This article was published on June 3, 2014

John Oliver’s hilarious plea for trolls to defend net neutrality overloads the FCC’s comment system


John Oliver’s hilarious plea for trolls to defend net neutrality overloads the FCC’s comment system

Comedian John Oliver’s recent monologue about net neutrality manages to be both funny and informative at the same time. It’s definitely worth a watch, especially if you’re unclear about the issue.

At the end of his bit, Oliver launches into an impassioned plea directed at internet trolls. He calls on them to redirect their anger and take time away from commenting on YouTube videos to send comments to the FCC about its proposed net neutrality guidelines.

So far, it looks like Oliver has succeeded, as the FCC sent a couple tweets this afternoon acknowledging that “heavy traffic” had resulted in technical difficulties to its commenting system.

The FCC began accepting public comment for its latest net neutrality proposal last month. The potential rulings, which could allow ISPs to charge content providers for so-called “fast lanes” on their networks, are up for initial comment for 60 days, followed by a 57-day period for reply comments. In the past 30 days, the FCC has received over 45,000 comments regarding the issue of an open internet.

If you’re a notorious troll, we recommend you hold off on commenting on this article and head over to the FCC’s comments page to tell them how you really feel.

Thumbnail credit: HBO

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