Why we should care about net neutrality

With everything our generation is facing today (tuition hikes, the job market, etc...), it is hard to believe that protecting internet freedom is worth our time. Most of us either trust others to do it or blindly deny the need for concern. What most don’t understand is that we have become dependent on the internet; it provides what we know and how we know it. Because of this, it is imperative that the internet remains a free exchange of ideas and who else could protect it better than those who depend on it? Every issue we care about is affected by the freedom of the internet and we would be doing ourselves and future generations a great disservice if we lost net neutrality.
With computers and smartphones, we are connected to the internet at all times. For that time, the most generally frequented website is Facebook; in my three and a half years in college I have met only two people without a Facebook account. From event invitations to a friend posting the latest YouTube video, it has become an essential link to society. If net neutrality didn’t exist, Facebook, Google, YouTube, and most other websites that were starter businesses might not either. And beyond the large websites, everyone frequents other personal interest websites or blogs which are essentially small businesses vying for survival. Losing net neutrality could mean creating a website would be similar to making a movie, which would require petitioning a corporation, being vetted for profitability, and giving creative control to that corporation which will own the website. The freedom to make any website on any topic almost defines the internet and if we want that to continue, we need to protect net neutrality.
Most of my friends, including me, chose to watch TV on our computers with Hulu and Netflix because of our hectic schedules. With net neutrality, these two companies can compete fairly and earn our patronage through the quality and quantity of their content. However, because there is no net neutrality law, Comcast (who is about to have a large financial stake in Hulu) has begun charging Netflix exclusively to stream their content. If a net neutrality law isn’t instituted soon, Comcast could even slow Netflix buffering time and make Hulu the artificially superior website. Losing Netflix might give us more time to study, but most of us would rather transition to alternative and mostly illegal streaming (which could also be blocked without net neutrality). If we want access to quality, virus and pop-up free entertainment that has been vetted by the free market, maintaining net neutrality is essential.
We have a surprisingly hard time believing that the internet will ever change. What most don’t know is that this potential change has happened before. Filmmaking was as open as the internet when it was first invented; anyone with a camera could make a movie and get it distributed through traveling variety shows until companies gained control and made it almost impossible to get a movie made and distributed. The same thing happened with radio and television. I am convinced that if we realized the true threat on the internet, we would not just post something on our Facebook status or write on their politician’s Wall, but actually be motivated to participate in the democratic process. That is what needs to be done if internet freedom is going to be protected in the freest country in the world.