What's on the agenda for policymakers.
Agenda
Facebook commits to civil rights audit, political bias review
To address allegations of bias, Facebook is bringing in two outside advisors — one to conduct a legal audit of its impact on underrepresented communities and communities of color, and another to advise the company on potential bias against conservative voices.
Sprint and T-Mobile CEOs Are in Washington to Sell Their Merger. Here’s What They’ll Confront.
Here’s what three government agencies will weigh as they consider the T-Mobile/Sprint merger.
A celebration of the extraordinary service of Mignon L. Clyburn as a Commissioner and Acting Chair of the Federal Communications Commission. Commissioner Clyburn recently announced that she will be stepping down from the FCC after more than eight years in that position. During that time, Commissioner Clyburn not only served with distinction and leadership but also served as a leader not just in name, but as the moral conscience of the agency.
Letting Sprint and T-Mobile Merge Is a Terrible Idea
[Commentary] The merits of some mergers make for a close case, but the proposed merger between the mobile carriers Sprint and T-Mobile, which would create a new telecommunications behemoth, is not one of them. Basic economics strongly suggests the proposed combination should be dead on arrival, at least if the nation’s antitrust law still stands for competition and lower prices for consumers.
FCC Chairman Pai, Rep Scalise talk net neutrality, lighter rules in New Orleans visit
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai swung through New Orleans on to brief local technology sector leaders on how the city and Louisiana stand to benefit from what he called the "light-touch regulatory approach" in the era of President Donald Trump. Chairman Pai was joined by US Rep Steve Scalise (R-LA), who reiterated that he's a "strong supporter" of Pai's push to end rules governing net neutrality. Few specifics were given about what was discussed during the closed-door meeting with Chairman Pai and Rep Scalise.
Senate to Hold Net Neutrality Vote
Democratic Sens are planning to take a first step the week of May 7 toward forcing a vote to restore the Federal Communications Commission's network neutrality regulations. Democrats have been gathering signatures under the Congressional Review Act to force a vote to overturn the decision by the FCC to repeal the net neutrality rules. Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) tweeted that Democrats will file the petition to force the vote on May 9. The vote could take place as soon as the week after.
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of five commissioners with many important responsibilities including network neutrality, media ownership, spectrum policy, universal service, and broadband deployment. These and other issues have often divided the commissioners on public, sometimes partisan, disputes about the direction of the Commission. What role does politics play in the FCC? How has the influence of Congress and the White House affected the Commission? Have the respective roles of the Chairman and Commissioners varied over the years?
Why Is FCC Chairman Pai Dragging His Feet?
[Commentary] More than four months after the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal its network neutrality rules, the rules adopted in 2015 are technically still on the books. And we still do not know when the repeal will take effect. The situation is “highly unusual” according to telecommunications policy expert Harold Feld. The question is, why is FCC Chairman Ajit Pai dragging his feet now when he’s so close to his goal?
The public deserves a voice in the decisions we make as a democracy, including the regulations that govern our economy, foster competitive markets, and protect individual rights. In recent decades, the public comment process for agency decision-making has been the principal way in which government agencies understand and reflect the view of not only experts but average citizens whose lives will be affected by these choices. In order to participate meaningfully in decisions, citizens also need access to information about the agency and the data it has collected.
Why all your favorite apps are serving you new privacy prompts
Users of Facebook, Google and other popular technology platforms are likely to benefit from stricter privacy regulations that will require new disclosures, new forms of consent and new power to limit how personal data is stored and utilized. The changes are being announced in emails, blog posts and new on-screen messages that many consumers are already beginning to see from Apple, Twitter, Airbnb, GoDaddy and others. Don’t bother thanking Washington.