Should the U.S. Reclaim Control of the Internet? Evaluating ICANN’s Administrative Oversight Since the 2016 Handover

Authors

Mark Grabowski, Adelphi University

Date of this Version

8-6-2018

Document Type

Article

Citation

Nebraska Law Bulletin (August 6, 2018)

Comments

Copyright 2018, the author

Abstract

As the two-year anniversary of its abdication approaches, United States government officials recently caused a stir by publicly questioning whether they should reassert their control over the Internet’s administrative functions. ICANN, the non-governmental organization that now independently oversees the Internet’s backbone, has arguably been plagued by mission creep, budget problems, and challenges to its authority. Although reversing the handover may be difficult, this paper argues that U.S. officials are justified in putting pressure on ICANN.