FCC Chairman Ajit Pai enraged many who were already angry over the vote to end net neutrality when he starred in a funny video intending to make light of the decision.
Here's the video with Pai joking about ending net neutrality:
In the video produced by the Daily Caller, the FCC chairman gives examples of things that people can still do even though he ended the "net neutrality" regulations imposed during the Obama administration.
"Ajit Varadaraj Pai spent most of his life as a little known corporate attorney and bureaucrat," The Daily Caller explained. "Pai, who was appointed to the FCC by President Obama, was made chairman of the commission by President Trump."
"Since his appointment," they continued, "Pai has become a near household name for his crusade against Obama-era internet regulations. Pai’s quest to end net neutrality regulations has made him perhaps the most hated, infamous man on the internet."
What was the reaction?
Many people found the video offensive, especially those who supported net neutrality and put the blame squarely on Ajit Pai.
In an article on Gizmodo titled, "Ajit Pai Thinks You're Stupid Enough to Buy This Crap," the author angrily excoriated Pai for the video. "Pai urged the country to understand that even if he succeeds in his plan to let ISPs strangle the rest of the internet to death, they’ll let us continue to take selfies and other stupid bullsh*t," it read.
Murtaza Hussein, a reporter at the Intercept, thought the video mocked the import of ending net neutrality.
I don't know how to interpret that Ajit Pai video other than as mocking the negative impact of his polices on ordin… https://t.co/6PEtVt5BbC— Murtaza M. Hussain (@Murtaza M. Hussain)1513294801.0
NPR's David Folkenflik criticized Pai making a video alongside a woman who had previously pushed the "Pizza Gate" conspiracy theory.
Just, you know, FCC Chair Ajit Pai doing video at Daily Caller with repeat plagiarist Benny Johnson and a Pizzagate propagandist in mocking opposition to erasing net neutrality regs https://t.co/6alr4k4vgU
— David Folkenflik (@davidfolkenflik) December 14, 2017
Chairman Pai had used his Twitter account previously to answer a criticism flung at him by two celebrities about his opposition to net neutrality.