Dark money groups continue to attack community broadband

Same as it ever was.

Since communities first started asserting control over their techological future by building publicly-owned broadband networks, big telecom companies have tried to stop them to protect their monopolies. Unlike twenty years ago when the public had a way to find out who was behind the misleading attacks and false information, big telecom can now create front groups, also known as "dark money" groups. These organizations hide behind federal laws that allow them to keep their donors secret and bear righteous names such as the "Domestic Policy Caucus", "NoGovInternet", and "Mass Priorities". But it isn't hard to figure out that their agenda is not to protect communities from themselves - its to protect themselves from competition.

At her recent keynote speech at the CBAN Spring Summit, AAPB Executive Director Gigi Sohn outlined how these dark money groups operate in the shadows to try to block community broadband projects from happening. AAPB and other advocacy groups such as the Institute for Local Self-Reliance have been pushing back for years on these attacks, and as a result the dark money groups have little to show for their millions of dollars of anti-muni money. 

Ars Technica has a great article about the dark money groups - CLICK HERE to read.