Robocalls have triumphed over the Do Not Call list. Whose fault is it?

Once upon a time, way back in 2003, the federal government set up a list where Americans could register their phone numbers, and telemarketers could no longer call them. “This is yet another example of your tax dollars hard at work,” wrote one commenter earlier this month on a FTC fact sheet about the Do Not Call list. Totally worthless,” another anonymous commenter wrote below an ABC News piece titled “When Do Not Call Doesn’t Stop the Telemarketers.” “You have that right!” another responded. “If you want to be mad at someone,” says Tim Marvin, the campaign manager for the Consumers Union’s End Robocalls campaign, “call your phone company.” At least one person is listening. “Technology to block robocalls exists,” the California Democrat noted in the press release announcing her effort last month, “but it’s not widely available or easy to use.” Why the hell not?