Stories about drag queens are OK, though.

Mitch Wagner, Executive Editor, Light Reading

October 29, 2014

2 Min Read
Verizon-Backed Site Bans Stories on US Spying, Net Neutrality

A Verizon-sponsored news site is making headlines of its own as critics accuse it of censoring news about US spying and government neutrality.

With a discreet "Presented by Verizon" tag at the bottom of the page, SugarString looks like a lot of other geeky news sites. It has articles on serious subjects ("Can GPS Tracking Empower Victims of Domestic Abuse?"), silly subjects ("'Libraries in Videogames' Proves There's a Blog for Everything") and serious subjects with a silly spin ("Legendary Drag Queen lady Bunny Weighs In On Controversial Facebook Policy").

What you won't find: Articles about US spying or net neutrality, according to a report on a competitor website, The Daily Dot, by a journalist who says he was informed of the ban when he received a recruiting letter for the site. The reporter, Patrick Howell O'Neill, includes a scan of the recruitment letter he received.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) has come under fire for cooperating with US government intelligence activities, dating back to the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center. Verizon also vociferously opposes net neutrality.

Verizon has a troubling history with free speech issues, according to Timothy Karr, senior director of strategy for Free Press, a media reform group, writing at the Huffington Post. Verizon claims it has a Constitutional right to filter Internet content, and it has censored text messages from a pro-choice advocacy group to its own members, Karr says.

Beyond what does and does not appear on the site is the question about Verizon's motivation and its chances of making any impact on public perceptions by using funds that would otherwise be used for more traditional marketing and public relations activities: Many companies in the communications sector have their own blogs and develop their own industry news on their corporate websites, but this takes content creation by a communications service provider to a different level.

— Mitch Wagner, Circle me on Google+ Follow me on TwitterVisit my LinkedIn profileFollow me on Facebook, West Coast Bureau Chief, Light Reading. Got a tip about SDN or NFV? Send it to [email protected].

About the Author(s)

Mitch Wagner

Executive Editor, Light Reading

San Diego-based Mitch Wagner is many things. As well as being "our guy" on the West Coast (of the US, not Scotland, or anywhere else with indifferent meteorological conditions), he's a husband (to his wife), dissatisfied Democrat, American (so he could be President some day), nonobservant Jew, and science fiction fan. Not necessarily in that order.

He's also one half of a special duo, along with Minnie, who is the co-habitor of the West Coast Bureau and Light Reading's primary chewer of sticks, though she is not the only one on the team who regularly munches on bark.

Wagner, whose previous positions include Editor-in-Chief at Internet Evolution and Executive Editor at InformationWeek, will be responsible for tracking and reporting on developments in Silicon Valley and other US West Coast hotspots of communications technology innovation.

Beats: Software-defined networking (SDN), network functions virtualization (NFV), IP networking, and colored foods (such as 'green rice').

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