We believe freedom to be an essential condition of human
flourishing and technological progress. We see the Internet (and
digital services in general) as the vehicle for the greatest
expansion of freedom in human history to date. Yet we recognize
that the “Internet” of tomorrow may look nothing like the
Internet of today. No one can plan the Internet’s evolution. The
best policymakers can do is to respect the following core
principles of “Internet Freedom”: Humility. First, do no harm.
No one can anticipate what the future holds and what tradeoffs
will accompany it. Don’t meddle in what you don’t understand —
and what you can all too easily break, without even seeing
what’s been lost. Often, government’s best response is to do
nothing. Competition, disruptive technological change, and
criticism from civil society tend to resolve problems better,
and faster, than government can. Rule of Law. When you must
intervene, start small. Regulation and legislation are broad,
inflexible, and prone to capture by incumben