President Obama put in his own plug for Internet freedom
Wednesday, a day after there was a Republican plank on the topic, and said it
would be in the Democratic platform.
In some real-time, online conversing on
forum Reddit, the president said he knew Internet freedom was something the
site's users "care passionately about."
"I do too," said President Obama. "We will
fight hard to make sure that the internet remains the open forum for everybody
- from those who are expressing an idea to those to want to start a business.
And although there will be occasional disagreements on the details of various
legislative proposals, I won't stray from that principle - and it will be
reflected in the platform."
TheRepublican platform committed to Internet freedom too, defining it as
removing regulatory barriers to Internet innovation and industry-led guidelines
on privacy and data use. It also suggested the Obama-backed FCC network
neutrality rules were not the way to go.
"We're thrilled that the president is paying attention
to our efforts. These lofty goals are admirable, and we absolutely share
them," said David Segal, executive director of Demand Progress. "But
it's critical that the Dems make sure that the platform language -- and their
actions in office -- live up to this rhetoric."
