Politicians are supporting Comcast's Time Warner Cable merger with letters ghostwritten by Comcast

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Many of the letters sent to the Federal Communications Commission by state and local officials regarding the Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger bear striking resemblance to each other, with local officials apparently adding one sing-off sentence and their signature to the Comcast corporate PR document, then sending it off to federal regulators on official letterhead of their offices.

Comcast asserted that the numerous letters sent to the FCC by local officials expressing support for the proposed Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger displayed its broad grassroots backing. Yet e-mail records indicate that these letters are far from grassroots. Although Comcast is well-known for having one of corporate America’s most sophisticated armies of lobbyists, the records shed new light on just how intimate of a role these actors play in shaping what the public -- and federal regulators -- hear about the company from supportive government officials. For the FCC to green-light the merger, Comcast must prove that the deal would serve the public interest -- no doubt a key driver of Comcast’s focus on appearing to have support from public officials.


Politicians are supporting Comcast's Time Warner Cable merger with letters ghostwritten by Comcast