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Ajit Pai Faces Backlash Over Sarcastic Video About Net Neutrality Reversal

Ajit Pai’s public service announcement video has incensed many net neutrality supporters.

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U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai received death threats and backlash after the repeal of net-neutrality on Dec. 14. What exacerbated the situation was a public service announcement that he released along with the Daily Caller, an alt-right media organization, which lists “the seven things” one can still do with the internet.

The sarcastic video, in which Pai is seen in various get-ups, including one featuring him a Santa outfit and another with him holding lightsabers, has incensed the hundreds of net neutrality supporters. Many called him the puppet of telecom industry.

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One Twitter user told him to “kill himself” while another said, “If I can not open my internet tomorrow and it says I have to pay for anything I will hunt you down and kill you myself.”

Even before the rules were repealed, Pai received threats and had said that his family was being harassed.

Musician Harry Rodrigues, also known as DJ Baauer, said he would take legal recourse against the video as it used his song Harlem Shake that attained meme status.

“The use of my song in this video obviously comes as a surprise to me as it was just brought to my attention. I want to be clear that it was used completely without my consent or council. My team and I are currently exploring every single avenue available to get it taken down. I support net neutrality like the vast majority of this country and am appalled to be associated with its repeal in anyway,” he said in a statement, according to the Verge.

The full video of the public service announcement can be watched below:

In the first scene, he says you “can still gram your food.” He then says you can still buy your Christmas presents, followed by “You can still stay part of your fave fandom.” In the last part he says, “You can still ruin memes,” in which he uses the Harlem Shake song.

Many lawsuits are expected to be filed against the decision by the FCC, which voted on Dec. 14. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has already said that he would lead a multi-state lawsuit to challenge the reversal of the rules that were set in place in the Obama era.

Meanwhile, Pai’s Wikipedia page was changed to call him a “spineless invertebrate”.

Some people have accused him of fraud for using their parents’ names as supporters for his decision.

Another Twitter user said that the “Brown” community has disowned Pai.

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