A new rider-clause attached to Representative Marsha Brady Blackburn’s (R-TN) Internet Freedom Act bill (H.R. 4070) is sparking concern among Technical Communication, Strategy and Technology companies alike. This bill, designed to appease telecommunication companies hard-spent lobbying dollars not only seeks to rescind the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) network neutrality ruling but also forbids re-sharing of information.
The Net Neutrality Clause, proposed by Senator Hudspeth Arnette BalmerLee VII (I-VD), seeks to propose fines for “egregious reuse and re-sharing of content” and is especially harsh on companies who do not date their content. When approached by TechWhirl for a comment, BalmerLee shared that “too much reuse goin’ on out dar – What type of example does this set for the children? It’s just not write. Only thing that should be repeated is the good book.” BalmerLee reminded constituents that the Good Book continues to be one of the 100 best and most influential books written in English. It was only when he referenced Lamentations I that TechWhirl realized he was not talking about Strunk & White’s Elements of Style.
Additional reaction could not be obtained as BalmerLee remained unreachable during defense against his current paternity case in Antarctica. Seems reuse isn’t dead in all communication opportunities. A staffer in BalmerLee’s office indicated that the Senator planned to introduce an amendment that would cut corporate taxonomies nationwide, leaving a net gap that would be addressed by a middle class flat tax, or folksonomy.
TechWhirl caught up with Val Swisher, owner of Content Rules, during a recent trip to the British Virgin Islands for Translators Without Borders. “This bill is a travesty. It’s our right and responsibility to reuse content. BalmerLee and Blackburn need to relax and enjoy the opportunities resharing offers. A bill like this could seriously jeopardize my organization.” Additional quotes will be republished to the Content Rules website.
The Net Neutrality Bill is scheduled for a vote on April 17, 2015.
In other news, shares of The Content Wrangler dropped by 25%, and XML Press announced its new book series – Reuse Is Dead – Time to Really Develop Useful Content has been scheduled for release in October 2016.
