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FCC Source: 'We F*cked Up' Secret Internet Meetings
The Federal Communications Commission "f*cked up" by holding closed-door meetings with industry giants aimed at striking a deal over Internet regulation, a government source told DailyFinance on Tuesday, even as the agency's chief of staff defended a process that has effectively shut out the public.
Since becoming chairman of the FCC, Julius Genachowski, the former Internet executive and Harvard Law School chum of President Barack Obama, has repeatedly insisted that under his watch, the FCC will be more open and transparent than any previous Commission, with greater public involvement.
Two examples:
Effectively Shutting Out the PublicHow we will work will be central to what we can achieve. We will be fair. We will be open and transparent. Our policy decisions will be fact-based and data-driven. -- Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski, Remarks to FCC Staff, June 30, 2009It is a roadmap for a process that will be open, transparent and will allow public participation in ways that are unparalleled for this agency. The FCC will reach out to nontraditional stakeholders, because all Americans have a stake in this proceeding. -- Remarks at FCC Open Meeting, July 2, 2009
Yet, writing on the agency's website Tuesday, FCC Chief of Staff Edward Lazarus -- who has been running the meetings -- said that the agency's ex parte
disclosure rules, which require the agency to provide documentation of
all meetings or discussions related to FCC rule-making, don't apply in
this case.
Why is that? Lazarus asserted that because the meetings concern
"approaches outside of the open proceedings at the Commission, the
agency's ex parte disclosure requirements are not applicable."
After last Friday's Lazarus-hosted meeting with Google and Skype, Markham Erickson, executive director of the Open Internet Coalition, sent a "Notice of Ex Parte Presentation in GN 09-191" to the FCC that stated plainly:
"We endorsed the six principles proposed in the docket; we reiterated
our support for applying those principles to wireless platforms; and we
expressed our support for flexible network management standards."
Proceeding 09-191 is the docket number
for a public comment process entitled: "In the Matter of Preserving the
Open Internet Broadband Industry Practices. Public interest groups were
not invited to the meetings.
"We fu*ked up," a government source familiar with the meetings told DailyFinance. "We deserve the bad press. It was a process foul at a minimum." The source was granted anonymity because the meetings are private.
Finding a Way for FCC to Regulate the Internet
So if the discussions with AT&T, Verizon , the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, Google and Skype don't concern an ongoing rule-making process, what are they about?
What, indeed. According to multiple press reports, as well as persons with knowledge of the meetings, the talks are designed to find a legislative path forward that would give the FCC the authority to regulate the Web -- and thus impose network neutrality rules -- without the limited Title II reclassification that the FCC has been seeking after a federal court ruled in April that the agency lacks such authority.
"They don't want to see this played out in the press," the government source said.
Stricter Rules For the FCC
Unlike Congress, where lawmakers routinely meet behind closed doors with industry lobbyists, the FCC -- a federal regulatory authority -- operates under stricter disclosure rules, hence the ex parte disclosure requirements.
Despite the secret meetings, Lazarus insisted that, "As always, our door is open to all ideas and all stakeholders." He added: "To promote transparency and keep the public informed, we will post notices of these meetings here at blog.broadband.gov."
In the first of such notices -- a letter published by the FCC Tuesday -- Erickson said the FCC met with: "Thomas J. Tauke, Executive Vice President Public Affairs, Policy and Communications, Verizon; James W. Cicconi, Senior Executive Vice President External & Legislative Affairs, AT&T Inc.; Kyle E. McSlarrow, President & CEO, National Cable & Telecommunications Association; Alan Davidson, Director of Government Relations and Public Policy, Google; Christopher Libertelli, Senior Director ofGovernment and Regulatory Affairs, Skype."
According to Lazarus, Monday's meeting does not require ex parte documentation, because it was "outside of the open proceedings at the Commission." The topic? Erickson: "We discussed details relating to prospective legislation relating to open Internet principles."
That's it. Unlike Erickson's previous, actual ex parte filing, this document provides no hint as to the motive or argument of the meeting participants.
"Simply Not Acceptable"
Public interest groups went utterly ballistic.
"We are appalled at the idea put forward by the FCC Chief of Staff that there will be no disclosure (ex parte) requirements for meetings the Commission staff will hold on topics directly related to ongoing FCC proceedings," Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group Public Knowledge said in a statement Tuesday.
"To say, as Mr. Lazarus did, that 'other approaches outside of the open proceedings' would not be subject to disclosure requirements is simply not acceptable in any circumstance, must less in an Administration and an FCC which have promised new levels of transparency."
"Deeply Disturbing"
Josh Silver, head of D.C.-based public interest group Free Press, echoed those sentiments.
"The FCC's blog post is a fig leaf attempting to cover for what appears to be secret negotiations to sell out the future of the Internet," Silver said in a statement Tuesday.
"It is deeply disturbing that the FCC's Chief of Staff is not only meeting exclusively with industry representatives on the future of the Internet, but when faced with criticism, he is also making weak excuses for the agency's behavior alongside vague promises to include others somewhere down the road," Silver said. "Paying lip service to transparency and being transparent are two different things."
"Lazarus's claim that these meetings were not subject to ex parte rules is a red herring. Either the FCC is hosting these meetings to discuss FCC action on the future of the Internet, in which case they are subject to ex parte rules, or the FCC is secretly conspiring on a legislative strategy with only the largest telecom industry representatives and lobbyists at the table. That's even more outrageous."
So, do you think Genachowski is living up to his pledge to create "the most open and transparent FCC in history"?
32 Comments so far
Show AllThe FCC needs to be open and accountable on this matter.
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One more example in a long series of examples demonstrating that the Obama administration shows a complete disdain for the American People. This is another step too far and one that should bite he head off of Julius Genachowski's government career, and Obama's too.
While I fully agree with your point on Obama, in this case, the FCC is an independent comission under congress, not the Executive branch.
Nobody f*cked up.
A coup to rule the internet is taking place.
Obama buddy and FCC head Julius Genachowski is the coup leader.
What's happening is no different than when Dick Cheney met in secret with oil industry executives to carve up and claim their preferred slices of Iraqi oil fields.
The internet is now closed.
You will visit only those websites approved by the telecoms.
All other websites will have roadblocks and toll booths.
You didn't actually believe internet openness and freedom would stand, did you?
>>https://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=228336
We have people insisting the USA has freedom of speech. This man was indicted for senting an EMAIL to Senator Bunning where he commented on Mr Bunnings holding up UI checks.
>>The language is that of Communications Act of 1934 as amended and updated to include electronic messages in the Telecommunications Act of 1996: "(Shore) did utilize a telecommunications device, that is a computer, whether or not communication ensued, without disclosing his identity and with the intent to annoy, abuse, threaten and harass any person who received the communication."
You had best be careful when emailing your congressman.
Mr Shore did not threaten anyone. He simply suggested Bunning Insane for being more worried about a basketball game then extending UI benefits to those people counting on them. This falls under "harassment" apparently.
This the type of "lockdown" The US GOvernmnet wants on the Internet.
I find all the uninvited emails I receive trying to sell me a bunch of stupid stuff "annoying". Especially considering they got my addy because someone else I gave my addy to sold it to them.
Why don't they stop all of these "annoying" emails we all get?
"they"?? What "they"? There is no "they".
Every time YOU 'forward' an email, YOU distribute YOUR email address and the addresses of your contacts.
"Bcc:" - have you ever wondered what that means when you are sending an email?
It means BLIND copy. YOUR contact addresses cannot be harvested when you use this address line.
It is YOUR responsibility to set YOUR own email security. You can refuse to accept email from people who are NOT on your list of contacts. All these options are available to YOU, no matter what email program is being used. Tell all your contacts about using the Bcc option. This is YOUR responsibility, not that of the FCC.
There are benefits to mainting a gmail or hotmail type of account. These provide another level of security. When blogging, I use ONLY a gmail account. You can even Google for tips on how to keep your email secure from SPAM.
SPAM = Stuff Posing As Meat. SPAM is the term used for those unsolicited emails you receive.
"It is YOUR responsibility to set YOUR own email security. You can refuse to accept email from people who are NOT on your list of contacts. All these options are available to YOU, no matter what email program is being used. Tell all your contacts about using the Bcc option. This is YOUR responsibility, not that of the FCC."
Spammers have ways of harvesting emails in case you weren't aware. Setting up security doesn't necessarily stop spammers. Quit being an asshole about "responsibility".
I don't get SPAM.
Irresponsible assholes get SPAM.
Americans hate taking responsibility for anything.
Regardless, SPAM has nothing to do with the FCC.
You know, you've got to be pretty low when even spammers won't communicate with you.
Maybe you should lighten up a bit.
Welcome to the Borg, I mean Corporate Collective.
More and more evidence accumulates every day that the US is on a rapid slide into being a Fascist police state, yet you still cry "We are the freest country on Earth!". You have lost your Bill of Rights, shed Habeus Corpus, discarded Miranda and given away any expectation of privacy. But still you swagger with pride that you can say anything you want under freedom of speech... as long as you don't criticize the Government, the Corporations, God, US foreign policy, Israel, etc. etc.
The police routinely use blanket interception of cell phones, e-mail, text messages and wiretaps to gather intelligence, in violation of national laws. You let them. Your government commits acts of torture outlawed by the Geneva Convention. There is little public outcry. Your 'progressive' President announces that assassination is now a national policy. Silence.
By your silence you proclaim your guilt.
Non Serviam - I will not serve.
"A nation of sheep begets a government of wolves." - Edward R. Murrow
"It is deeply disturbing that the FCC's Chief of Staff is not only meeting exclusively with industry representatives on the future of the Internet, but when faced with criticism, he is also making weak excuses for the agency's behavior alongside vague promises to include others somewhere down the road," Silver said. "Paying lip service to transparency and being transparent are two different things."
Sounds like "single payer", sorry, oops, "net neutrality" is off the table.
Sounds like Cheney and the oil industry, too, doesn't it?
Government secrecy. Government lies. It never ends. How are we supposed to trust ANYTHING we are told by the government and the mainstream media which gives us nothing but lies and half truths? We cannot. We simply can not trust the government. Ever.
Your statement is terribly categorical. You should mean "this government". Surely, you are not proposing doing away with any govenment and letting capitalist-robber-barron-warlords take over, right?
Any more than they already have?
Non Serviam - I will not serve.
Newsflash: They've already taken over. Name one thing where they haven't.
Obama/Cheney/BushClinton/Gore---all the same---underlings.
"They don't want to see this played out in the press," the government source said."
Isn't that the purpose of the press?
msm
Not any more.
When Barack Obama was running for president, he vowed to lead the most open and transparent government in history. Candidate Obama even promised to negotiate health care reform live on television.
Then it came time to govern, and President Obama has negotiated major parts of the health care bill behind closed doors. Earlier this year, he announced deals his administration had cut with drug companies and hospitals after brokering them out of public view
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1009/28750.html
A la healthcare:
"The Wall Street Journal just reported that the Federal Communications Commission is holding "closed-door meetings" with industry to broker a deal on Net Neutrality – the rule that keeps control over the Internet with the people who use it."
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/06/22-3
A Feature, not a Bug
Rangoon78 wrote:
>When Barack Obama was running for president, he vowed to lead the most open and >transparent government in history...
Perhaps that is what he had hoped to do.
Perhaps that was before the heads of the oligarchy told them that he
should be careful not to make waves, unless he wanted to end up like
JFK.
There is still time for great revolutionary changes to come our way.
Every facet of our government is in secrecy.
Yes and they have turned off the faucet.
Secret & Top Secret Classifications:
"The easiest way to remember the difference between top secret & secret is that top secret information would cause our leaders extreme embarrassment if it were known by people without an an official need to know, while secret material would cause serious, but not extreme embarrassment."
Edgar Robinson
We shall know the truth and the truth will set us free from the most violent, anti-democratic, deception based government ever, that is the #1 obstacle to world peace.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
Wikileaks Hitler parody [ you gotta see it! ]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_k7WPv2EvY
One of the great mantras of the Obama Administration is "openess" and "transparency." Of course, what we did not know is that we would be viewing all that transparency through a pane of frosted glass! What a joke.
When it comes to the people's business, there should be absolutely no secrecy. That is the venue where the selling out of the common man always occurs. Obama is an elitist and those with whom he is most comfortable are of the same ilk.
I am in the process if backing out of any affiliation I have with Google. If they are in bed with this bunch of bandits I want no part of them. I am going to revisit Bing, Yahoo and a few others again.
Beach for use by guests only.
"The Federal Communications Commission "f*cked up" by holding closed-door meetings with industry giants aimed at striking a deal over Internet regulation, a government source told DailyFinance on Tuesday, even as the agency's chief of staff defended a process that has effectively shut out the public."
Oilbama taught him how to do that. Oilbama made deals with big insurance and pharmaceutical companies early on guaranteeing no public option, or single payer system, and then sat back and pretended that the public option was still 'on the table'. Oilbama is a complete fraud, as are all in his cadre, like Rahm Emmanuel, who is on the same level as Karl Rove.
This is not the government we voted for. Some shadow group is running the country and calling the shots, that's apparent now.
It's pitch fork time... where are the guillotines?
"They don't want to see this played out in the press," the government source said."
There no longer is any real press... Only the blogosphere and as you can see they are hard at work to destroy that which they can not control.
Well, that's it.
I'm surprised the freedom of the net lasted as long as it did. Many Congressmen were shouting to ban Wikipedia from schools and libraries since education about how dirty the government really is, is a scary thing to "Crooks and Liars" like the Party of Nixon and the Democratic party of Bush/Oil companies.
The FCC commissioner graduated from Harvard University that hive of "despotism" that Thomas Jefferson tried to warn us about. Guess who else graduated there? Bush, Obama, and most of the Fortune 500 CEO's and corporate mafia lawyers who allegiance lies to Corporate Greed above all.
It's no coincidence it looks like a castle, complete with turrets. It is an unconstitutional kingdom that pre-dates the United States. The first VP John Adams the lawyer graduated from Harvard and pushed hard to have the new office of the President referred to as "His Excellency". The men of the Enlightenment laughed behind his back referring to him as "His Rotundness". The last thing they wanted was a King, so Chair Adams was overruled at the Continental Congress.
What we have to do now is clear. We have to embrace the concept of ownership. Wikileaks survives because they own the servers (computers in multiple countries), and hence, the courts have ruled, the information flowing through those servers (even if it was addressed to somebody else). I think we must divorce ourselves from local ISP's who are dictated to by Huge Telecoms who are Lorded over by Harvard CEO's. To do this we will have to create a Liberty Net where each residence owns it's own equipment. You already are typing from that equipment now. Your laptop has wireless broadcasting built in, and possibly it can be converted into a server with a card and mere button clicks and a CD (Desktop PC Towers can do this easy). Citizen info would jump from one laptop to another and you wouldn't even be aware of it. The Tor anonymity network works like that now. But unlike Tor, we would skip the local phone and cable lines.
The FCC already approved WiFi years ago. They can't stop us from picking the WiFi network we want to use.
On this Liberty Net (LibNet) we would block all government and Fortune 500 commercial traffic like the original Usenet did when it was just for academic use. We might make exceptions for small mom-and-pop businesses. We might have to be "all text" for some time (no video, no pictures). But at least we would be able to bypass Corp/Gov blocking and communicate in these very dark ages of corporate totalitarianism. At first, you would only be able to communicate with your close neighbors who downloaded and installed the same LibNet software. Later, connection schemes with longer range equipment would have to be bought (like Microwave Equiptment connecting towns. It would be a huge Co-op, where all the citizens only own it. Immune to takeover by Wall Street, since no one person controls or owns more that a small quarter mile chunk of coverage, it would be "open source" just like Unix is: maintained and updated by nerds who hate Microsoft/Force control.
The same salvation awaits us in residential rooftop solar for the southern states. Running your meter backwards and pumping excess volts onto the grid is quite a rush. It diminishes the need for new coal plants.
Citizen Vigilante Julian Assange is quite the wild card in this whole thing. His video "Collateral Murder" and other leaks like it, may shorten the wars. And we can't have that, can we? says Secretary of War Robert "Gates of Hell". Citizens must not know about things like the Oil spill and the War murders.
The time is at hand. Rage against the dying of the Light. Contribute to EFF (electronic frontiers foundation), ALCU, Wikileaks and other Save the Internet groups now.
TJ