It’s become a much-anticipated annual event hosted by the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council.
This year, it was a virtual affair — one that saw Geoffrey Starks offer his thoughts on broadband access and internet connectivity issue as the MMTC 2022 Former FCC Chairs’ Symposium kicked off from Washington, D.C.
The symposium, boasting no less than six current and former FCC Commissioners on hand, saw Starks offer brief opening remarks before yielding to two other current FCC Commissioners — Republican-aligned Nate Simington and Brendan Carr.
Simington remarked at how the media market has changed, and today is “a melee for all.” Competition is fierce, and this includes social media and across platforms, with vMVPDs competing against MVPDs, and OTT in the mix, too. “If you are competing for my attention, it’s rough out there,” said Simington, who, like Carr, has been a champion of further deregulation for radio and television broadcast ownership in the U.S.
Then, there is minority broadcast ownership, which is lagging “because almost everybody cannot enter the marketplace without rapidly gaining scale.”
Should the FCC shift focus? Perhaps, Simington shared. He lauded efforts to bring more diversity into broadcast media companies, and this DEI-focused talent initiative should be extended to the conversations about greater diversity among local broadcast owners.
Carr then appeared, overcoming technical issues in the Zoom-delivered virtual conference led by MMTC head Robert Branson. Carr’s comments was, like Starks, focused on the digital divide in the U.S. That’s hardly a surprise, as Carr’s tenure at the Commission has largely seen Simington — and, before that, Mike O’Rielly — take the GOP lead at the FCC on broadcast radio and television policy issues.
Following Carr’s comments came Branson’s introduction of former FCC Commissioners Deborah Taylor Tate, speaking from Nashville, and Digital Bridge Managing Partner Jonathan Adelstein. They moderated a panel featuring former FCC Chairs Dick Wiley, “the father of Digital TV”; former European Union Ambassador Bill Kennard; MLC Strategies President Mignon Clyburn.
Tate’s first topic of conversation — the inability for confirmation of Gigi Sohn as a FCC Commissioner and what that means. “I think confirmation is still possible,” said Wiley. “But, the fact is that just because we haven’t had a fifth Commissioner doesn’t mean we haven’t had a lot of action at the FCC.” He commended Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel for getting things done, with bipartisan actions in the public interest coming over the last 18 months.
“This Commission has managed to get a lot done despite a 2-2 split,” Kennard said, although the “difficult partisan issues need to be put on hold.” This includes the classification of broadband under Title II of the Communications Act — a.k.a. “Net Neutrality.”
Clyburn then chimed in, expressing that “movement is best for this nation,” even if one doesn’t agree with everything — a nod that she’s hoping Sohn will somehow win confirmation even as her hopes continue to fade amid great opposition to her nomination.
Kennard then shared how $65 billion in Federal funding has been devoted to a bipartisan Infrastructure Deal, with a principal goal of network deployment and ensuring access to all of reliable high-speed internet. The Rosenworcel Commission has made this a No. 1 priority.
Ajit Pai, who was originally slated to appear on the panel, did not participate in the MMTC event. “He had some transportation issues,” Tate explained as she commended him for his leadership in bringing the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline to fruition during his time as Chairman.
