Values of Stakeholders in the Net Neutrality Debate: Applying Content Analysis to Telecommunications Policy

Net neutrality is an important telecommunications policy debate. This debate is closely tied to technological innovation, economic development, and information access. Values help shape stakeholders' positions on this debate. This paper examines the role of values in shaping the Net neutrality debate through a content analysis of public hearings on Net neutrality. The paper presents a quantitative analysis that reveals the top values implicated in the Net neutrality debate and statistically significant differences among individuals on opposite sides of the Net neutrality debate. A qualitative analysis reveals insights into the connection between specific values and positions on the Net neutrality debate. The paper concludes that values, technology, and policy are interconnected, and that it is useful to understand the values of the various stakeholders within policy debates.