Planet Money’s Simple Explanation of Net Neutrality

Planet Money is an amazing podcast. If you aren’t listening, you should be. If you’re an economics, political science, or business teacher, it’s one of the richest pieces of media being produced today that breaks down complicated business and economic issues into easy to digest and engaging audio. If you’re a regular NPR listener, you’ve probably heard their pieces during longer news segments. If you’re an avid podcast listen, go subscribe…..now. It really is great story telling capable of turning the dullest of subjects into engrossing stories; including how the story of two pasta factories can help you understand the basics of the entire Italian economy.

Net Neutrality isn’t anything new; it’s been discussed and argued for more than a decade. In fact, the Planet Money team was able to easily explain the amazing power that the internet can afford even the smallest of innovators through an anecdote about Skype, one of the most prevalent video conferencing tools on the internet today. Did you know it was started by a small development team from Estonia? I digress. Planet Money actually did an amazing job of describing both sides of the net neutrality issue two years ago in June of 2012.

I won’t go too far into the description of their podcast, as it’s much more engaging if you listen yourself. Suffice it to say, Planet Money breaks the issue down into easily understood terms, with the perfect dose of humor and anecdotes. And it’s relatively bite-sized at only 13 minutes, making it a good listen during a commute, or during your plan time.

You can go listen on the NPR website, or using the embedded player below (if it’s working).