Benton Foundation Senior Fellow Jim Kohlenberger Joins White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

Benton Foundation Senior Fellow Jim Kohlenberger Joins
White House Office of Science and Technology Policy

News reports indicate that Benton Foundation Senior Fellow Jim Kohlenberger has joined President Barack Obama's Administration as the Chief of Staff in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). The following can be attributed to Benton Foundation Chairman and CEO Charles Benton:

Jim Kohlenberger has a distinguished career of public service and an unwavering commitment to ensuring our nation's communications policies serve the public interest, promote opportunity, and enhance our democracy.

Jim Kohlenberger joined the foundation in 2004 to guide Benton's media policy work and strengthen the foundation's collaborations in the field. Mr. Kohlenberger has headed Benton's advocacy for universal, affordable broadband, tangible public interest obligations for digital broadcasters, diversified media ownership and open communications networks.

Jim brings a lifetime of experience and exemplary service to the task at hand. He understands the challenges our nation faces and the positive impact communications can have in finding and implementing solutions. I have great admiration for my friend and for his commitment to help our country at a perilous time.

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The Benton Foundation works to ensure that media and telecommunications serve the public interest and enhance our democracy. We pursue this mission by seeking policy solutions that support the values of access, diversity and equity, and by demonstrating the value of media and telecommunications for improving the quality of life for all.

Election 2008 Timeline

October 2008 With communications policy playing a role in presidential politics this year, here's a timeline of the coverage we've seen.

Headline Highlights September 2008

October 2, 2008 Sure, we get it -- September is hurricane season. But did anyone predict the storms we've seen in the past month? Hurricane Hanna got every one's attention, especially federal regulators overseeing Wilmington, North Carolina's transition to (almost) all digital television broadcasting. No one saw the technical problems on the DTV radar, however. In was late August when Sen John McCain picked Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to be his Vice President. The selection led to what some called "Hurricane Palin," a storm that forever changed the dynamics of the 2008 election. These stories nearly drowned out some carry-over issues from August like the FCC's first major Network Neutrality decision. The biggest tempest, however, is a financial crisis is interrupting the 2008 campaign.

The Civil Rights Imperative

September 25, 2008 On September 18, Charles Benton was invited to speak at the annual conference of the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors. Benton was asked to appear on a panel titled "The Future of Communications: What is Coming in a New Administration and Beyond?" In these uncertain times, however, maybe it is too much for anyone or any one panel, to predict what our telecommunications future will look like. We can - and we should - however, take this moment to define our communications goals. Benton writes, "Our number one national communications policy priority must be the eradication of racial and gender discrimination in media and telecommunications."

Children Now: The stakes are too high to sell children's needs short

September 23, 2008 Children Now's Patti Miller testified before the US Senate on food marketing to children. She said that because there is no uniform nutrition standard; because unhealthy products creatively labeled as "better for you" are being passed off as healthy food for children; and because the media companies refuse to play a role in protecting children from the advertising of unhealthy food products, current voluntary industry initiatives to curb unhealthy food marketing to kids are not enough.

Why Broadband Matters

September 15, 2008 The Senate Commerce Committee meets September 16 to hear testimony on the consumer benefits of broadband service. The question of the day is Why Broadband Matters? Broadband matters for every American. Luckily, the Senate's hearing focuses on people rather than pipes. Because even as we come to recognize that broadband networks are the essential communications medium of the 21st century, those who could benefit the most from this economically empowering technology are also those most likely to be left without access because of where they live or how much money they make.

Headline Highlights for August 2008

Sept 3, 2008 Ah, August. Time to relax, to vacation. Washington shuts down and heads to the beach. Presidents go to ranches. Nothing important happens in August. But not this year. With the only major test of the digital television transition waiting in the wings, the Federal Communications Commission did not take the month off and issued what may be the most important regulatory decision ever concerning the Internet. And there's no way to forget that this is an election year including telecom policy positions from Republicans and Democrats.