Jessica Rosenworcel – Wetmachine

Get Ready for the 2022 Season of Spectrum Wars!

Harold March 15, 2022 - 6:08 pm March 16, 2022Infrastructure, Life In The Sausage Factory, Spectrum, Tales of the Sausage Factory

It isn’t the sultry Regency drama of Bridgerton, the action psycho-drama of Moon Knight, or even the, um, whatever the heck Human Resources is. But for those of us in Telecom land, the annual season of Spectrum Wars holds an attraction like no other. This year is shaping up to be a major spectacular, with lots of old plot lines coming back (like 5.9 GHz), sleeper issues (like 12 GHz) and an unexpected new dramatic plotline around the FCC’s overall auction authority — and More! With the FCC close to finally getting a full cast, it’s looking like 2022 could be a total blockbuster (which will, of course, end in the cliffhanger of a new Congress — with Ted Cruz as potential Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee!).

Of course, not every potential plotline will work out, and we’ll undoubtedly have plenty of surprises along the way, but here’s a (not so) brief recap of what you need to know to follow along this season. If I missed your favorite show, let me know in the comments.

(And no, we’re not going to talk about net neutrality. Or any of the broadband money. This is just spectrum, not wireless service.)

We Will Have a Dream Team FCC (and NTIA) — But You Still Have To Fight For Your Right To Broadband!

Harold October 27, 2021 - 10:13 am October 27, 2021"A Republic, if you can keep it", How Democracy Works, Or Doesn't, Infrastructure, Life In The Sausage Factory, net neutrality, Spectrum, Tales of the Sausage Factory

President Biden has finally made his critical telecom appointments to fill out the Federal Communications Commission and the National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA). As expected, Biden named Acting Chair Jessica Rosenworcel to serve as full chair and renominated her to fill her expired term. As hoped, he also nominated my former boss (and all around Telecom Boss) Gigi Sohn to be the third FCC Commissioner. In addition, Biden nominated Alan Davidson to serve as Administrator/Assistant Sec. for NTIA. In addition to the critical role NTIA plays in spectrum policy, NTIA will also be the agency running the multi-billion broadband infrastructure program in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill (assuming that passes).

This makes lots of important things possible. Not just headline items like reclassifying broadband as Title II (which one would expect any Democratic FCC to do at this point). It includes developing smart and innovative policies to close the digital divide, enhance competition, put consumer protection front and center, and advance new spectrum management technologies that move us from scarcity to abundance. This trio (combined with already serving FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, a champion of privacy and inclusion) are as potentially transformational in telecom policy as the appointment of Lina Kahn and Alvaro Bedoya to the Federal Trade Commission.

The Key word here is “potentially.”

One of the biggest mistakes that people keep making in policy and politics is that you can just elect (or in this case, appoint) the right people and go home to let them solve the problems. Then people get all disappointed when things don’t work out. Incumbents are not going to simply surrender to new policies, and political power has limits. This will be especially true if Congress flips in 2022. So while this is definitely cause for celebration, we are going to have to fight harder than ever to get the policies we need to create the broadband (and media) we need — starting with the fight to get them confirmed over the inevitable Republican resistance.

Happily, fighting to achieve the right thing is much more enjoyable than fighting to prevent the wrong thing. But no one should think we can just go home, problem solved. As I have said for over 15 years, you can’t outsource citizenship. Citizen movements are citizen driven, or they either get co-opted or die. We are going to need to support (and occasionally push) the new FCC and NTIA in the face of unflagging industry pressure and political obstacles. The laws of political reality have not been repealed — but we have a unique opportunity to use them to our advantage.

A bit more about who these people are and the policy opportunities below. . . .

Obama finally Nominates Rosenworcel and Pai: Can They Get Confirmed Before The FCC Drops to 3?

Harold November 2, 2011 - 11:07 am November 2, 2011Life In The Sausage Factory, Tales of the Sausage Factory

The White House finally confirmed what everyone in the D.C. telecom world has expected for months. Obama officially nominated Jessica Rosenworcel to replace outgoing FCC Democratic Commissioner Michael Copps, whose term expires when Congress adjourns, and Ajit Pai to replace Republican Commissioner Meredith Baker, who stepped down last March. Both have considerable experience at the FCC, giving them understanding of how the agency functions in a very nuts and bolts kind of way. Both have broad experience with a range of communications issues, and no particular ties for/against any particular industry sector or company.

In short, both are “workhorse wonks,” with a proven track record of digging in on the complex issues that make this sector such a joy for those of us who like wonkiness and tough questions and such an eye-glazing, mind-numbing experience for those who don’t. While no one can say with any certainty what happens in this crazy and poisonous partisan environment, which every day comes more closely to resemble the delightful fable of the turtle and the scorpion crossing the river, their nominations should raise little controversy. Hopefully, the Senate will confirm both before the end of the year, when the FCC will otherwise drop down to 3 Commissioners.

For those unfamiliar with how this works, or with the candidates themselves, I provide a primer below.