 Comcast and the FCC Just Got a Tad too Cozy Instead of looking out for what is best for democracy and the nation, the FCC has become little more than a handmaiden for the mega-corporations that control America's media. Ryan Blethen, Seattle Times FCC Commissioner's Comcast Dash Triggers Wave of Disgust It's fair to say that media and the public have responded with disgust to news that FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker had cut short her public duties to lobby for Comcast, the company whose takeover of NBC Universal she just approved. But the criticism hasn't been limited to one bureaucrat's shameless decision to abandon her 2009 oath to serve the American people. Timothy Karr, Huffington Post Congress Ignored FCC Commissioner's Comcast Gig Media advocacy group Free Press slammed a congressional subcommittee for ignoring the controversy surrounding a FCC's commissioner's resignation to become a top lobbyist for Comcast. Brent Lang, The Wrap Lawmakers Consider Probe of FCC Member's Move to Comcast-NBC House members in both parties are concerned about the decision by FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker to leave the agency for Comcast-NBC Universal. Baker's decision has prompted questions on whether she was considering that post while reviewing the Comcast merger, which she voted to approve. She has denied any overlap between the review and her discussions with Comcast, and has stated that she followed ethics rules. Sara Jerome, The Hill Switching Sides There's something particularly unsettling about a regulatory official who voted only four months ago to approve the $13.75 billion merger of Comcast and NBC Universal turning around to take a high-profile job with that firm. The move threatens to further undermine public confidence in the government's ability to make objective decisions that put ordinary citizens' interests first. Philadelphia Inquirer Public Interest, Personal Gain FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker isn't the first government regulator to charge through the revolving door to reap riches from a regulated enterprise. But her case is particularly blatant and sadly illustrative. Times-Tribune How the Top One Percent Capture Our Regulators -- and the American Dream In describing the intense lobbying efforts by Comcast last year to close its merger with NBC Universal, legal scholar Susan Crawford put it this way: "It's about as subtle as a wet fish in the face." That makes last week's announcement by FCC Commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker the proverbial Mack truck. Baker is resigning to take a top lobbying position at NBC Universal in Washington, just months after she voted to approve the deal. Linda Keenan and Janine R. Wedel, Huffington Post  Markey to FCC: Allowing AT&T-Mobile Merger Would Be Historic Mistake Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) used an FCC reform hearing in the House communications subcommittee to express his strong opposition to the proposed AT&T-T-Mobile merger. "It would be an historic mistake to approve the AT&T-T-Mobile merger," he said flatly. John Eggerton, Broadcasting & Cable Why the AT&T-T-Mobile Merger Should Not Come to Pass Should AT&T be allowed to acquire T-Mobile, wireless carriers will get even further control over the distribution and makeup of the hardware and software that is changing the way we interact with computers, and they'll likely charge us more for the privilege. Tom Krazit, paidContent AT&T Works to Gin Up Support for Its T-Mobile Deal You know that AT&T really wants to buy T-Mobile. And senators pressed hard on AT&T during hearings to prove that the acquisition wouldn't hurt competition in the market and seemed skeptical. Although Congress doesn't have a direct say on the deal, political opposition could influence regulators. And so AT&T is pulling out the stops and seems to be indirectly approaching the press in search of some positive stories to help influence the legislature. Erik Sherman, BNET  High Fiber The United States is where the Internet was born. But we're falling behind in the race to the online future. Most of us go online these days using a service that's called broadband -- faster than old-fashioned dial-up, and always on. But broadband service in the U.S. lags behind a dozen or more industrialized countries -- and we're doing worse every year. Why are we being left so far behind? Betsy Rate and Rick Karr, Need to Know An Internet Rock Star Tells All Jonathan Coulton's songs almost never get played on the radio. He doesn't have a contract with a music label. Yet he's a one man counterargument to the idea that musicians can't make money making music. So how did Jonathan Coulton take his songs and -- without the aid of a record label, or any outside support really -- turn them into half a million in annual revenue? The Internet, of course. Alex Blumberg, Planet Money Turks Protest Internet Censorship Thousands of Turks gathered in some 40 cities and towns around the country, to join marches organized on Facebook against state Internet censorship. Ayla Albayrak, Wall Street Journal Moffett: AT&T Caps Herald 'Next Generation of Communications' Supporters of low broadband caps and high overage charges can't admit that the shift toward these pricing models is about turf protection and offers no benefit to consumers. That's why investors and the broadband industry will often try to insist that these new flat rate plus caps and overage pricing models are about altruism or a love of "next generation communications." This tends to add insult to injury to a public that's generally smarter than the industry gives them credit for. Karl Bode, Broadband Reports NCTA Says RUS Should Stop Broadband Loans Until Rules Are Fixed Cable operators have advised the Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service that it needs to fix its rules for handing out broadband development loans under the Broadband Loan Program, and it should stop handing out the money until that happens. John Eggerton, Multichannel News  Same Old Song: Another Radio Merger It's the same old song -- both on the radio, and in politics. Another mega media merger is looming. Radio giant Cumulus is attempting to acquire radio giant Citadel, giving Cumulus massive control over the airwaves, and leaving the public with even less choices in programming and music on the radio. Megan Tady, SavetheNews.org MPBN to Argue Case for Funding The Maine Public Broadcasting Network is expected to make the case for why it shouldn't have all of its state funding cut. Last week, Gov. Paul LePage proposed to help fill a hole in the budget by eliminating $2 million a year for the next two years that was slated to go to public broadcasting. Kennebec Journal Radio Summer Spreads Word on Community Radio As reported back in December, Congress has passed the Local Community Radio Act. The act's passage is a major victory for community radio, permitting hundreds or thousands of groups to launch low-power FM radio stations that will aid their own specific community needs. Of course, most of us are still a little hazy on how, exactly, we can launch our own local radio stations. So the nonprofit radio activist organization Prometheus Radio Project has launched Radio Summer. Tom Breihan, Pitchfork |   If Cable Firms Act As Monopolies, Cities Should Be Able to Regulate For many Bostonians, cable service, while not strictly essential, has become an important way to get entertainment and monitor public affairs. And if the FCC finds that Comcast enjoys a de facto monopoly, the city should be given the power to regulate it. Boston Globe The New Tech Bubble Some time after the dotcom boom turned into a spectacular bust in 2000, bumper stickers began appearing in Silicon Valley imploring: "Please God, just one more bubble." That wish has now been granted. Compared with the rest of America, Silicon Valley feels like a boomtown. Yes, irrational exuberance has returned to the Internet world. Investors should beware. The Economist Social Media's Sticky Role in Anti-Israel Uprisings After a page calling for a mass march by Palestinians on the borders of Israel on May 15 was taken offline by Facebook, mirror sites with more than 3.5 million followers sprung up. Now Egyptians are preparing to march on Gaza and the Israeli military is threatening to crush protests. Will the so-called "Facebook Intifada" tip the Middle East into further turmoil? Fast Company Social Networking Sites Face New Privacy Battle California could force Facebook and other social networking sites to change their privacy protection policies under a first-of-its-kind proposal at the state Capitol that is opposed by much of the Internet industry. San Francisco Chronicle Five Reasons Why Skype Will Be an Office Hit What Microsoft's acquisition of Skype represents is the potential for greater adoption by business people. Of course that will depend on how Microsoft treats Skype. It will be integrated into the Microsoft suite for use as a sanctioned communications tool. But the signs are there that Microsoft will respect the service as a stand-alone product for the millions of people who love it for what it is. Considering these two factors, we see five reasons for why Skype will be a hit in the business world. ReadWriteWeb Luck of the Irish for British Newspapers Ireland may be small, but its purchasing power is mighty. In the face of newspaper industry doom and gloom, the Irish are showing that maybe there is some bit of luck to keeping the newspaper business afloat. U.K. papers are largely the beneficiaries of an enthusiastic readership on the Emerald Isle. AdWeek College Students Use Social Media to Cheat Social media and content sharing websites account for one-third of plagiarism among college students, and paper mills are far less popular than once thought, according to a report detailing the most common cheating methods in higher education. eCampus News   |
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