
One poster compared the ruling to Columbus telling Native Americans “they were free again after he stole their land.”
Another showed a map of the states with red states indicating those who think the internet is free again.
The FCC voted on Thursday to eliminate net-neutrality protection. Net neutrality means internet service providers must treat all data on the web equally, regardless of the content, website, platform, application or method of communication.
The Commission argued that net neutrality was preventing websites from investing trillions of dollars in network services. However, critics fear with net-neutrality regulations gone internet service providers will charge extra to prioritize traffic, effectively creating a 'slow lane' for smaller websites.
Other social media posters took cues from the blockbuster movie Blazing Saddles.
Walt Disney cartoon Tom and Jerry.
And a quote from novelist George Orwell’s 1984 to illustrate how they thought the American people had been misled in the vote.
The same day that the FCC voted on the repeal, President Donald Trump took the opportunity at the White House to demonstrate how many federal regulations he has cut since being in office.