Elections' Effect on Media

ELECTIONS' EFFECT ON MEDIA
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Washington lobbyists are expecting that the US House of Representatives will be controlled by Democrats next year and think the Senate is a toss-up. If Congress does change hands completely, committee assignments should end up following seniority. Unlike the Republicans under Newt Gingrich, who bypassed some senior members after the 1994 Republican House victory, Democrats tend to hand out plum assignments by seniority. That would place Michigan's John Dingell atop House Commerce, Hawaii's Daniel Inouye chairing -- or perhaps co-chairing -- Senate Commerce, and Massachusetts' Ed Markey heading the House Telecommunications Subcommittee. According to lobbyists, who unsurprisingly declined to talk on the record, if the issue is media ownership, a new Hill regime could spell trouble for deregulatory-hungry broadcasters. If FCC Chairman Kevin Martin tries to move a new set of deregulatory rules, Markey would likely try to block them. Video-franchise reform would almost certainly not pass in a lame-duck session, although it probably wouldn't pass even if Republicans managed to win both houses, thanks to its linkage to network neutrality.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6386377.html?display=News