By Cliff Potts, CSO, and Editor-in-Chief of WPS News

Baybay City, Leyte, Philippines — February 19, 2026, 17:35 PHST

The contemporary concentration of informational power did not originate in the core architecture of the internet. It was applied above it. The foundational protocols that move data across networks remain largely neutral, decentralized, and resilient. Control was introduced later, in layers designed to simplify discovery and manage scale rather than to govern information.

This essay advances a single claim: the stranglehold exercised by large platforms exists because control was imposed above the protocol layer, not because the internet itself requires central authority.

What the Internet Actually Does

At its most basic level, the internet is a packet-switched network built on the TCP/IP protocol suite. Its function is limited and specific: data is divided into packets, routed across available paths, and reassembled at its destination. The network does not know what the data represents. It does not rank content, assess credibility, or determine importance.

Routing decisions are dynamic. If one path fails, another is used. No single entity controls the full route from sender to receiver. This design prioritizes survivability and redundancy over efficiency or optimization.

The core network moves data.
It does not curate information.

What the Internet Does Not Do

The internet does not decide what content should be seen first. It does not determine which sources are authoritative, relevant, or legitimate. These functions are not part of TCP/IP, routing tables, or packet delivery.

They are introduced later.

This distinction matters because it identifies where intervention is possible. Many failures attributed to “the internet” are, in practice, failures of systems layered on top of it.

The Emergence of Control Layers

As the web expanded, additional layers were introduced to manage complexity. The Domain Name System translated human-readable names into network addresses. Indexes cataloged content. Discovery tools helped users locate information. Ranking systems ordered results.

Each layer added convenience. Each also introduced discretion. Over time, discovery and ranking became decisive. Visibility depended less on publication and more on placement within these systems.

Control entered where choice was required.

Discovery as Policy

Discovery systems answer a question the network cannot: what should be shown first? Any answer to that question embeds priorities, values, and incentives. Whether explicit or implicit, those choices function as policy.

Once discovery is centralized, policy is centralized. Decisions about ordering and emphasis affect economic viability, public understanding, and institutional credibility.

This is where power accumulates.

Why This Condition Can Be Corrected

If control were embedded in the internet’s core protocols, undoing it would require rebuilding the network itself. It is not. Control resides in discretionary layers that can be redesigned, diversified, or constrained without disrupting connectivity.

The base network still routes packets without regard to popularity, ideology, or profit. That neutrality remains intact.

Correction does not require revolution.
It requires relocating judgment.

A Fixable Architecture

The current configuration of informational power is often treated as inevitable. It is not. It reflects design decisions made for efficiency, scale, and monetization rather than for resilience or pluralism.

Understanding where control was applied is the first step toward undoing it.

The internet’s foundation remains decentralized.
What was layered on top can be changed.

This essay will be archived in the WPS News Monthly Archive, available through Amazon.

This work may be cited freely. Licensing or implementation for commercial or institutional use requires prior arrangement.

References

Cerf, V. G., & Kahn, R. E. (1974). A protocol for packet network intercommunication. IEEE Transactions on Communications, 22(5), 637–648.

Leiner, B. M., et al. (2009). A brief history of the Internet. ACM SIGCOMM Computer Communication Review, 39(5), 22–31.

Saltzer, J. H., Reed, D. P., & Clark, D. D. (1984). End-to-end arguments in system design. ACM Transactions on Computer Systems, 2(4), 277–288.

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