September 2017

ELECTIONS

BANNON SOUGHT TO INFILTRATE FACEBOOK HIRING
[SOURCE: BuzzFeed, AUTHOR: Joseph Bernstein]
Steve Bannon plotted to plant a mole inside Facebook, according to e-mails sent days before the Breitbart boss took over Donald Trump’s campaign. The e-mail exchange with a conservative Washington operative reveals the importance that the giant tech platform — now reeling from its role in the 2016 election — held for one of the campaign’s central figures. And it also shows the lengths to which the brawling new American right is willing to go to keep tabs on and gain leverage over the Silicon Valley giants it used to help elect President Trump — but whose executives it also sees as part of the globalist enemy. The idea to infiltrate Facebook came to Bannon from Chris Gacek, a former congressional staffer who is now an official at the Family Research Council, which lobbies against abortion and many LGBT rights. “There is one for a DC-based ‘Public Policy Manager’ at Facebook’s What’s APP [sic] division,” Gacek, the senior fellow for regulatory affairs at the group, wrote on Aug. 1, 2016. “LinkedIn sent me a notice about some job openings.” “This seems perfect for Breitbart to flood the zone with candidates of all stripe who will report back to you / Milo with INTEL about the job application process over at FB," he continued. “Milo” is former Breitbart News Tech Editor Milo Yiannopoulos, to whom Bannon forwarded Gacek’s e-mail the same day. “Can u get on this,” Bannon instructed his staffer.
benton.org/headlines/steve-bannon-sought-infiltrate-facebook-hiring | BuzzFeed | The Hill
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RUSSIAN OPERATIVES AND FACEBOOK ADS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Adam Entous, Craig Timberg, Elizabeth Dwoskin]
The batch of more than 3,000 Russian-bought ads that Facebook is preparing to turn over to Congress shows a deep understanding of social divides in American society, with some ads promoting African-American rights groups including Black Lives Matter and others suggesting that these same groups pose a rising political threat, apparently. The Russian campaign — taking advantage of Facebook’s ability to simultaneously send contrary messages to different groups of users based on their political and demographic characteristics -- also sought to sow discord among religious groups. Other ads highlighted support for Democrat Hillary Clinton among Muslim women. These targeted messages, along with others that have surfaced in recent days, highlight the sophistication of an influence campaign slickly crafted to mimic and infiltrate US political discourse while also seeking to heighten tensions between groups already wary of one another.
benton.org/headlines/russian-operatives-used-facebook-ads-exploit-divisions-over-black-political-activism-and | Washington Post
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GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS

TWITTER AND PRESIDENT TRUMP
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Jessica Guynn]
Twitter is defending its decision not to suspend President Donald Trump over a tweet about North Korea that seems to violate its prohibition on threats of violence. "Just heard Foreign Minister of North Korea speak at U.N.," President Trump tweeted. "If he echoes thoughts of Little Rocket Man, they won't be around much longer!" Twitter did not remove the tweet. North Korea interpreted the tweet as a "clear declaration of war." Responding to questions from users on why it had not removed the tweet and suspended the president's account, Twitter said "'newsworthiness' and whether a tweet is of public interest" plays a role in its decision making. Twitter said this is an internal policy. Its public terms of service state: "You may not make threats of violence or promote violence, including threatening or promoting terrorism." Twitter acknowledged it needs to do a better job of making its rules transparent to the public. "We'll soon update our public-facing rules to reflect it," Twitter said.
benton.org/headlines/twitter-defends-decision-not-remove-trump-tweet-threatening-north-korea | USAToday | recode | The Verge
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INTERNET/BROADBAND

SECOND FCC REDLINING COMPLAINT AGAINST ATT
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Attorney Daryl Parks says he is filing a second complaint against AT&T at the Federal Communications Commission Sept 25 seeking an investigation and hearing of AT&T over what he says is digital redlining. Redlining is avoiding building out broadband to low-income minority communities in favor of more affluent ones. Parks filed the initial complaint in Aug on behalf of three residents of Cleveland. The latest complaint is on behalf of two middle income Detroit residents. They allege, backed by what Parks says was an independent study backing up the claim, that "wealthier and predominantly white areas have gotten premium upgradable high speed broadband access at bullet speed," while the three complainants "receive slow speeds at a rate as low as 1.5 mbps downstream or less, although they pay AT&T for high speed access." Complainants argue that is unjust and unreasonable discrimination in violation of the Communications Act. They also allege that is part of a pattern of discrimination by AT&T nationwide.
benton.org/headlines/second-fcc-redlining-complaint-against-att-be-filed | Broadcasting&Cable | The Hill
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OWNERSHIP

PAI RESPONSE ON SINCLAIR
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Chairman Ajit Pai]
On August 14, 2017, House Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Communications Subcommittee Ranking Member Mike Doyle (D-PA), and Oversight Subcommittee Ranking Member Diana DeGette (D-CO) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai regarding reports that suggest favorable treatment of Sinclair Broadcast Group since Pai became Chairman. In particular, the Reps wrote that the reports raise two overarching questions: "Whether actions taken by the FCC under your leadership show a pattern of preferential treatment for Sinclair?" and "Whether a series of interactions between your office, the Trump Campaign and Trump Administration, and Sinclair demonstrates inappropriate coordination?" On Sept 15, Chairman Pai responded in detail about his two meeting with President Donald Trump, both of which he says "we did not discuss any pending FCC proceedings." Later on, Chairman Pai writes, "In terms of other White House officials in the current Administration, I do not recall having any discussions with any of them pertaining to the Sinclair Broadcast Group, and I am not aware of anyone in my office having such discussions."
benton.org/headlines/chairman-pais-response-reps-pallone-doyle-and-degette-regarding-sinclair-broadcast-group | Federal Communications Commission | Letter to Pai
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LABOR

WH ANNOUNCES NEW TECH JOBS INITIATIVE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Ali Breland]
The White House will put at least $200 million in grant funding towards bolstering STEM and Computer Science education “particularly among historically underserved groups,” the administration announced. The minimum $200 million commitment from the Department of Education is supposed to bolstered by private sector contributions that senior administration officials say will be announced later the week of Sept 25. The money will be available to schools across the country to bolster their science and technology programs, at the start of the 2018 fiscal year. A senior administration official said that the White House had been having conversations with school superintendents and governors across the country, encouraging them to take advantage of the funding. A majority of high schools in the US do not currently offer computer science courses and 40 percent do not offer physics courses. The administration’s push comes amid continued calls from technology companies for more skills training and reformed worker visas to fill high-demand technology and engineering roles. A senior administration official told reporters on a call that the initiative was born out of input from such companies seeking more STEM workers.
benton.org/headlines/white-house-announces-new-tech-jobs-initiative | Hill, The | White House | Vox
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DIVERSITY

PAI REMARKS AT MEETING OF COMMITTEE ON DIVERSITY AND DIGITAL EMPOWERMENT
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Chairman Ajit Pai]
We recruited you to put you to work. As members of the Committee, your mission is to offer guidance so that the agency can take important steps toward increasing diversity throughout the communications industry and bringing digital opportunity to all Americans. One of your tasks will be to identify issues that might not already be on the Federal Communications Commission’s radar. Another will be to advise us about issues that we’ve already identified. Another task we’ll assign you is to examine is how we can make sure that disadvantaged communities have access to next-generation networks. Broadband can be a great equalizer when it comes to jobs, health care, education, and civic engagement. But if we don’t bridge the digital divide, communities on the wrong side of that divide will fall further behind in each of these areas. Our goal should be ubiquitous, high-speed networks that bring together all Americans—and I do mean all Americans. Last but not least, we’ll ask you to take a hard look at diversity in Silicon Valley. I look forward to working with you to increase diversity throughout the communications industry and to bring digital opportunity to all Americans.
benton.org/headlines/remarks-chairman-pai-first-meeting-fccs-committee-diversity-and-digital-empowerment | Federal Communications Commission
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POLICYMAKERS

DEMOCRATIC SENS PLAN 'VERY LOUD' DEBATE ON PAI
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: ]
Depending on what happens with the Obamacare repeal bill, a Senate vote on the re-confirmation of Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai could come as soon as the week of Sept 25. Before the recess, Republicans Sens agreed to give Chairman Pai's vote up to 30 hours of debate on the floor, providing Democrats a chance to air their grievances about issues like net neutrality and the pending Sinclair-Tribune merger. And Democratic Sens stand ready to make some noise, despite Chairman Pai having the necessary Republican support to advance. “We’re going to be very loud about it,” Sen Maria Cantwell (D-WA) said. Sen Ed Markey (D-MA) added: “This debate on net neutrality, on privacy, is at a defining historical moment, and we have to ensure there is a full public debate so everyone can understand its importance.”
benton.org/headlines/democratic-sens-plan-very-loud-debate-chairman-pai | Politico
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COMPANY NEWS

POWER OF FACEBOOK
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: David Pierson]
[Commentary] When it comes to business, Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg is undeniably a visionary. But Zuckerberg’s prescient skills seem to waver when the social and cultural intricacies of the real world leak onto his ubiquitous platform. Defensive at times, like when he initially disputed the premise fake news on Facebook may have influenced the 2016 election, Zuckerberg can come across as someone yet to realize the true power and scope of the platform he built. A company optimized for digital engagement, it turns out, may not have been primed to deal with the darkest aspects of humanity and society. Whether Facebook’s public problems are evidence of unintended consequences, shortsightedness or willful blindness is open to debate. But pressure on the company to get policy (and its algorithms) right will only mount now that it counts a quarter of the world’s population as its users, effectively turning the platform into a digital reflection of society.
benton.org/headlines/mark-zuckerberg-built-facebook-behemoth-whose-power-he-underestimates | Los Angeles Times
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Analysis

September 2017

AT&T Cheers As FCC Declares Wireless Market Competitive

Sen. Bob Corker will not seek reelection

Russia threatens to block Facebook unless it starts storing Russian users' data there

EU study finds piracy doesn’t hurt game sales, may actually help

September 26, 2017 (Infiltrating Facebook)

Wisconsin Strict ID Law Discouraged Voters, Study Finds

More Company Boards Add Oversight of Political Spending

Gov. Brown, veto the bill that lets rich telecoms use public property practically free

Online-offline asymmetric regulation is the biggest persistent competition problem in the economy for the next decade