May 24, 2013 (Comcast: US the leader on broadband)
"I e-mailed my boss to ask what would happen if we don't free up enough spectrum. He wrote, 'It will be the end of the world as we know it.' He didn't put a smiley face at the end or anything."
-- Tom Sugrue, T-Mobile's vice president of government affairs http://benton.org/node/152592
Headlines will be back on Tuesday, May 28. Enjoy the long holiday, everyone.
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for FRIDAY, MAY 24, 2013
This is crazy talk, but we have nothing on next week’s agenda. What are we missing? Let us know at headlines@benton.org http://benton.org/calendar/2013-05-26--P1W/
INTERNET/BROADBAND
Comcast: US the leader on broadband - op-ed
FCC: Supreme Court ruling bolsters net neutrality defense
A Cyberattack Campaign for Syria - op-ed
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
FCC: Agreement Between Major Corporations is Not “Consensus” - editorial
Commissioner Pai: FCC Should Let Marketplace Decide Price of Auctioned TV Spectrum
Agriculture Community Pulling for LPTVs
AT&T adds 'administrative fee' to wireless bills, stands to rake in hundreds of millions from unwitting customers
Why iPhone repair costs have soared
Some in Congress Grow More Wary of Selling Sprint to SoftBank of Japan
Sen McCain urges FCC to consider security risk of Sprint-Softbank deal [links to web]
Sprint’s Offer for Clearwire Fails to Sway Opponents
Tablet use soars among U.S. airline passengers [links to web]
FCC hopes to avoid 'end of world' for cell phones
TELEVISION
The Oklahoma Tornado Is Proof That Local TV News Can Still Be Powerful
Cable TV, the right way - op-ed
The low-down on the slim down of ESPN
Chairman Walden Sees Aereo as Potential Marketplace Disruptor [links to web]
TELECOM
Is Obamaphone good for the poor? Maybe not. - op-ed
CONTENT
Potential Setback for Apple in E-Books Case
Amazon: victim or aggressor? Issue will frame Apple e-book trial - analysis
FTC Begins Probe of Google's Display-Ad Business
Chernin, Guggenheim, pay-TV distributors bid for Hulu [links to web]
PRIVACY
Network Advertising Initiative Proposes New Mobile Privacy Rules
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
President Obama, in Nod to Press, Orders Review of Inquiries
NBC: AG Holder signed warrant to seize Fox reporter's private e-mail
The future of wiretapping - editorial
A Cyberattack Campaign for Syria - op-ed
Digital Strategy: Delivering Better Results for the Public - press release
Making Mobile Government a Reality - press release [links to web]
Digital Government Strategy Brings Big Changes to the Commerce Department - press release [links to web]
Oklahoma Cities Collaborate on Mobile Policy [links to web]
POLICYMAKERS
Pritzker: Commerce Will 'Look Harder' for Government Spectrum
Presiding Governor Lynton Steps Down From The BBG Board - press release
Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s Betsy Wergin appointed to Federal-State Joint Board on Jurisdictional Separations - public notice [links to web]
INTERNET/BROADBAND
COMCAST: US THE LEADER IN BROADBAND
[SOURCE: Philadelphia Inquirer, AUTHOR: David Cohen]
[Commentary] US broadband now reaches more Americans at faster speeds than ever before. By nearly every measure, we are a world leader. 94 percent of Americans have access to wired high-speed Internet service (the highest percentage in the world) and 90 percent have a choice of fixed and mobile broadband competitors. Eighty-two percent of U.S. homes have access to speeds in excess of 100 megabits per second (mbps), while in Europe, only 2 percent of the population has access to these speeds, leaving technologists and policy makers there with a mere aspirational goal to extend 100 mbps speeds by 50 percent by 2020. No wonder Neelie Kroes, a senior European Internet policymaker, declared that Europe "needs to catch up," citing the United States as a model. America is first in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in broadband subscribers and users, third in wired competition options, and sixth in access to 10 mbps connectivity. Top residential broadband speeds in the United States have increased 19-fold in the last six years, and America is among the leaders in affordability for entry-level service tiers. Notwithstanding all these speed increases, consumer prices have remained relatively stable. U.S. consumers pay 87 percent less per mbps today than they did 11 years ago. Today there is a cottage industry of critics who always want to tell us that our broadband Internet is not fast enough or satisfactory for one reason or another. The reality is that the United States is leading the way in speed, reach, and access - and doing so in a vast, rural nation that poses logistical connectivity challenges unlike any other country. The challenge we face now is how best to continue our broadband and Internet leadership.
benton.org/node/152563 | Philadelphia Inquirer
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
NETWORK NEUTRALITY DEFENSE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
A recent Supreme Court ruling undercut Verizon's lawsuit against network neutrality regulations, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) argued in a court filing. The agency argued that, based on the Supreme Court's ruling this week in Arlington v. FCC, it should be given deference to interpret its own authority, and the appeals court should reject Verizon's lawsuit. In a brief letter to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, the FCC said that the deference standard "clearly applies" to the network neutrality case. Andy Schwartzman, an attorney and supporter of the FCC's rules, said the Supreme Court's decision "gives the FCC a leg up" but that he still expects it to be a "very close case."
benton.org/node/152538 | Hill, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
AGREEMENT BETWEEN CORPORATIONS IS NOT CONSENSUS
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Harold Feld]
[Commentary] Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Wireless Bureau issued what should have been a fairly routine and highly technical Public Notice about possible alternative band plans for the 600 MHz Auction aka the Incentive Auction. This could also be called “that incredibly crazy, complicated deal Congress came up with last year where broadcasters sell back spectrum licenses to the FCC so the FCC can sell them to wireless companies.” Since public comment makes it clear that the various proposals present a lot of challenges it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the Wireless Bureau asked for further comment after holding a band plan workshop a few weeks ago. But Commissioner Pai issued a separate statement blasting the Wireless Bureau. In particular, Pai berated the Bureau for departing from what he called the “consensus framework” for one particular band plan – the band plan favored by AT&T, Verizon, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and the largest equipment manufacturers. Pai ignored objections to the AT&/VZ/NAB plan from consumer groups (including Public Knowledge), competitors such as Sprint, or tech companies such as Microsoft. Over and over in his statement, Commissioner Pai cited to the comments of AT&T, Verizon and NAB as proof of a “broad consensus” as if none of these objections existed. As if to emphasize just who counts for Pai’s “consensus” and who doesn’t, AT&T, Verizon, and the NAB posted identical blog posts reiterating the core of Pai’s criticism.
benton.org/node/152540 | Public Knowledge
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
INCENTIVE AUCTION INITIAL OFFERS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Federal Communications Commissioner Ajit Pai told a CTIA audience in Las Vegas that if the FCC tries to set "initial offers" for broadcast stations in the reverse spectrum auction, it should not do so based on the population it serves or the value of its station business. With that, he is speaking the language of the Preston Padden-led Expanding Opportunities for Broadcasters Coalition, a group of stations looking to sell spectrum for the right price. "[I]f we do establish 'initial offers' (to use the terminology of a descending clock auction), they need to be high enough to encourage participation and they have to be based on relevant criteria. The word 'relevant' is important here. The incentive auction is about purchasing spectrum, or more specifically interference rights. It is not about buying broadcast stations," Commissioner Pai said. He also said that the FCC should release its methodology for repacking TV stations after the auction ASAP and embrace the "down from 51" band plan proposed by the National Association of Broadcasters and wireless companies.
benton.org/node/152569 | Broadcasting&Cable
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
AUCTIONS AND LPTV
[SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Andrew Dodson]
Several agriculture and conservation organizations are urging the Federal Communications Commission to hold a public hearing about the impact an incentive auction could have on low-power television stations that provide programming for rural America. Eight groups -- including the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture and the National Farmers Union -- expressed their concerns about potentially losing over-the-air television once the auction and subsequent channel repack take place. “In rural and mountainous areas, local broadcast television is often the only communications infrastructure that connects our communities. Over-the-air broadcast television often serves as our lifeline — connecting farmers, ranchers and growers to more populated areas. Our members rely heavily on broadcast television for local public affairs programming, news, weather and emergency information,” they said in a letter to the FCC, and the House and Senate Commerce Committees.
benton.org/node/152568 | TVNewsCheck
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
CONGRESS WARY OF SOFTBANK-SPRINT
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Michael de la Merced]
Congressional concern over the proposed takeover of Sprint Nextel by SoftBank of Japan on national security grounds grew as Sen Charles Schumer (D-NY) asked government regulators to carefully review the Asian company’s ties to Chinese telecommunications equipment makers. In a letter to the Treasury Department and the Federal Communications Commission on Thursday, Sen Schumer urged the two to carefully consider the SoftBank deal in the wake of widespread attacks by Chinese hackers. Sen Schumer is the latest senior lawmaker in Washington to express wariness over the deal because of SoftBank’s relationships with Chinese telecommunications equipment makers like Huawei and ZTE. Sen John McCain (R-AZ) wrote a separate letter to the FCC’s acting chairwoman, Mignon Clyburn, asking the agency to carefully review the proposal. The letters come as SoftBank cleared another regulatory hurdle. A California state regulator approved the proposed takeover, joining 22 other states and the District of Columbia.
benton.org/node/152585 | New York Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
SOME STILL OPPOSE SPRINT
[SOURCE: Bloomberg, AUTHOR: Scott Moritz]
Sprint Nextel’s sweetened bid for wireless-network partner Clearwire has failed to persuade opponents to the takeover, raising speculation that the company will have to raise its price again. Since Sprint increased its bid for Clearwire by more than 14 percent to about $2.5 billion this week, two major opponents have renewed their call to vote down the transaction. Crest Financial Ltd., a Houston-based firm, and a group of investors led by Mount Kellett Capital Management LP both filed letters calling for shareholders to reject the new terms. Sprint, which already owns slightly more than 50 percent of Clearwire, is attempting to buy the remaining stake for $3.40 a share -- a price that values the total business at $10.7 billion. The shareholder opposition means Sprint must contemplate an even higher offer, said Kevin Smithen, an analyst at Macquarie Group Ltd. “We think $3.75 gets the deal done,” said Smithen, who has the equivalent of a buy rating on Sprint and is neutral on Clearwire.
benton.org/node/152584 | Bloomberg
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
AT&T FEE
[SOURCE: The Verge, AUTHOR: Aaron Souppouris]
AT&T has introduced a new "Mobility Administrative Fee" to its postpaid contracts. The $0.61 monthly fee ($7.32 per year) is being categorized "below the line" alongside tax and fees as an administrative surcharge. The fee came into effect on May 1st, and applies to all consumer contracts as well as "IRU" business contracts (business accounts where the user pays the bill). It's a small charge for the individual consumers, but given AT&T's postpaid subscriber base stands at over 70 million, the move will net AT&T hundreds of millions of dollars — somewhere around half a billion dollars, in fact. That's a lot of extra revenue from one little charge. AT&T tells us that the administrative fee will "help cover certain expenses, such as interconnection and cell site rents and maintenance." It also added that the charge is "consistent with similar fees charged by other carriers."
benton.org/node/152523 | Verge, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
IPHONE REPAIRS
[SOURCE: MarketWatch, AUTHOR: Quentin Fottrell]
Apple earns almost as much from its customers’ butterfingers as it does through corporate tax loopholes. The company charges as much as $229 to replace an iPhone 5 with a broken screen. That’s more than the $200 price of the device with a two-year contract, and more than a third of the $650 cost of the phone without a contract. Select Apple stores offer the option of a $149 repair. And for those who paid $99 for AppleCare insurance, the replacement is just $49. The replacement components for the iPhone 5 are much more expensive than similar parts for prior models — so expensive in fact that many independent repair services cannot compete. The iPhone-repair business is lucrative. Nearly one-third of iPhone users damaged their devices during 2012, according to a recent study by gadget insurer SquareTrade, which has a vested interest in clumsy customers. Repairs have cost consumers nearly $6 billion since the iPhone was launched in 2007. What’s more, iPhones get abused more than iPads, only 10% of which were damaged, it says. Despite this, iCracked — an independent firm that has technicians across the U.S. — charges half as much to fix an iPhone 4S screen ($79 to $99) as to fix an iPhone 5 ($169 to $199). Why? There is a tight control on iPhone 5 components in the market.
benton.org/node/152522 | MarketWatch
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
END OF THE WORLD FOR CELLPHONES
[SOURCE: CNNMoney, AUTHOR: David Goldman]
The path to clearing up enough airwaves to satisfy the insatiable demand for mobile downloads is a confusing, complicated mess. Mobile data traffic is expected to increase by a factor of 13 in five years, according to Cisco. That's why the Federal Communications Commission and carriers are working diligently to free up big swaths of wireless spectrum for mobile devices. By doing so, they're attempting to stave off what most agree would be a miserable outcome if they fail. "I e-mailed my boss to ask what would happen if we don't free up enough spectrum," said Tom Sugrue, T-Mobile's vice president of government affairs, at a panel discussion held at the CTIA wireless industry trade show in Las Vegas. "He wrote, 'It will be the end of the world as we know it.' He didn't put a smiley face at the end or anything." Wireless spectrum essentially serves as bandwidth for smartphones and tablets. More spectrum can mean faster speeds for mobile downloads; cramped spectrum can lead to spotty service, slower speeds and even higher bills. So as more people use smartphones, wireless carriers and the FCC believe there will soon be a need for more spectrum. As part of an effort to free up a large chunk of spectrum by 2015 for commercial mobile usage, the FCC has already identified some spectrum currently used by TV broadcasters as well as more used by a combination of government agencies and other broadcasters to auction off for mobile usage. Those sales are expected to take place next year. Sounds good, but nothing in Washington is ever that easy.
benton.org/node/152579 | CNNMoney
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
TELEVISION
LOCAL TV COVERAGE
[SOURCE: New Republic, AUTHOR: Laura Bennett]
Amid all the expensive camerawork and sharp matching windbreakers on the major TV networks’ coverage of Monday's tornado in Moore, Oklahoma, the best dispatches largely came from local TV news. In the Times, Brian Stelter quoted John Welsh of KFOR, the NBC-affiliated TV station, eyeing the ruined landscape from his helicopter and repeating the word “gone” as he realized how many local landmarks had been leveled. CBS-affiliated KWTV had a helicopter hovering over the scene less than 15 minutes after the tornado. And two of the most memorable clips were Emmy-winning KFOR reporter Lance West choking up via phone as he ran toward the demolished Plaza Towers Elementary School, and then again on-camera while standing in front of the ruins. “I understand they are going to start pulling these tiny victims out of the rubble here shortly,” he said during the latter report, fighting back tears. These moments could have felt false on a bigger network. On KFOR, though, they rang true. And the emotion did not make West's report, which was full of useful, vivid details, any less attentive or substantive.
benton.org/node/152524 | New Republic
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
CABLE CHOICE
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Sen John McCain (R-AZ)]
[Commentary] America's 100 million cable and satellite subscribers are forced to pay ever-higher bills for a growing number of channels they do not watch. The American people are being ripped off. Meanwhile, services such as iTunes and Netflix have led a revolution in how consumers purchase and experience music and video entertainment. They have upended entire industries to allow consumers to buy digital content where they want, when they want. Amid all this change, two entrenched interests — the cable television and video programming industries — have teamed up to use federal regulations to stack the deck against consumers. I have introduced the Television Consumer Freedom Act, which aims to provide consumers with the option to buy only those channels they want to watch. The bill includes no mandates. Rather, it sends a powerful message to cable and satellite companies, such as Cox and DirecTV, and television programmers, such as Disney-ABC and NBC-Universal: If you want to continue to enjoy government-afforded regulatory benefits, offer TV-watching Americans an a la carte approach to programming rather than the take-it-or-leave-it ultimatum we have today. Another provision in the bill seeks to end the practice of sports team owners punishing fans by blacking out home games that don't sell out. It provides that games taking place in publicly financed stadiums can't be blacked out. The reaction to my proposal could be a case study of the trouble that common-sense ideas too often face in Washington.
benton.org/node/152537 | Los Angeles Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
ESPN CUTS
[SOURCE: American Public Media, AUTHOR: Shannon Mullen]
ESPN is one of The Walt Disney Company's most profitable divisions, and the sports network is growing. But getting bigger has its price. For ESPN that means hundreds of layoffs now, to try to stay in the black long-term. ESPN is building a huge new set for its flagship show SportsCenter, and it’s launching a network for the Southeastern Conference. But no pain, no gain -- it’s cutting up to 400 jobs, out of about 7,000 worldwide. Tony Wible, a media analyst at Janney Capital Markets, says pro athletes’ salaries are driving up the cost of rights to broadcast live sports. And starting in August, ESPN will have to compete with Fox’s new sports network. ESPN says it’s confident the cuts will make the network more innovative.
benton.org/node/152526 | American Public Media
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
TELECOM
OBAMAPHONE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Scott Wallsten, John Mayo]
[Commentary] Academic and government research has shown time and again that the much larger subsidies to rural areas are largely ineffective while telecommunications subsidies targeted at the poor have increased (land-line) telephone adoption among low-income people. The problem is that Lifeline subsidies are not funded by our relatively progressive income tax system, but by taxes all phone users, including the poor, pay to use their phones. In other words, the funding source of Obamaphone is highly regressive because the tax that funds it is the same regardless of the payer’s income. Thus, any poor person who does not receive subsidies either because he doesn’t know about them or because he doesn’t qualify is worse off when subsidies increase because the taxes on his phone service must also increase. A second issue is whether subsidizing wireless phones increases wireless adoption by the poor. This turns out to be a very hard question to answer, and one that helps illuminate why economics is the dismal science. But whether the wireless Lifeline program increases wireless telephone adoption in a cost-effective manner is an empirical question and cannot be answered by ideology. Our history with targeted telecommunications subsidies tells us that it can be effective. Strong and growing demand for wireless services by all segments of society tells us that it will have to target carefully in order to make a difference.
[Wallsten is vice president for Research and senior fellow at the Technology Policy Institute. Mayo is professor of Economics, Business and Public Policy in Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business.]
benton.org/node/152533 | Hill, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
CONTENT
APPLE SETBACK
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Chad Bray]
In a potential major setback for Apple, a federal judge who will preside over a coming antitrust trial that will determine whether it engaged in a conspiracy to raise prices for e-books said that the government is likely able to prove its case against the computer maker. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote, acknowledged that she hadn't reviewed all of the evidence in the case and that no final decision has been made. But she said her preliminary view favors the U.S.'s theory at trial. "So, understanding that this is a tentative view, before I have the benefit of the testimony of the witnesses and further argument from counsel, I believe that the government will be able to show at trial direct evidence that Apple knowingly participated in and facilitated a conspiracy to raise prices of e-books, and that the circumstantial evidence in this case, including the terms of the agreements, will confirm that," the judge said in a lengthy and, otherwise, uneventful hearing. The bench trial, which is expected to last as long as three weeks, begins June 3.
benton.org/node/152582 | Wall Street Journal | Reuters
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
AMAZON: VICTIM OR AGGRESSOR
[SOURCE: paidContent.org, AUTHOR: Jeff John Roberts]
Apple and the Department of Justice are set to spar in a closely watched price-fixing trial set for early June but, increasingly, attention in the case is turning to a third party — Amazon. In pre-trial filings, Apple is trying to expose redacted evidence that the company claims will “embarrass” Amazon and show that the retailer engaged in the same activities for which Apple is now on trial. The claims are set out, in part, in a letter last week from Apple’s law firm that urges US District Judge Denise Cote to reveal information about its pricing as well as “internal discussions about the inferiority” of its Kindle e-reader compared to the iPad. Apple also says the redacted information will help expose the “fiction” that Amazon was “forced” to adopt a new pricing system as a result of a 2010 arrangement between Apple and five big publishers. This arrangement — known as “agency pricing” — resulted in publishers requiring retailers to sell e-books on a commission basis, in which publishers could set the price. This led the Department of Justice, state governments and class action lawyers to sue Apple and the publishers; the latter settled the cases and agreed to pay out millions but Apple is holding its ground. Apple argues that the Department of Justice is wrong to portray Amazon as a victim, along with consumers, of a conspiracy to raise prices. Instead, the company claims that Amazon was contemplating agency pricing too and was pleasantly surprised when the publishers took it up on their own.
benton.org/node/152530 | paidContent.org
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
NEW FTC PROBE OF GOOGLE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Amir Efrati]
The Federal Trade Commission has begun to examine complaints by rivals of Google that the Internet giant abused its power in the market for selling online-graphical and video ads, according to people briefed on the matter. The inquiry comes just months after the agency ended its yearslong antitrust probe of Google's Web-search engine and search-advertising business. The FTC's examination is in its early stages, these people said, and may not result in a formal probe.
benton.org/node/152581 | Wall Street Journal | FT
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
PRIVACY
NETWORK ADVERTISING
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Wendy Davis]
Moving forward with its plan to issue mobile privacy rules, the self-regulatory group Network Advertising Initiative this week provided members with a draft version of a code of conduct regarding information collected from apps. The draft rules deal with behavioral targeting, or serving ads based on data collected across more than one app. The organization expects to finalize its Mobile Application Code by next month, according to NAI Executive Director Marc Groman. As with longstanding privacy rules for data collected from desktop units, the proposed mobile rules require companies to let people opt out of receiving behaviorally targeted ads on mobile devices. Even if people opt out, the proposed NAI code allows ad networks to continue to collect data “non-personally identifiable” data for some purposes, including analytics, ad optimization and frequency capping. The NAI says data connected to a particular device -- as opposed to a person -- is “non-personally identifiable.” But the NAI also proposes requiring companies to either discard that information, or else “de-identify” it (meaning that it's no longer linkable to particular devices), as soon as the data is no longer needed.
benton.org/node/152529 | MediaPost
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
PRESIDENT OBAMA ORDERS REVIEW OF INQUIRIES
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Mark Landler]
President Barack Obama ordered a review of the Justice Department’s procedures for legal investigations involving reporters, acknowledging that he was “troubled” that multiple inquiries into national security leaks could chill investigative reporting. “Journalists should not be at legal risk for doing their jobs,” President Obama said in a wide-ranging address on counterterrorism policy. “Our focus must be on those who break the law.” President Obama said he raised the issue with Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., who he said shared those concerns and would gather representatives from news media organizations as part of the review. President Obama instructed AG Holder to report back to him by July 12. Among the issues likely to be discussed is how broadly the government should be allowed to subpoena telephone, e-mail or other records belonging to journalists who have reported on classified information. Asking AG Holder to lead the review, however, puts the attorney general in the awkward position of scrutinizing investigations that his department has pursued.
benton.org/node/152590 | New York Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
AG HOLDER SIGNED WARRANT
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Justin Sink]
Attorney General Eric Holder personally signed off on the search warrant that named Fox News reporter James Rosen as a potential criminal "co-conspirator," a law enforcement official told NBC News. That controversial warrant, revealed for the first time earlier this week, enabled federal law enforcement officials to seize Rosen's private emails as they sought to determine who leaked the journalist confidential intelligence about North Korea. The move, coupled with the Justice Department's recent seizure of the phone records of Associated Press reporters and editors, has led to tough questions for the White House about press freedoms. The revelation that Holder personally signed off on the warrant also comes on the same day that President Obama announced the attorney general would lead a review into Justice Department guidelines on leak investigations.
benton.org/node/152589 | Hill, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
FUTURE OF WIRETAPPING
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] Pushed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Obama administration may ask Congress for the power to snoop on more types of communication online. The timing couldn't be worse, given the outcry over the Justice Department secretly grabbing journalists' phone records and emails in its pursuit of government leakers. The bigger issue with what the FBI is seeking, though, is that it applies 20th century assumptions about surveillance to 21st century technologies. The irony is that the Internet is actually making it easier for the feds to gather information about suspects without warrants. As the Center for Democracy and Technology pointed out, the widespread use of GPS-equipped mobile phones has effectively put a tracking device in the pocket of virtually every suspect. Combine that with the information collected online about the websites people visit, the material they download, the friends they keep and the people with whom they communicate, and it hardly seems as if the FBI is being left in the dark.
benton.org/node/152588 | Los Angeles Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
CYBERATTACK CAMPAIGN FOR SYRIA
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Chris Finan]
[Commentary] Syrians lost access to the Internet for the second time in a month. While the Assad regime claims the lapses were the result of a faulty network link, the evidence suggests that they were deliberate efforts by the government to hamper the opposition’s ability to communicate inside the country and with the outside world. As American policy makers debate additional measures to pressure President Bashar al-Assad and aid moderate elements of the opposition, they should consider a military cybercampaign to give Syrians the ability to communicate freely online. Doing so would serve our strategic interests, while also demonstrating a principled commitment to Internet freedom. With a guarantee of secure Internet access points, opposition groups would be able to link their terrestrial and wireless networks with those of like-minded groups. This would enable them to reach deeper into the country, giving broad sections of the Syrian populace Internet access. And because the United States would be able to monitor those networks, we could make sure that moderate opposition elements would be the primary beneficiaries. There are few good options available to address the Assad regime’s slaughter of its own people. But that doesn’t mean the rest of the world is powerless. A well-executed cybercampaign could greatly strengthen the opposition, undermine the Syrian government, promote ideals of free speech and assembly, and help shape the strategic environment in the region for years to come — all at the same time. [Finan, a former adviser to the Obama administration on cybersecurity, is a consultant for the Department of Defense and a fellow at the Truman National Security Project.]
benton.org/node/152586 | New York Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
DIGITAL STRATEGY
[SOURCE: The White House, AUTHOR: Steve VanRoekel, Todd Park]
May 23 marks one year since we released the Digital Government Strategy, as part of the President’s directive to build a 21st Century Government that delivers better services to the American people. The Strategy is built on the proposition that all Americans should be able to access information from their Government anywhere, anytime, and on any device; that open government data - data that are publicly accessible in easy-to-use formats - can fuel innovation and economic growth; and that technology can make government more transparent, more efficient, and more effective. A year later, there’s a lot to be proud of. In the end, the digital strategy is all about connecting people to government resources in useful ways. And by “connecting” we mean a two-way street. We are counting on the public - developers, entrepreneurs and innovators - to join us, and be a part of the process. Together, we will continue to modernize government to respond to 21st Century opportunities. [Steve VanRoekel is the U.S. Chief Information Officer and Administrator. Todd Park is the U.S. Chief Technology Officer.]
benton.org/node/152528 | White House, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
POLICYMAKERS
PRITZKER NOMINEE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
At her Senate Commerce Committee nomination hearing, Commerce Secretary nominee Penny Pritzker promised to "look harder" for government spectrum to share or turn over to private industry and to work on creating a cybersecurity framework that includes industry at the table. Pritzker said she supported the president's goal of freeing up 500 Mhz, that the National Telecommunications & Information Administration (which she would oversee as Commerce secretary) has found 100 Mhz so far, and that she would work closely with the head of NTIA, Larry Strickling, to free up as much government spectrum as possible for commercial use while balancing national security and other issues. Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller pointed out the she would have to work with the Department of Defense on that issue and wished her "good luck" with that. Pritzker also promised to work with NTIA to make sure it had the best data on how much it would cost to repurpose or share government spectrum.
benton.org/node/152561 | Broadcasting&Cable | | Chairman Rockefeller | Sen Thune | Reuters
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
MICHAEL LYNTON LEAVING BBG
[SOURCE: Broadcasting Board of Governors, AUTHOR: Press release]
Broadcasting Board of Governors leader Michael Lynton has informed the White House that he is leaving the BBG effective May 23. Lynton is CEO of Sony Entertainment, Inc. He is the former CEO of AOL Europe and Chairman and CEO of Pearson plc’s Penguin Group. He thanked his fellow Governors for electing him to lead the Board in February 2012, adding, “circumstances kept me from taking part in their recent formal meetings, but it is my hope that the BBG board will enjoy a full and productive membership soon.” Lynton was named the BBG’s interim presiding governor following the departure of Chairman Walter Isaacson. He joined the board on July 2, 2010, serving a term expiring on August 13, 2012. By law, any member whose term has expired may serve until a successor has been appointed and qualified. His departure leaves the Board with four members, including Secretary of State John Kerry, who serves as an ex-officio member.
benton.org/node/152564 | Broadcasting Board of Governors
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top