Inouye Vows to Overhaul FCC
Rockefeller Also Trashes Federal Communications Commission at Senate Commerce Committee Oversight Hearing
By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 12/13/2007 9:48:00 AM
Senate Commerce Committee chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) Thursday pledged an overhaul of the Federal Communications Commission in 2008, including potentially the terms of commissioners.
That came in a Senate Commerce Committee oversight hearing Thursday at which a stern Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W. Va.) said he thought the committee's time would be well spent in an election year when it would be tough to get other things done working on an FCC-reauthorization bill that would address complaints about the current FCC process.
Those complaints, leveled by various senators during the hearing, included lack of transparency, politically motivated suppression of studies, insufficient opportunity for public comment and others.
Rockefeller said that rather than serving the public, the FCC was instead undertaking a one-way deregulatory policy that shortchanged consumers. He added that he feared that the FCC was more concerned with policies that serve the needs of the companies that they regulate than it was with protecting the public interest. "We can't allow that to happen," he said.
Rockefeller said the committee should develop a reauthorization bill that deals with the commissioners' terms and processes and ways to make it a better advocate for consumers. "I can assure you it will be done," Inouye said.
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There is an entire lobbying and influence industry built around the way that the FCC has evolved. The largest players (especially the ILECs -- Verizon, AT&T and Qwest) have become the behind the scenes puppet masters. The non-elected members of the FCC have been given too much power to develop policy and law. While telecommunications is arcane, our federal legislators need to swing the pendulum back to where the FCC is more of a rule-making body and less of a political power-broker making macro-economic decisions pertaining to market power. Since the ILECs are manipulating the system, the FCC has been gradually but inexorably pushing market control back to fewer and fewer carriers. This is bad for consumers and the international competitiveness of the United States.
Peter Roy - 12/17/2007 2:32:00 AM EST -
Kevin Martin's actions appear self-imposed. It is troubling to see a government official act in such an imperial way. He did not listen to the people opposing further media consolidation at the Seattle hearing. It was counter to what 98% testified. The GOP should be ashamed that the voice of the people has been silenced. The vote on Tuesday by the FCC majority to continue dismanteling safeguards in the media will be a vote against democracy and diversity.
Bill Wippel - 12/15/2007 8:10:00 AM EST -
We have the most outdated cell phone system, AM-FM Braadcast sold out to the conglomerates and leaving small local markets with no local service, no cohesive management of content on the public airwaves, broken promises of infrastructure improvement on the part of the big telcos, and finally our goverment is going to do something? I'll believe it when I see it! When it comes to US Communications Technology, the FCC has sold us out for 20 years to the big $$ interests, they should not just be fired, they should be in jail.
Michael Baldauf - 12/14/2007 5:09:00 PM EST -
It's about time! Martin and the FCC have the appearance of "being in bed" with the large telcos while, concurrently, trying to suppress cable growth and innovation. Certainly not providing me, Joe Consumer, any constructive services for my tax dollars.
Bart Miller - 12/14/2007 12:37:00 PM EST
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