PTC to Senate: Confirm FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel

FCC commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, who will have to leave the commission at the beginning of January if the Senate does not vote to reconfirm her, has gotten the endorsement of the Parents Television Council.

PTC offered up a quartet of key FCC-related issues as the commission prepares for new Republican leadership, one of which was that the lame duck Senate should immediately confirm her to a second term.

Rosenworcel was renominated by the President and unanimously recommended by the Senate Commerce Committee, but her Senate vote has been held hostage in the larger Republican vs. Democrat fight over nominations in general and what Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid has said was the other side's reneging on a promise to confirm Rosenworcel if the Democrats approved Republican commissioner Michael O'Rielly's nomination.

"Commissioner Rosenworcel has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to the needs of children and families; and she has done so not just at the FCC, but throughout her career in public service," said PTC president Tim Winter. "She has demonstrated an ability to reach across party lines, and she brings an insightful and informed voice on behalf of families across our nation.  We urge the Senate to reconfirm Commissioner Rosenworcel immediately.”

The three other key actions they are looking for are: putting unbundling and choice conditions on the AT&T-Time Warner merger; resolve outstanding indecency complaints; and review the TV ratings system and make it more "accurate, consistent and transparent."

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.