anti-Goodmail coalition resorts to misquotes

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Esther Dyson <edyson () edventure com>
Date: March 20, 2006 11:03:37 AM EST
To: dave () farber net
Cc: Christina Koukkos <christina () release1-0 com>
Subject: anti-Goodmail coalition resorts to misquotes

For the record, I said that *sending* most mail will cost money, and  
that much of that money will end up being paid to the recipients.   
Read below and then follow the link to the NYT to see what I *really*  
said.

I find it ironic that many of the very people who want to teach  
evolution in the schools (a position I agree with it), want to stop  
it on the Internet.

Esther Dyson


> From: "Trevor FitzGibbon" <tfitzgibbon () fenton com>
> To: <edyson () edventure com>
> Subject: Dyson Blows AOL's Cover on E-Tax
> Sender: "Trevor FitzGibbon" <tfitzgibbon () fenton com>
>
>
>
> DearAOL.com Coalition
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Trevor Fitzgibbon, 202-246-5303
>
>
>
>
>
> Monday, March 20, 2006 Alex Howe, Fenton Communications, 202.822.5200
>
>
>
>
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>
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> In New York Times, AOL email tax supporter says
>
> it’s “only right” that in future “most e-mail will cost money”
>
>
>
>   AOL’s claim that consumers will ultimately pay “Nothing. Zero.  
> Nada.”
>
> is debunked by prominent fan of AOL plan
>
>
>
> DearAOL.com Coalition’s “two-tiered Internet” warning is vindicated  
> by Esther Dyson
>
>
>
> On Friday’s New York Times op-ed page, AOL email tax supporter  
> Esther Dyson revealed the truth: AOL’s proposed email tax will lead  
> to a world where sending email is no longer free -- and she likes  
> it that way.
>
>
>
> “Today, AOL’s own supporter let the cat out of the bag,” said  
> Timothy Karr, campaign director of Free Press, a national,  
> nonpartisan organization working on media reform and Internet  
> policy issues. “AOL’s email tax undermines the foundation of a free  
> and open Internet – ushering in a new era of pay-to-send  
> communications online. Many who are rooting for AOL’s pay-to-send  
> proposal to succeed are those who believe in a two-tiered Internet  
> of haves and have-nots, with huge barriers of entry for the little  
> guy.”
>
>
>
> Dyson is an industry insider, an investor in technology start-ups,  
> and a former board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (a  
> DearAOL.com coalition member). Her New York Times column Friday was  
> called “You’ve Got Goodmail.” Goodmail is the vendor that would  
> implement AOL’s pay-to-send proposal, and would share hundreds of  
> millions in profits with AOL from the email tax.
>
>
>
> Dyson wrote:
>
>
>
> “Goodmail has been met with a barrage of criticism and calls for a  
> de facto boycott from several nonprofit and public interest groups.  
> These organizations seem to think that all Internet mail must  
> always be free, just because it was free before. …Of course, the  
> critics say, this is the first step. Pretty soon all mail will cost  
> money, and then the free, open world of the Internet will be closed  
> to poor people, nonprofits and other good guys, while multinational  
> conglomerates fill their ever-growing pockets. I agree that pretty  
> soon sending most e-mail will cost money, but I think that's only  
> right.” (<http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/17/opinion/ 
> 17dyson.html>http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/17/opinion/17dyson.html )
>
>
>
> Dyson’s acknowledgement undermines AOL’s PR scheme for its pay-to- 
> send proposal, which centers on convincing the public that their  
> email tax is “voluntary” and “nothing will change” for everyday  
> emailers.
>
>
>
> AOL recently emailed customers who were concerned about their email  
> tax proposal, saying Goodmail is “a purely voluntary” option for  
> “large commercial companies and other organizations” and “in no way  
> means that mailers need to pay to send messages.” Additionally, AOL  
> went so far as to say that after their email tax is implemented,  
> ultimately “Consumers pay nothing. Zero. Nada.” (Source: <http:// 
> www.nysun.com/article/28345?page_no=2>http://www.nysun.com/article/ 
> 28345?page_no=2)
>
>
>
> The Silicon Valley-based San Jose Mercury News initially dealt a  
> blow to this claim with a March 5 editorial saying “separate,  
> unequal systems” would develop from AOL’s email tax. It explained,  
> “The temptation would be to neglect the free e-mail system, whose  
> reliability would decline. Eventually, everyone would migrate to  
> the fee-based system. There would be no way around the AOL  
> tollbooth.” (<http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/ 
> opinion/14023726.htm>http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/ 
> news/opinion/14023726.htm )
>
>
>
> On Friday, AOL’s assurances were again called into question – this  
> time by AOL’s own supporter, Dyson, who said that AOL’s pay-to-send  
> scheme is a significant step toward a world where “most e-mail will  
> cost money” – which she calls “only right.”
>
>
>
> "Esther Dyson apparently believes that email being free is a  
> problem, but the DearAOL.com Coalition believes free email has been  
> a critical part of the digital revolution -- the ability to take a  
> good idea and spread it from 5 to 5 million people without a big  
> bankroll has expanded democratic
>
> participation, increased economic innovation, and bolstered free  
> speech," said Cindy Cohn, Legal Director of the  Electronic  
> Frontier Foundation.
>
>
>
> The DearAOL.com Coalition represents over 15 million people  
> combined – and has grown from 50 member organizations to 600 in  
> less than three weeks. It’s “Open Letter To AOL” opposing AOL’s  
> email tax has been signed by over 35,000 everyday Internet users  
> online. Coalition members include Craigslist founder Craig Newmark,  
> the Association of Cancer Online Resources, MoveOn.org Civic  
> Action, Gun Owners of America, the Electronic Frontier Foundation,  
> Free Press, and others.
>
>
>
> More information about the DearAOL.com Coalition and a list of all  
> coalition members are located at <http://www.dearaol.com/ 
> >www.dearaol.com.
>
>
>
>
>
> ###



Esther Dyson              Always make new mistakes!
Editor, Release 1.0

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