BabyDoc Powell to Step Down at FCC
(first appeared at dailykos.com)
Once he stood as an example of the Reagan approach to regulatory agency directors. Appoint someone friendly to the very corporations they are charged to regulate (remember Reagan's "drag your feet" approach to the EPA Superfund?). Powell even passed an increase in overall media ownership, only to have it blocked by federal appeals courts, and repealed by Congress. Besides increasing fines to unprecedented levels and protecting us from Janet Jackson's breast, BabyDoc's legacy won't soon be forgotten...
Like so many other Bush appointees* Powell demonstrated time and time again that he was willing to come down on the "coarseness" of today's broadcast programming while spreading his cheeks for NewsCorp, Clear Channel, and even Viacom, among others. His departure will certainly be welcome, and one of the leading contenders for his replacement, Kevin Martin, seems, at face value, to have a mind of his own, sort of:
Today's NYTimes says:
---
One is Kevin J. Martin, a Republican commissioner and former White House official who several times foiled Mr. Powell's attempts to deregulate broadcasters and telephone companies. The other is Becky A. Klein, a former Texas regulator appointed in the 1990's by the state's then-governor, George W. Bush. She lost a congressional bid two months ago after her campaign received a huge amount of financial support from executives at telecommunications companies who expected she would be a top contender for the F.C.C. job.
But perhaps the best description of BabyDoc's legacy can be found in the last paragraph of the same NYTimes article:
---
"During his tenure, cable rates have risen almost three times faster than inflation, satellite prices are beginning to similarly rise, broadband prices have increased and there has been enormous consolidation in the wire line and wireless services," said Gene Kimmelman, a senior director of public policy at Consumers Union. "Powell was more concerned about preserving competition for wealthy people, people who already have broadband, people who have video service. The people who used to rely on the long-distance companies, who want more choices for their cell phone carrier, they were left out in the cold."
---
Mr. Powell, you brought in revenues from fines that used to add up to less than $50,000 a year, to more than a million dollars today. Congratulations! I feel so much more protected from sleaze because of you. And I never was a believer in changing the channel. It's just too much trouble for a lazy couch potato like me.
*actually, BabyDoc was appointed by Clinton in 1997. He became chairman under Bush. Who'd a thunk it?
Excerpt from the NYTimes article above is Copyright 2005, The New York Times Co., and is used here purely for contextual purposes.
Once he stood as an example of the Reagan approach to regulatory agency directors. Appoint someone friendly to the very corporations they are charged to regulate (remember Reagan's "drag your feet" approach to the EPA Superfund?). Powell even passed an increase in overall media ownership, only to have it blocked by federal appeals courts, and repealed by Congress. Besides increasing fines to unprecedented levels and protecting us from Janet Jackson's breast, BabyDoc's legacy won't soon be forgotten...
Like so many other Bush appointees* Powell demonstrated time and time again that he was willing to come down on the "coarseness" of today's broadcast programming while spreading his cheeks for NewsCorp, Clear Channel, and even Viacom, among others. His departure will certainly be welcome, and one of the leading contenders for his replacement, Kevin Martin, seems, at face value, to have a mind of his own, sort of:
Today's NYTimes says:
---
One is Kevin J. Martin, a Republican commissioner and former White House official who several times foiled Mr. Powell's attempts to deregulate broadcasters and telephone companies. The other is Becky A. Klein, a former Texas regulator appointed in the 1990's by the state's then-governor, George W. Bush. She lost a congressional bid two months ago after her campaign received a huge amount of financial support from executives at telecommunications companies who expected she would be a top contender for the F.C.C. job.
But perhaps the best description of BabyDoc's legacy can be found in the last paragraph of the same NYTimes article:
---
"During his tenure, cable rates have risen almost three times faster than inflation, satellite prices are beginning to similarly rise, broadband prices have increased and there has been enormous consolidation in the wire line and wireless services," said Gene Kimmelman, a senior director of public policy at Consumers Union. "Powell was more concerned about preserving competition for wealthy people, people who already have broadband, people who have video service. The people who used to rely on the long-distance companies, who want more choices for their cell phone carrier, they were left out in the cold."
---
Mr. Powell, you brought in revenues from fines that used to add up to less than $50,000 a year, to more than a million dollars today. Congratulations! I feel so much more protected from sleaze because of you. And I never was a believer in changing the channel. It's just too much trouble for a lazy couch potato like me.
*actually, BabyDoc was appointed by Clinton in 1997. He became chairman under Bush. Who'd a thunk it?
Excerpt from the NYTimes article above is Copyright 2005, The New York Times Co., and is used here purely for contextual purposes.
posted by The Heathen Monk | 1:26 PM
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