News Clips

Craig Aaron, the co-CEO of Free Press Action, said an example of the public advocate model for a commissioner pick would be Michael Copps, who served at the FCC from 2001 to 2011. Copps opposed a 2002 FCC rule where it classified cable modems services as an "information service" and not subject to Title II common carrier regulation. Copps has been a vocal supporter of net neutrality since leaving the agency. Copps is now a board member for Free Press Action and Public Knowledge and is a special adviser to Common Cause’s Media and Democracy Reform Initiative. "When I think about the potential of that seat, it's somebody like Michael Copps—who was there for a decade and really put the 'public' in 'public servant,'" Aaron said, adding that he was "one of the few commissioners to depart and go into the public interest."

Michael Copps, former FCC acting chair himself and currently a special adviser to Common Cause called Rosenworcel an "ideal" choice for the job. "I know, because we worked together when she led my staff while I was a commissioner there. She knows the FCC from the bottom up and she understands how to make good things happen there. She was called from my staff to the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, where she was responsible for telecom and media policy. Then she was appointed a commissioner at the FCC and has demonstrated a mastery of the issues that has been seldom matched. Whether it’s bringing broadband to every home in America, encouraging internet availability for our schools, making wise decisions for the utilization of spectrum, contesting telecom and media monopolies, battling mis- and dis- information, she has a combination of vision and practicality that make her perfect for the chairmanship."

Larger companies were eager to single out Parler to avoid the "potential legal implications" from "associating yourself with an app or platform that is encouraging and inviting actions that will lead to violence," said Yosef Getachew, director of the media and democracy program at the watchdog group Common Cause. Parler played a role in the "organizing" of the siege and amplified calls to violence but "it wasn't just Parler, it was social media platforms across the board," Getachew said. Facebook in particular has "done a poor job of consistently enforcing their content moderation policies," he added. This isn't just a case of "one platform is a bad actor," Getachew said. "All platforms have not done what they need to do to prohibit this type of disinformation and incitement of violence." ... These groups didn't just spread misinformation but actively "encouraged people to attend the riot last week and to potentially arm themselves and to potentially engage in other violent acts," Getachew said. "These are the types of things from a public interest side that make it harder to monitor because the groups are closed, right? You need permission to enter and Facebook isn't doing a good enough job of actually facilitating or moderating these groups to prohibit this type of content, or to ban these groups altogether."

As the nation grapples with the violent insurrection fueled by President Trump’s lies and divisive rhetoric, as well as a surging pandemic and economic upheaval, the local broadcast media’s job of providing communities with reliable news and information has never been more important. Communities deserve a diverse array of voices and perspectives in the media on critical issues such as economic and racial justice and investigative reporting that holds power accountable. Who owns and presents the media matters. It makes a world of difference when it comes to who appears on local television and who does not, what news is covered, and what issues are presented for our civic dialogue. Ownership by women and people of color means that they can control the narratives of their own stories. As former Commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission, we have seen firsthand how massive waves of media consolidation impact our democracy. Newsrooms are shuttered and thousands of journalists fired; investigative reporting is on life support; and with less locally-originated programming, the diverse needs and interests of our communities are not met.

“You can’t have net neutrality without Title II,” Yosef Getachew, media and democracy program director at Common Cause, said. To reclassify broadband under Title II, a Democratic-led FCC may reverse an order adopted in October by the GOP-led FCC that affirmed its repeal of the Obama-era net neutrality rules.

Similarly, Jesse Littlewood, vice president of campaigns at Common Cause, a nonpartisan watchdog group, told ABC News that some of Facebook's actions have been inefficient. "I would give them a mixed grade," said Littlewood. "On the one hand, they've been quick on some issues, but I still think they step in after a post has been circulating on the web for a while when damage has already been done and there's already a huge amount of influence."