Obama Picks High-Tech and Washington Veteran to Transition Team

With the election over, attention turned Wednesday to the transition from the Bush to the Obama administration. President-elect Barack Obama (D) announced his transition team which will be headed by three co-chairs: John Podesta, Valerie Jarrett, and Pete Rouse. An an advisory board includes Julius Genachowski, a former executive of Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp, who will help Obama choose members of his new Administration. Genachowski, who served at the Federal Communications Commission as chief counsel to former Democratic Chairman Reed Hundt, has been advising Obama's campaign on tech policy issues and chaired a group of advisors on the president-elect's Tech & Innovation Plan. With a relationship with Obama that goes back to their days at Harvard Law School, Genachowski helped push technology issues to a more prominent spot in the campaign. Apparently, President-elect Obama will also name former FCC Commissioner Henry Rivera to head a transition team focused on the FCC. Rivera, a partner at communications law firm Wiley, Rein, served at the FCC from 1981 to 1985. Rivera is also General Counsel for the Benton Foundation.