[abb]

I humbly suggest it goes back even further - to the mid 1600s.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Licensing_Order_of_1643

The Licensing Order of 1643 instituted pre-publication censorship upon Parliamentary England. Milton’s Areopagitica was written specifically against this Act.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Licensing_of_the_Press_Act_1662

The Licensing of the Press Act 1662 is an Act of the Parliament of England (14 Car. II. c. 33), long title “An Act for preventing the frequent Abuses in printing seditious treasonable and unlicensed Bookes and Pamphlets and for regulating of Printing and Printing Presses.” It was repealed by the Statute Law Revision Act 1863.

[antiRepublicrat]

That’s all about fairness doctrine. Got anything relating to net neutrality?

[Halfmanhalfamazing]

Fair enough.

Though, there aren’t many net neutrality pimps out there saying it goes back to the 1600’s.

I was merely making an illustration based on one of their own talking points, coupled with the words of none other than the father of net neutrality himself, Tim Wu.