This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/nov/30/darrell-issa-reddit-internet-regulation
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Darrell Issa answers to Reddit after proposing ban on internet regulation | Darrell Issa answers to Reddit after proposing ban on internet regulation |
| (8 days later) | |
| With a flurry of attempts to tighten up regulation of the internet in the past year, open-web advocates have understandably become wary of lawmakers' meddling. | With a flurry of attempts to tighten up regulation of the internet in the past year, open-web advocates have understandably become wary of lawmakers' meddling. |
| So the attempts by one congressman to bridge the gap are worthy of note. Darrell Issa, a Republican from California, this week posted online his latest piece of proposed legislation – a two-year moratorium on internet regulation. Using Reddit's Ask Me Anything thread, he asked for public input on the bill. | So the attempts by one congressman to bridge the gap are worthy of note. Darrell Issa, a Republican from California, this week posted online his latest piece of proposed legislation – a two-year moratorium on internet regulation. Using Reddit's Ask Me Anything thread, he asked for public input on the bill. |
| Inevitably, a barrage of more than 2,500 comments followed as Redditors employed their trademark skepticism to assess the proposed legislation and the congressman's motivation. | Inevitably, a barrage of more than 2,500 comments followed as Redditors employed their trademark skepticism to assess the proposed legislation and the congressman's motivation. |
| Issa, who represents California's 49th district, has not particularly been considered a friend of the internet. Most controversially, he voted in favor of Cispa – a bill that allows private companies to provide user information to the government under the guise of cybersecurity. | Issa, who represents California's 49th district, has not particularly been considered a friend of the internet. Most controversially, he voted in favor of Cispa – a bill that allows private companies to provide user information to the government under the guise of cybersecurity. |
| Nevertheless Issa's decision to post a draft bill on Reddit – and his determination to engage with the online community – means he's not easily pigeon-holed. | Nevertheless Issa's decision to post a draft bill on Reddit – and his determination to engage with the online community – means he's not easily pigeon-holed. |
| Issa explained his decision to open up his bill to Redditors in a comment on the thread. | Issa explained his decision to open up his bill to Redditors in a comment on the thread. |
| To figure out what government should and should not do regarding the Internet and tech policy, we need as much input as possible from people who live and breathe this stuff and know the most about how new laws, rules and regulations would impact their lives and livelihoods (From what I've seen, I'd put redditors in that category). Remember during SOPA all the Congressmen and Senators who openly said they didn't know how the Internet works? Crowdsourcing the plan and allowing time for as many people as possible to weigh in is my attempt at making sure that doesn't happen again. | To figure out what government should and should not do regarding the Internet and tech policy, we need as much input as possible from people who live and breathe this stuff and know the most about how new laws, rules and regulations would impact their lives and livelihoods (From what I've seen, I'd put redditors in that category). Remember during SOPA all the Congressmen and Senators who openly said they didn't know how the Internet works? Crowdsourcing the plan and allowing time for as many people as possible to weigh in is my attempt at making sure that doesn't happen again. |
| Issa has answered questions on Reddit in the past, engages with people frequently on Twitter and has his own interactive website – nicknamed Madison – that lets readers parse legislation and post comments and suggestions on bill drafts. | Issa has answered questions on Reddit in the past, engages with people frequently on Twitter and has his own interactive website – nicknamed Madison – that lets readers parse legislation and post comments and suggestions on bill drafts. |
| A spokesman for Issa said in an email that the congressman had launched Madison in an attempt to make government more transparent in the wake of a fight last year over the Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa), a controversial bill designed to crack down on the sharing of copyrighted content. | A spokesman for Issa said in an email that the congressman had launched Madison in an attempt to make government more transparent in the wake of a fight last year over the Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa), a controversial bill designed to crack down on the sharing of copyrighted content. |
| "Imagine if all stakeholders potentially impacted by Sopa – from the MPAA [Motion Picture Association of America] to Mozilla to individual internet users – were able to have a substantive policy debate and exchange of ideas that stand on their merits?" the spokesman said. "That's the goal of the Madison project." | "Imagine if all stakeholders potentially impacted by Sopa – from the MPAA [Motion Picture Association of America] to Mozilla to individual internet users – were able to have a substantive policy debate and exchange of ideas that stand on their merits?" the spokesman said. "That's the goal of the Madison project." |
| The spokesman also said Issa created the draft of his latest bill, the Internet American Moratorium Act (IAMA), with lessons learned from Madison. | The spokesman also said Issa created the draft of his latest bill, the Internet American Moratorium Act (IAMA), with lessons learned from Madison. |
| "We learned from the Madison beta test that the longer and more detailed draft policy documents are when first posted, the harder it is for people to engage and contribute," the spokesperson said. "Congressman Issa released the draft IAMA bill the way he did so that there is space and time for all stakeholders to consider the draft and other users' feedback, ask questions and help flesh out the proposed internet regulations and legislation moratorium. | "We learned from the Madison beta test that the longer and more detailed draft policy documents are when first posted, the harder it is for people to engage and contribute," the spokesperson said. "Congressman Issa released the draft IAMA bill the way he did so that there is space and time for all stakeholders to consider the draft and other users' feedback, ask questions and help flesh out the proposed internet regulations and legislation moratorium. |
| Mark Jaycox, policy analyst at the digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), acknowledged that Madison is a valuable collaborative tool and said he was in favor of posting bills on Reddit. | Mark Jaycox, policy analyst at the digital rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), acknowledged that Madison is a valuable collaborative tool and said he was in favor of posting bills on Reddit. |
| "We haven't done a thorough analysis of the bill, but further opening up the legislative process so that all stakeholders – beyond those with ready access to legislators and lobbyists – is a great step forward," Jaycox said in an email. "Collaboration is key in advancing and proposing legislation, and it's good to see that Representative Issa is taking the democratic process one step further to include individual, and active, internet users." | "We haven't done a thorough analysis of the bill, but further opening up the legislative process so that all stakeholders – beyond those with ready access to legislators and lobbyists – is a great step forward," Jaycox said in an email. "Collaboration is key in advancing and proposing legislation, and it's good to see that Representative Issa is taking the democratic process one step further to include individual, and active, internet users." |
| Those active internet users had a major point of contention with Issa's appearance on Reddit, and had doubts about the internet-friendliness his appearance seemed to connote. | Those active internet users had a major point of contention with Issa's appearance on Reddit, and had doubts about the internet-friendliness his appearance seemed to connote. |
| Reddit's format allows the comments people most value to be upvoted, placing them in a prominent position in the discussion. The most upvoted comment on Issa's thread was about his voting record on Cispa. | Reddit's format allows the comments people most value to be upvoted, placing them in a prominent position in the discussion. The most upvoted comment on Issa's thread was about his voting record on Cispa. |
| Issa voted in favor of Cispa and has defended it on Reddit before but reminding users of that did not quell their continued onslaught of questions asking why he supported the bill. | Issa voted in favor of Cispa and has defended it on Reddit before but reminding users of that did not quell their continued onslaught of questions asking why he supported the bill. |
| Along with Reddit, EFF was one of the most vocal members of the Cispa opposition, but Jaycox said support of the initiative doesn't means Issa is an enemy to the internet. | Along with Reddit, EFF was one of the most vocal members of the Cispa opposition, but Jaycox said support of the initiative doesn't means Issa is an enemy to the internet. |
| "Obviously we disagreed with Issa's position on Cispa, but he seems to have learned from his lesson and begun an initiative to not only be mindful of the impact of his legislation on internet users and curry more more favor those users," Jaycox said. | "Obviously we disagreed with Issa's position on Cispa, but he seems to have learned from his lesson and begun an initiative to not only be mindful of the impact of his legislation on internet users and curry more more favor those users," Jaycox said. |
| Along with his support of Cispa, Redditors displayed skepticism towards Issa's two year ban on regulating the internet. | Along with his support of Cispa, Redditors displayed skepticism towards Issa's two year ban on regulating the internet. |
| "I'm trying to create a two-year cooling off period on new internet rules, regulations and laws. Period," Issa said in a Reddit comment. "I believe that is a good thing right now. And you should be wary of politicians who agree with you all the time." | "I'm trying to create a two-year cooling off period on new internet rules, regulations and laws. Period," Issa said in a Reddit comment. "I believe that is a good thing right now. And you should be wary of politicians who agree with you all the time." |
| Issa's moratorium is unlikely to pass, because it would stop Congress from regulating, but it concerns Redditors and some internet experts who believe impeding internet regulation is dangerous. | Issa's moratorium is unlikely to pass, because it would stop Congress from regulating, but it concerns Redditors and some internet experts who believe impeding internet regulation is dangerous. |
| Anjali Dalal, a resident fellow at the Information Society Project at Yale Law School, said that giving Congress two years to increase their understanding of the internet would be an ineffective way of getting politicians caught up on digital issues. | Anjali Dalal, a resident fellow at the Information Society Project at Yale Law School, said that giving Congress two years to increase their understanding of the internet would be an ineffective way of getting politicians caught up on digital issues. |
| "It's not an exam you can study for; the information is not static," said Dalal. "The issue's that are important today will likely be important tomorrow, but there will many other issues, and the dynamics of the existing issues will have changed a bit, so I'm not clear how that helps necessarily." | "It's not an exam you can study for; the information is not static," said Dalal. "The issue's that are important today will likely be important tomorrow, but there will many other issues, and the dynamics of the existing issues will have changed a bit, so I'm not clear how that helps necessarily." |
| Though skeptical of Issa's bill, Dalal also felt that Madison was a great first step in using the internet to improve the legislative process. | Though skeptical of Issa's bill, Dalal also felt that Madison was a great first step in using the internet to improve the legislative process. |
| "Right now bills are made through people who have the money and power to organize interest groups," said Dalal. "While there's amazing public interest advocacy groups in DC who fight the good fight, and do try and represent the broader mass of the citizenry writ large, I think it would be great to get a national dialogue about some of these things, and I'm not saying were going to get 312 million Americans on this website, but if we get a couple thousand it's a good start." | "Right now bills are made through people who have the money and power to organize interest groups," said Dalal. "While there's amazing public interest advocacy groups in DC who fight the good fight, and do try and represent the broader mass of the citizenry writ large, I think it would be great to get a national dialogue about some of these things, and I'm not saying were going to get 312 million Americans on this website, but if we get a couple thousand it's a good start." |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. | Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. Enter your email address to subscribe. | Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. Enter your email address to subscribe. |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox every weekday. |