We already knew that Bruce Springsteen is down with President Obama and Senator Charles Schumer has his back in any possible Ticketmaster scuffles, but now it looks like The Boss has an in at the FCC as well.
Speaking today at a music policy conference, FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski addressed an upcoming proposed “Open Internet” rule, which is supported by the president and faces stiff opposition from Republicans.
Perhaps assuming the specifics of the proposed changes would sound too white-collar in the words of a Harvard/Columbia-educated lawyer, Genachowski evoked a certain blue-collar music legend. Here’s what he said (via WSJ):
Everywhere from the Streets of Philadelphia to My Hometown in New York, every Bobby Jean and every Jersey Girl should be counting on the Internet remaining free and open, not Counting on a Miracle. They should count on The Rising of millions of voices to beat back any Darkness on the Edge of Town, or broadband Badlands that could threaten limited choice and create potential bottlenecks.
The people who built the Internet were working on more than a computer network, they were Working on a Dream. It was a network that was Born to Run in a land of open protocols, (the Promised Land). The Internet is more than an information highway, it is a telecom Thunder Road of wonderfully chaotic creativity and it will be a Lonesome Day if that is ever lost. But, hold on, Janey, Don’t You Lose Heart, because the FCC will be taking up open Internet rules in the near future.