Chicago Access Network Television (CAN TV)

In this article, Ars Technica traces the ties between AT&T and Illinois groups like the Kankakee County Farm Bureau, Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Will and Grundy Counties, Erie Neighborhood House and the Mayor of North Chicago, all who sent comments to the FCC opposing a free and open Internet. This is reminiscent of AT&T's efforts to rally Illinois groups against Petitions pending at the FCC that seek protections for public access channels.

One group in particular, the Ministerial Alliance Against the Digital Divide (MAADD,) previously supported AT&T's attempt to advance an Illinois cable bill that protected the company's interests while failing to protect the public. Since passage of a significantly stronger bill, MAADD has actively supported AT&T's attempts to sidestep its legal obligation to provide public access channels in a manner equivalent to commercial channels.

If, in fact, the ministers affiliated with MAADD were once allied against the digital divide, the organization's recent actions suggest just the opposite.