Michael Powell's Contradicting Claims

from the wait-a-second... dept

We've talked in the past about the need to totally rethink spectrum allocation policy at the FCC, or possibly to rethink the FCC itself. So, it's good to see FCC chairman Michael Powell state that "Right now, we're in a terrible position where a company's regulatory treatment is more a matter of from whence they came rather than what they're really doing now." By saying this, he's suggesting he recognizes that squeezing new technologies into old regulations is a recipe for disaster. Unfortunately, his statements before he got to tech policy completely contradict this. He talks about the need to bring indecency laws that now cover broadcast TV to make sure they cover cable TV as well. Leaving aside the question of why an agency whose mission is to focus on spectrum allocation should be involved in any sort of question on indecency, isn't this exactly what he said he didn't want to do with technology policy? He's trying to squeeze new technology (cable TV) into old regulations (indecency regulations for over-the-air broadcast TV).
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  • identicon
    Bob Dole, 14 Jul 2004 @ 7:27am

    Not quite

    Michael Powell has never asked for authority to regulate cable for indecency. The article just shows he's pointing out the contradiction, not embracing it. There's a big difference. This statement shows what he thinks about enforcing indecency law.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      cheezhed, 14 Jul 2004 @ 8:48am

      Re: Not quite

      Yeah--I read it as Powell advocating for the hands-off approach to cable channels to be extend to broadcast channels.

      link to this | view in chronology ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.