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COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Leahy Rips FCC Chairman for Appearing With Alt-Right “Pizzagate” Conspiracist

The head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Ajit Pai appeared before a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Thursday, where he was harangued about an attempt he made to produce a viral video with a far-right publication. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) accused the FCC Chairman of showing “contempt” for the public. “You mocked those who disagreed with you in what I think was an ill-advised attempt at what you might think is humor,” Leahy said. Last December, Pai starred in a video produced by the Washington, D.C.-based… Keep Reading

NASA’s Project Portfolio is Dogged by Record-Breaking Delays

The nation’s space projects are facing the longest delays ever recorded, according to an audit by a federal watchdog. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) examined NASA’s major projects portfolio, and discovered that the average launch delay was 12 months. “Cost and schedule performance….has deteriorated,” the GAO reported. Delays are not expected to improve moving forward, the oversight agency also found, citing “cost and schedule growth in the future.” “Complex new projects are starting up, and other expensive projects are taking longer to launch than expected,”… Keep Reading

FBI Officials Attempted to Exploit San Bernardino Shooting to Obtain Favorable Court Ruling Against Apple

A Department of Justice Inspector General report suggests that top agents in the FBI may have suppressed information about Bureau capabilities in order to get a court order that could have drastically undermined consumer data security. The watchdog’s findings show that after the December 2015 San Bernardino shootings, Bureau agents were zeroing in on a method to break into one of the shooter’s iPhones, while at the same time FBI leaders were telling Congress and the courts that no such capability existed. Ultimately, the IG… Keep Reading

Ajit Pai’s Sinclair Connections Now Under FCC Internal Investigation

A watchdog within the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is probing the panel’s Chairman, Ajit Pai. David Hunt, the agency’s Inspector General, confirmed the investigation to Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), who had requested action following a series of decisions by Pai that directly benefited Sinclair Broadcast Group—the nation’s largest television broadcaster. “For months I have been trying to get to the bottom of the allegations about Chairman Pai’s relationship with Sinclair Broadcasting,” Pallone said in a statement Thursday. “I am grateful to the FCC’s Inspector General that… Keep Reading

Private Market Fail–US Indefinitely Reliant on Russian Government for Space Travel

America’s future in space is largely in the hands of private companies whose work continues to be delayed and filled with uncertainty, a government watchdog testified on Wednesday. NASA contractors Boeing and SpaceX were supposed to have commercial crew transport systems ready to be certified for launch by 2017, providing the US with its own manned space flight system for this first time since the Space Shuttle program was retired in 2011. But those time schedules have since shifted. The certification date is now 2019.… Keep Reading

Media Oligarchs Find Friends at F.C.C., After Net Neutrality Order and Broadcast Ownership Study

The Federal Communications Commission is leading the charge within the Trump administration to give a boost to media conglomerates. Republican appointees at the FCC are moving toward the complete reversal of Obama administration rules on Net Neutrality—regulations designed to preserve consumers’ access to information. Commission Chair Ajit Pai announced the plans on Tuesday, saying “the federal government will stop micromanaging the Internet.” The move looks set to allow micromanagement of cyberspace by multinational giants. In 2015, then-FCC Chair Tom Wheeler ruled that internet service providers… Keep Reading

Independent TV Stations Subject to “Functional” Control by Giant, If FCC Approves Merger

The proposed Sinclair-Tribune TV broadcasting merger could lead to a single conglomerate exerting significant control over stations that it wouldn’t even own. Integration between the two companies could see advertising markets increasingly dominated by a near-monopoly, Senate Democrats said Friday, in a letter to the country’s lead telecoms regulator. Twenty-four members of the Senate Democratic Caucus signed the letter, calling on FCC Chair Ajit Pai to pump the breaks on his ongoing deregulatory push, noting the $3.9 billion deal between Sinclair and Tribune. The two… Keep Reading

Federal Court: No Constitutional Right to Data Security

Victims of the massive data breach at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) have no legal recourse, according to a DC federal court ruling this week. The decision cuts down a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of some of the 21 million Americans who had their names, addresses, and social security numbers exposed in a cyber intrusion against OPM in 2015, allegedly by Chinese hackers Those affected were primarily current, former, and prospective government employees. Interest groups and labor organizations, on their behalf, are seeking… Keep Reading

Conservative Outlets Join Groups Lashing Out at Trump FCC, Sinclair-Tribune Mega-Merger

Right-wing media outlets are joining trade associations and public interest advocates in urging lawmakers and the Trump administration to block a merger of giant broadcasters. Executives from One America News Network (OANN) and The Blaze are part of a coalition, announced on Tuesday, formed to oppose the purchase of Tribune Media by Sinclair Broadcasting. The group said that the $3.9 billion deal will give Sinclair access to 72 percent of American homes—almost double the 38 percent of the country that the giant currently reaches. “This… Keep Reading

Republicans Lean on Clinton-Era Law for Broadband Conglomerates

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is reinterpreting a key law to consider relaxing constraints on telecoms giants. Republican Chair Ajit Pai this week invoked Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act to argue that smartphones alone could help broadband providers meet statutory requirements on access and deployment. “We propose to incorporate both fixed and mobile advanced telecommunications services into our Section 706 inquiry,” agency filings said on Tuesday, in a notice of inquiry. The FCC will accept comments on the proposal for two weeks starting on… Keep Reading

FCC Chair Ajit Pai Tips First Domino in Play Toward Internet Dystopia

In a vote that lasted just a few seconds, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) initiated the deconstruction of sweeping internet regulations that preserve open access to independent information. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which aims to repeal Net Neutrality protections, was approved by the three-member commission in a 2-1 party line vote on Thursday morning. Passage of the measure kicks off a public comment period that ends on August 16. During that time, the FCC will solicit feedback on its repeal proposal. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai… Keep Reading

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