_Communication and Electronics- Interest Groups Internet Industry

.docx

School

Houston Community College *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

1305

Subject

Political Science

Date

Apr 3, 2024

Type

docx

Pages

4

Uploaded by AdmiralRaccoonMaster1006

Tapia 1 Maria Tapia Professor Teas Government 2305 14 October 2023 The Internet Industry Interest Group In 2022, the Communications and Electronics sector donated $342,718,821 to midterm campaign funding. Within that sector, the Internet Industry contributed $95,185,591, with $24.7 million of that total being contributed by PACs (Comm/Electronics Summary). Democratic candidates received most of the funds, and with good reason. Going into the 2022 midterm elections, the Senate had a Democratic majority. Incumbent Senators have an extremely high chance of being re-elected (OERTX). Thus, the Senate was most likely going to retain its Democratic majority. Democrat lawmakers have historically tried to impose more regulations on the internet industry, while many Republican politicians oppose more regulations. The interest groups most likely wanted to have an influence on any policies that the Democratic politicians could try to establish, such as another Net Neutrality Act. Net Neutrality requires internet service providers to remain unbiased in how they treat the network data. They must treat the data “ without improper discrimination in favor of particular apps, sites or services” (Electronic Frontier Foundation). The Net Neutrality Act was enacted under the Obama Administration, repealed under Trump’s administration, and the Democratic Chairwoman for the FCC has recently proposed to restore Net Neutrality . The interest groups would want a say in what the restored Net Neutrality would look like, as it would deeply affect the Internet Industry.
Tapia 2 In addition to having say in a Net Neutrality Act, the Internet Interest groups would want to have a say in another piece of legislature: Senate Bill 1671. The Digital Platform Commissions Act of 2023–Bill 1671–is designed to regulate digital platforms, establish “the commission of rulemaking, investigative and related authorities to regulate the access of competition among and consumer protections from digital platforms…setting the standards for age verification and age-appropriate design…and administrative and judicial enforcement and regulations” (CRS). Lo and behold, the bill is sponsored and cosponsored by two Democratic Senators: Senator Michael F. Bennet and Senator Peter Welch. If passed, Senate Bill 1671 would put stricter regulations on digital platforms. People have come to rely on platform services daily for “ accessing the news, communicating with others, seeking jobs, engaging in commerce, and many more daily activities” (Popiel). These services provide access to a wide range of information, tools, and services, allowing people to stay connected and engaged with the world. Right now, the leading platform services don’t have a standard regulation. These companies are able to get away with quite a bit because of this lack of standard regulation. For example, platforms have been able to use advertising algorithms to spread disinformation campaigns, as well as claim no responsibility for libelous speech and hate crime videos on the platforms (Popiel). Stricter regulation could cause the platform service companies to lose their major influence on people, lose control of data collection and usage, and lose a competitive edge internationally. Thus, the Internet Industry’s interest groups are trying to lobby politicians in order to minimize the potentially damaging changes to the industry. If I were involved in the Internet Industry, I would want the interest groups to have more conversations with members of all political parties in order to explain the industry’s viewpoints
Your preview ends here
Eager to read complete document? Join bartleby learn and gain access to the full version
  • Access to all documents
  • Unlimited textbook solutions
  • 24/7 expert homework help