[BC] The FCC gets slammed!

[Dana Puopolo]

Anyone who doubts that the FCC is corrupt and/or political should check this
out:

"The General Accounting Office has issued a report slamming the FCC for
leaking information to companies and lobbyists while leaving consumer
advocates and the public in the dark. The study found lobbyists are given
ample information on when (and sometimes how) the agency plans to vote, while
consumer advocates get no such insight. 

The study notes that timing is everything, and lobbyists given a three week
warning on a vote can determine precisely when to apply lobbying pressure.
Doling out such information "undermine(s) the fairness and transparency of the
process and constitute(s) a violation of FCC's rules," the GAO said.
We are recommending that FCC take steps to ensure equal access to information
by making sure that nonpublic information is safeguarded from disclosure, and
to determine what actions FCC should take if a prohibited disclosure is made,
so that all stakeholders have the same information to inform their
participation in the rulemaking process. FCC took no position on our
recommendation.
Of course the GAO has also been complaining for years that the FCC's data on
broadband competition is immensely flawed and the FCC has done little to fix
it. The GAO's latest report also criticized the FCC for using external
organization data instead of conducting more of their own internal studies. 

"When the ‘corporate insiders’ and ‘K-Street’ crowd have the inside
track on decisions critical to telecommunications, media, broadband or
wireless policy, then the public and consumers, are at an inherent
disadvantage," says Rep. Edward J. Markey, chairman of the House Subcommittee
on Telecommunications and the Internet in a statement. 

Last month, while Google and Verizon were battling over 700Mhz broadband
spectrum, FCC chief Kevin Martin leaked limited parts of the FCC's auction
plans early, apparently to influence press coverage. According to FCC rules,
the content of agenda items - such as draft proposals - are "nonpublic
information" and "shall not be disclosed, directly or indirectly, to any
person outside the Commission" under penalty of possible termination."

Here's the PDF of the report:
http://markey.house.gov/docs/telecomm/FCC%20Rulemaking.pdf

-D