Report On FCC Is Being Finalized…

Monday, November, 24, 2008 by Mel Phillips.

The congressional committee investigation of the FCC has taken a year but it’s about to be wrapped up.  Democratic Congressman Bart Stupak told C-SPAN that the lengthy investigation has been caused by an FCC attempt to run out the clock by being uncooperative, something denied by Rob Kenny, a spokesman for Chairman Kevin Martin.  Stupak added that “the way FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has run the commission is not the way it is supposed to be run.”  Apparently there are key FCC staffers who have been asked to talk to the committee but have failed to do so.  Stupak has set a Friday deadline for the staffers…

Stupak feels the FCC did not follow the “intent or spirit” of the law.  “The FCC has always been one of those agencies where people think they can get a fair, impartial hearing based on the facts.  Unfortunately, I don’t think that has happened in the last few years.”  Stupak doesn’t envision any hearings on the FCC this year.  After the report is released, he could see case studies cited in the report being the subject of hearings.  He also said it might help future chairmen to see some of the errors and how Congress reacted to them.  Stupak expects the report to be issued within two weeks…

In a separate matter, the FCC and the Department of Justice are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their appeal of a decision overturning the FCC’s fining of 20 CBS stations on the Janet Jackson Super Bowl “wardrobe malfunction.”  CBS suggests there was no need for the court to take the appeal, “we hope the Supreme Court will recognize there are rare instances, particularly during live programming when it may not be possible to block unfortunate fleeting material, despite best efforts.  Doing so would help to restore the policy of restrained indecency enforcement the FCC followed for decades.”  My comment is ’what they said’…

10 Timeline Memories:

1. 1859] The Grandfather of “Cavemen”: British naturalist Charles Darwin publishes “On the Origin of Species” which explains his theory of evolution…
2. 1871] The Grandfather of the NRA: The National Rifle Association is incorporated and its first president is Major General Ambrose E. Burnside…
3. 1953] One by one: New Brooklyn Dodger manager Walter Alston signs the 1st of 23-one year contracts…
4. 1963] Live from Dallas: Jack Ruby shoots and mortally wounds Lee Harvey Oswald, the accused assassin of President Kennedy. This happened live on television - still hard to believe.  Here’s the video clip…
5. 1963] The games must go on ?: The NBA, NHL and AFL cancel their scheduled games, the NFL does not. Pete Rozelle considered this his worst decision as NFL commissioner…
6. 1969] Guilty as charged: Lt. William Calley is charged with the massacre of over 100 civilians in My Lai, Vietnam in March, 1968…
7. 1971] AWOL with ransom: Hijacker D.B. Cooper parachutes from a Northwest flight over Washington State with $200,000 in ransom. His fate is still unknown…
8. 1985] “Happy Trails”: Big Joe Turner dies of a heart attack at 74…1991] Freddie Mercury of Queen dies of AIDS at 45…
9. 1998] Wedding Bells: AOL confirms that its buying Netscape for $10 billion…
10. 2003] Death sentence: A jury in Virginia Beach, VA, sentences John Allen Muhammad to death for the Washington-area sniper shootings…

Music Memories:

• 1966] Recorded on this date: The Beatles begin recording the “Sgt. Pepper” LP…

“Happy Birthday…happy birthday“:

Katherine Heigl (30), Ruben Santiago-Hudson (52), Stanley (Chip) Livingston (58), Donald “Duck” Dunn (67), Pete Best (67), Paul Tagliabue (68) and Oscar Robertson (70)…

Timeline Countdown: 3 days until Thanksgiving, 27 days until winter, 28 days until Hanukah and 31 shopping days until Christmas…

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