FCC Says Releasing 'Jokes' It Wrote About Ajit Pai Colluding With Verizon Would 'Harm' Agency

At its own discretion, the Federal Communications Commission has chosen to block the release of records related to a video produced in 2017 in which FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and a Verizon executive joke about installing a “Verizon puppet” as head of the FCC. The agency said it was withholding the records from the public in order to prevent harm to the agency—an excuse experts say is a flagrant attempt to skirt federal transparency law. The video was played at an annual dinner hosted by the Federal Communications Bar Association in December, days before the FCC voted to repeal net neutrality protections established under the Obama administration. The FCC argues that releasing any records about the parody video would “harm” the agency by hindering its employees from engaging in frank and open discussions in the future.