July 2016

AGENDA/FCC

REPUBLICAN REPS ATTACK MORE FCC REGULATIONS IN FINANCE BILL
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Republican and Democratic Reps took their fight over various Federal Communications Commission proposals and actions to the House floor as they debated the omnibus Financial Services Bill that includes the FCC's appropriation. Democratic Reps tried to block FCC-targeted efforts, but were rebuffed. Republican Reps even added the FCC's broadband privacy proposal to the list of actions blocked by the bill. The House's Republican majority are looking to undo through riders on that must-pass bill what the FCC's Republican minority could not defeat with their dissenting votes, including new network neutrality rules, the set-top box proposal, and the broadband privacy framework. The bill also prevents the FCC from tightening joint sales agreement rules, as it has proposed in its quadrennial media ownership review circulated the week of June 27. Those proposals are unlikely to make it into legislation that gets past President Barack Obama's desk, given his support for Title II reclassification and "unlocking" set-top boxes in particular. Democratic Reps tried to head off the Republican efforts with amendments offered on the floor to strike some of the offending FCC portions, but were defeated. The bill as it currently stands would not allow the FCC to spend funds to enforce its Open Internet order. House Communications Subcommittee Ranking Member Rep Anna Eshoo (D-CA) introduced the amendment to strike the moratorium on funding for the Open Internet order, but it was defeated.
benton.org/headlines/republican-reps-attack-more-fcc-regulations-finance-bill | Multichannel News
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CHAIRMAN THUNE ATTACKS CHAIRMAN WHEELER
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: David McCabe]
Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune (R-SD) took to the floor to amplify his questions about whether Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler authorized a March leak about the commission’s activities. In March, a source told Politico that a deal had been reached between two Republican commissioners of the agency and Democratic Commissioner Mignon Clyburn on reforms to the Lifeline subsidy program. The report prompted supporters of Wheeler's proposed reforms to lobby Commissioner Clyburn to forsake the deal. Chairman Thune used a portion of a floor speech to hit Chairman Wheeler for not directly answering whether he had personally authorized that leak.
“Now since Mr. Wheeler could have just said no if he did not actually authorize the leak of non-public information, that leaves only two possible conclusions,” Chairman Thune said. “One, that Chairman Wheeler did authorize the leak but is not confident in his roundabout interpretation of the rules and fears admitting to violating them. Or, second, Chairman Wheeler simply does not respect the legitimate role of Congressional oversight and believes and he is unaccountable to the American people.”
benton.org/headlines/senate-commerce-committee-chairman-thune-puts-heat-fcc-chairman-wheeler-over-press-leaks | Hill, The | B&C
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INTERNET/BROADBAND

TELECOM COMPANIES SHOULD DISCLOSE THE TRUE COST OF SERVICE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, Rep Mike Doyle (D-PA)]
[Commentary] In 2014, Rep Mike Doyle (D-PA) and three other Members of Congress sent a bipartisan letter to the Federal Communications Commission, urging the Commission to take a closer look at billing practices of telecommunications companies. In the letter, the Members stated that an inquiry sent to some of the nation’s largest communications providers led them to conclude that below the line fees can add substantially to a consumer’s monthly bill and should be made known to consumers before they sign up for service. FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn shares this view. In April, the FCC released its consumer broadband label, a new tool that will give consumers more information about the fees and terms of service associated with their fixed and mobile broadband service. Such disclosure and transparency inspires confidence, increases the public’s trust, and demonstrates good faith. The American people not only want these things, they demand them. We are calling for the nation’s communications providers to lead the way and voluntarily improve transparency and disclosure of these “below the line” fees so that when consumers sign up for service, either online or in-store, they won’t have to wait for their first bill to learn what their total monthly costs will be. We hope the nation’s communications providers will heed our call to action and take this simple step to improve the customer experience. Not only would this be a huge win for consumers; it would be an opportunity for the nation’s phone, Internet, and Pay-TV providers to show they are committed to putting their customers first.
benton.org/headlines/telecom-companies-should-disclose-true-cost-service | Hill, The | Fierce
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NTIA SEEKS INPUT
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration, AUTHOR: Glenna Mickelson]
The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, invites the general public and other federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on the proposed framework for the community connectivity self-assessment tool. This framework is an element of the Community Connectivity Initiative, which is one of the commitments of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) through its work with the Broadband Opportunity Council, which President Barack Obama established to review actions the federal government could take to reduce regulatory barriers to broadband deployment, competition, investment, and adoption. The Community Connectivity Initiative will support communities across the country with tools to help accelerate local broadband planning and deployment efforts. The community connectivity self-assessment tool will provide a framework of benchmarks and indicators on broadband access, adoption, policy and use, helping community leaders identify critical broadband needs and connect them with expertise and resources. Written comments must be submitted on or before August 29, 2016.
benton.org/headlines/ntia-seeks-input-community-connectivity-initiative-self-assessment-tool | National Telecommunications and Information Administration
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SECURITY/PRIVACY

SEVERAL DEMOCRATIC SENS PUSHES BROADBAND PRIVACY PROPOSAL
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Sens Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Ed Markey (D-MA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Al Franken (D-MN), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) called on the Federal Communications Commission to finalize its broadband privacy proposal. “An [Internet service provider] has a duty to protect the privacy of consumers who use the company’s wired and wireless infrastructure to connect to the world,” the Sens wrote in a letter to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. “We strongly support the commission’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, and believe that this framework will strengthen the privacy protections for consumers’ personal information.” They told the FCC it needed to:
Adopt a comprehensive definition of customer proprietary information.
Apply protections to both current and former ISP customers.
Promote transparency by requiring ISPs to disclose what information is being collected and how it is used.
Require ISPs to obtain consent before using or sharing consumers’ proprietary information.
Establish data security protections and breach notification requirements.
Mandate that the FCC and ISPs create clear complaint processes if consumers believe their privacy has been violated.
benton.org/headlines/several-democratic-senators-push-broadband-privacy-proposal | Multichannel News
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GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

HOW ACTIVISTS USED CRIME SCANNER APPS AND CELLPHONES
[SOURCE: The Verge, AUTHOR: Colin Lecher]
The killing of Alton Sterling at the hands of police in Baton Rouge (LA) has sparked national outrage after a video showing the incident was posted online. That video was the result of an organized effort by local activists, who use smartphones to monitor and record violence. A nonprofit group in Baton Rouge, known as Stop The Killing, tracks crime through police scanner apps. When members of the group hear about an incident, they drive to the scene to document it, recording and producing videos to draw attention to violence in the community. There are seven or eight people in the organization that all regularly listen to the scanners — several different versions of police scanner apps of those that are publicly available — for reports of violent crime. "Sometimes we get to crime scenes before police," says head of the group, Arthur "Silky Slim" Reed. Stop The Killing tries to record a scene three or four times a week, Reed says, and has uploaded some of its footage — much of it showing graphic incidents of crime scenes — to YouTube.
benton.org/headlines/how-activists-used-crime-scanner-apps-and-cellphones-record-alton-sterlings-fatal-shooting | Verge, The
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ELECTIONS & MEDIA

CLINTON’S TECH AGENDA
[SOURCE: American Enterprise Institute, AUTHOR: Mark Jamison]
[Commentary] There is much to worry about in Hillary Clinton’s technology and innovation agenda as it provides a blueprint for diminishing US leadership in tech. Here are some of the features that may sound like they promote technology and innovation, but in reality drain value from customers and industry. The Clinton plan:
Expands handouts to political allies: It will subsidize computer science teachers, provide grants to government schools for STEM education, subsidize more job training programs, fund business incubators, continue the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), and create a $25 billion Infrastructure Bank.
Increases government role in broadband: The plan will expand subsidies from the federal government to cities, regions, and states to invest in dark fiber, broadband in recreation centers and transportation centers, and free public WiFi. Of course these programs will be wrought with political favoritism and waste.
Makes empty promises of less regulation: The plan says that “localities may seek” (emphasis added) to streamline permitting processes, develop infrastructure maps and pursue “dig once” policies. It also says that Clinton would “challenge state and local governments to identify, review, and reform” barriers to new infrastructure competitors.
Promises an open Internet, but delivers a closing one: The plan supports the Obama administration’s efforts to hand over Internet governance to an entity where governments may be the most powerful stakeholders. It also strongly endorses net neutrality, which continues to grow into the major barrier to customers getting the Internet services they want.
[Jamison is the director and Gunter Professor of the Public Utility Research Center at the University of Florida and serves as its director of telecommunications studies]
benton.org/headlines/4-ways-clinton-tech-plan-would-destroy-us-tech-leadership | American Enterprise Institute
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OWNERSHIP

NAB: RETAINING NEWSPAPER/TV CROSSOWNERSHIP BAN UNTENABLE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
In an ex parte submission, armed with colorful charts showing the decline of print readership and advertising, the National Association of Broadcasters was trying to convince the Federal Communications Commission to finally scrap the newspaper/broadcast crossownership ban. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has circulated a quadrennial media ownership review item that concludes the newspaper/crossownership ban is still necessary in the public interest, though he is proposing a failing paper waiver similar to the failing station waiver. NAB said the rule is outdated and fails to serve the public interest. It calls the decision to retain it arbitrary and capricious, which would make it a violation of the Administrative Procedures Act. NAB also said the FCC needed to start counting competition from online news sources. "The FCC can no longer ignore the Internet’s transformative effects on the media marketplace and on consumers’ access to news and information," it said. Even as NAB was citing statistics on declining newspaper audience, Pew Research released a report that found only two in 10 people "often" get their news from a print source. It also showed that while TV news remains the top choice for news consumers, younger demos more often get their news online. NAB also pitched ditching the radio/TV crossownership rule, which Chairman Wheeler also proposed retaining.
benton.org/headlines/nab-retaining-newspapertv-crossownership-ban-untenable | Broadcasting&Cable
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July 2016

Convention-al Wisdom: Auxiliary Frequency Coordination Provisions for Political Confabs Announced

Foreign Ownership of US Broadcast Stations Suddenly the Rage?

Univision Sues Charter Over Post-Merger Rates

Donald Trump cutting back on TV interviews

Newt Gingrich Hopes People Dislike The Media Enough To Vote For Donald Trump

Op-Ed: Now, We Are ALL Journalists

A reporter’s arrest is just the latest reason to worry about press freedom in Missouri

Could News App 'SmartNews' Prove To Be The Media's Unlikely Sidekick?

July 8, 2016 (GOP Takes Aim at FCC)