• Want to Stream Events from Sochi? You Better Have Cable.

    Jenn Topper
    February 7, 2014
    As in 2012, to watch the Olympics, you have to be either a cable or satellite-TV customer. NBC is again refusing to give Internet customers the option to purchase stand-alone Web access.

  • The End of the Internet as We Know It

    Jenn Topper
    December 12, 2013
    We owe everything we love about the Web to Net Neutrality. Without Net Neutrality, the Web would look a lot like cable, with the most popular content available only on certain tiers or with certain providers.

  • CBS Is the Poster Child for Conflicts of Interest

    Josh Stearns
    Jenn Topper
    November 14, 2013
    This week, CBS’ 60 Minutes offered a tepid apology and half correction for its flawed reporting on the 2012 attacks on U.S. diplomatic facilities in Benghazi, Libya. The story, which aired in October, centered on a key witness, Dylan Davies, whose account of the attacks has since been discredited.

  • Something's Happening to Local News

    Jenn Topper
    S. Derek Turner
    November 7, 2013

    So far this year, 223 local TV stations have changed hands. This is the biggest wave of media consolidation ever — and it's all happening in small and mid-level markets, involving companies most people have never heard of.

  • Say No to Internet Taxes

    Jenn Topper
    August 31, 2012
    The Universal Service Fund needs to be revamped, but we shouldn’t be adding an Internet tax to consumers’ already sky-high bills. If we truly want to stabilize the fund, we need to think about proposals for funding that don’t pass costs on to consumers.

  • 2012 Games Highlight an Olympic-Sized Problem for Fans

    Jenn Topper
    August 8, 2012
    While competition is the name of the game for the 10,000 athletes competing in the Summer Olympics, the same can’t be said for the viewing audience. In fact, the Olympics show what happens when viewers don’t have enough options at their disposal.

  • Verizon: Let Us Charge You More for Less!

    Jenn Topper
    June 13, 2012

    On Monday, Verizon Wireless introduced data-sharing plans that will give users a monthly allotment of data to be used across all of their devices. The new option to share data will push customers to pay more for a limited amount of data, and it comes with a fee just to connect a device to the network. Even before using any shared data, a family of four would have to pay $160 each and every month just to connect four smartphones to Verizon's network.

  • Comcast Keeps Capping

    Jenn Topper
    May 18, 2012

    On Thursday, Comcast announced plans to raise its data caps from 250 GB per month to 300 GB in some areas.

  • Comcast Should Bring Low-Cost Broadband to Everyone

    Jenn Topper
    September 20, 2011

    On Tuesday Comcast Executive Vice-President David Cohen and Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski, along with D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson and D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray, announced a plan to provide low-cost broadband to families eligible for the National School Lunch Program.

  • So Who Really Stands to Benefit from AT&T’s T-Mobile Takeover?

    Jenn Topper
    July 1, 2011

    Last week, a group of 76 Democrats made a small splash inside the Beltway after they signed a letter touting the alleged benefits of the AT&T-T-Mobile merger for rural communities and workers.

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