Offering up more proof that the term “cable” now strikes a very anticonsumerist tone, consumer group Fight For the Future is now labeling any congressional representative who supports the Republican-led FCC’s quest to dismantle Title II internet regulation—or isn’t doing anything to stop it—as “Team Cable.”
The group is now counting votes and public comments, putting representatives into two “camps.” Any representative scoring too low on Fight For the Future’s “congressional scorecard” gets put into the “Team Cable” camp and is subject to an unflattering crowdfunded billboard campaign.
The group plans to give the treatment first to Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., in her home state. (see photo above).
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“The congressional scorecard divides Congress into two camps: Team internet (those who are speaking up to defend net neutrality rules that protect online free speech) and Team Cable (those who are supporting the FCC’s plan to dismantle those protections and give cable companies control over our online experience), said Fight For the Future spokesman Evan Greer.
According to Greer, Fight For the Future has already raised $50,000, “which will go up in the coming weeks targeting lawmakers who support FCC Chairman Ajit Pai’s plan to gut net neutrality rules that prevent companies like Comcast, AT&T and Verizon from charging extra fees, slowing down websites, and engaging in censorship. The congressional scorecard makes it easy for voters to quickly learn their representative’s positions, and impossible for members of Congress to hide from their constituents.”
Indeed, Fight For the Future’s boogeymen include a who’s who of telecom giants, but “cable” is the action word.
“Lawmakers on ‘Team Cable’ should expect to be targeted with billboards in the coming weeks if they do not speak out against Ajit Pai’s plan,” Greer added.