Broadcasting&Cable

President Donald Trump has leapt on the news of Today Show co-host Matt Lauer's dismissal by NBC as further "evidence" of the "fake news" brand he has applied to news outlets the president dislikes. President Trump recently renewed his attacks on the press with a vengeance, and doubled down yet again Nov 29. In a pair of tweets following the news that NBC had fired Lauer following allegations of sexual misconduct, the president asked when top Comcast-NBCU executives would also be fired for putting out "fake news," mentioning specific names.

AT&T/DirecTV and Time Warner have told a federal court and, by extension, the Justice Department and Trump Administration, that the feds' case against their proposed merger is "improper selective enforcement of the antitrust laws."  That came in its official response to the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit following DOJ's suit to block the deal, which was filed in that court.

The Federal Communications Commission's Restoring Internet Freedom order has reinvigorated the FCC network neutrality docket, with tens thousands of new comments warning against the planned Dec. 14 vote on the order posted in the last day alone.  The docket already had over 22 million comments, and now is pushing toward 23 million, with over a half million in the last month, many of those since the order was circulated.

The attacks online and in protest signage against Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai and his family over the Restoring Internet Freedom order circulated last week continued to draw condemnation, including a suggestion law enforcement may need to get involved.  That included from a longtime colleague, Robert McDowell, former senior FCC Republican commissioner and now chief public policy adviser for Mobile Future.

Sen Kamala Harris (D-CA) is nearing her goal of 175,000 signatures on a petition to try and stop the Federal Communications Commission from rolling back Title II and eliminating most bright-line net neutrality rules."As I said in my letter to the FCC just a few months ago: This proposal is a grave threat to the idea that the internet should be free and accessible for all. It’s a danger to our economy and free speech rights and we must defeat it," she said. 

Rep John Conyers (D-MI) has agreed to step away from his leadership post as Ranking Member of the House Judiciary committee while he is being investigated by the Ethics Committee over allegations of sexual misconduct.  There are multiple allegations against Rep Conyers, who admitted to having paid to settle a sexual harassment complaint, but admitted no wrongdoing and said it had been settled to avoid the legal fight. "I deny these allegations, many of which were raised by documents reportedly paid for by a partisan alt-right blogger," he said.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai said that network neutrality protestors have "crossed a line" with hateful signs that target his children. It was reported Nov 27 there were protests outside Chairman Pai's home. “It certainly crosses a line with me,” Pai said.