DSL Prime Editorial: Jeff Pulver's FCC

Imagine what regulation would be like if the regulators had actual industry experience—or if they were veteran visionaries who understood not just the present but the potential of the future as well.

by Dave Burstein of DSL Prime and Future of TV [August 26, 2004]

After Powell
Michael Powell "will probably stay through January to finish some current projects, instead of leaving November right after the election," a close aide is telling friends. Key staffers Bill Maher of the Wireline Bureau and broadband advisor Kyle Dixon have already left, and many big decisions are being delayed for the new team. Don't discount Powell, who would like to leave a legacy. But unless he sees the urgency, troublesome issues are being rolled over to the next administration.

Drew Clark's National Journal speculations on his successor were widely picked up "Kerry, if elected, [might] appoint FCC Commissioner Michael Copps as chairman. Copps led the fight on the commission against efforts by Chairman Michael Powell to loosen media-ownership rules. Copps has support among public-interest advocates but does not top most telecom insiders' lists of potential FCC chairs.

Repeatedly mentioned individuals include: Greg Rothschild, chief telecom aide to Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich.; former commissioner Susan Ness; Blair Levin, former chief of staff to former Chairman Reed Hundt; Antoinette Cook Bush and Ivan Schlager, former aides to Sen. Ernest (Fritz) Hollings; cellular industry executive Gerry Salemme; and Kathy Brown, former chief of staff to former Chairman William Kennard and now a Verizon executive. … Larry Irving, former head of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration; and David Krone, executive vice president at the National Cable and Telecommunications Association."

Copps has taken consistently pro-consumer stands, my editorial bias, and almost everyone except "telecom insiders" (overwhelmingly lobbyists) would applaud the choice. Levin is exceptionally qualified, proving himself the most thoughtful and accurate voice in policy circles. He played a key role under Hundt/Kennard, a period that seems golden compared to the Powell years of decline (which are not all Powell's fault, of course, but the buck stops here.)

Larry Irvine is also thoughtful, generous, and public-spirited. Most of the others mentioned by Clark should not be serious candidates, because the commission is dedicated to the public interest, and rare is the lobbyist who can serve it. Far more qualified are public interest advocates like Gene Kimmelman of Consumer's Union, Mark Cooper of Consumer Federation, or Jamie Love of the Consumer Project on Technology. It's a terrible indictment of the D.C. scene that corporate lobbyists are acceptable and consumer lobbyists not considered.

The assumption is that if Bush is re-elected, Kevin Martin will take over the FCC. Martin's earned respect from many, myself included, who are not Republican free marketers as he is. I've seen how actively Martin researches issues, including careful listening at obscure events on fiber to the home and regional broadband. He's proven that he will take stands he believes in at political cost.

Consider instead Jeff Pulver, a political independent who has worked effectively with both Democrat Kennard and Republicans Powell and Sununu. Jeff has two virtues few of the D.C. folks share. He's a successful entrepreneur, whose proven ability to "meet a payroll" should give him a businesslike attitude Republicans can respect. He's also far better informed about both the technology and the business realities than almost anyone in D.C., something even more important than the particulars of law most of the other commissioners will bring. Nearly all the decisionmakers in D.C. are lawyers who only incidentally understand the fields they are regulating; having at least one commissioner who understands in depth would add immensely to the quality of the work.

Similarly, Democrat Dave Farber would be a great choice, who won respect in D.C. as FCC Chief Technologist. I don't know the party affiliation of MIT's Dave Clark, Stanford's John Cioffi, Dewayne Hendricks, David Isenberg, but they are all top technologists informed about policy. Bill Smith of BellSouth, Mark Wegleitner and Paul Lacouture of Verizon, BT's CTO Matt Bross (an American), Alcatel's CTO Neil Ransom (also an American) and Hossein Eslambolchi of AT&T strike me as individuals who could put aside their corporate interests if called to public service. Similarly, John Hodulik at UBS or Anton Wahlman of Needham (a former Cato Institute staffer) from wall streeters have proven their knowledge. The commission, whoever is President, needs some members who are not D.C. lawyers. That's a long list, but most of these folk are very successful and unlikely to accept a different position and government pay.

Most of Europe and the U.S. think lawyers and occasionally economists are the only one qualified to regulate. That's one reason Korea has pulled ahead, incorporating experts at the highest levels.

Copyright 2004 Dave Burstein.
The DSL Prime Newsletter is reprinted with permission.

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