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FCC Chairman Ajit Pai Is Under Investigation Over $3.9 Billion Media Deal

According to a report in The New York Times (Warning: source may be paywalled), Ajit Pai and the FCC approved a set of rules in 2017 to allow television broadcasters to increase the number of stations they own. Weeks after the rules were approved, Sinclair Broadcasting announced a $3.9 billion deal to buy Tribune Media. PC Gamer reports: The deal was made possible by the new set of rules, which subsequently raised some eyebrows. Notably, the FCC's inspector general is reportedly investigating if Pai and his aides abused their position by pushing for the rule changes that would make the deal possible, and timing them to benefit Sinclair. The extent of the investigation is not clear, nor is how long it will take. However, it does bring up the question of whether Pai had coordinated with Sinclair, and it could force him to publicly address the topic, which he hasn't really done up to this point.

Legislators first pushed for an investigation into this matter last November. At the time, a spokesman for the FCC representing Pai called the allegations "baseless" and alluded to it being a partisan play by those who oppose the chairman. "For many years, Chairman Pai has called on the FCC to update its media ownership regulations," the FCC spokesman said. "The chairman is sticking to his long-held views, and given the strong case for modernizing these rules, it's not surprising that those who disagree with him would prefer to do whatever they can to distract from the merits of his proposals."

19 of 145 comments (clear)

  1. It would be nice... by sgage · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ... to see Ajit Pai in an orange jumpsuit being led off to prison in handcuffs. Maybe that would wipe the stupd shit-eating grin off his face. He is an arrogant sociopathic twat, and I would love to see justice served. But I don't expect to.

    1. Re:It would be nice... by crunchygranola · · Score: 4, Informative

      It is not the current name of a condition used for diagnosis today because it is split into two more specific conditions: Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) and Dissocial Personality Disorder (DPD). So it the condition is not imaginary nor did it disappear, it is simply not how it is currently classified for the purposes of medical diagnosis.

      But unless you are psychologist or a psychiatrist, it is a perfectly reasonable and well understood term for the lay public to use.

      --
      Second class citizen of the New Gilded Age
    2. Re:It would be nice... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      As a result of one or two giant corporations being allowed to own 99.99% of all AM and FM radio stations, the AM and FM radio bands have become nothing but wasted spectrum at this point. The AM band is wall-to-wall Rush Limbaugh clones (YYYYYYUUUUUUCCCCCKKKKK!!!!!!!!), and Only on the very few independent FM stations left is any new and original music heard. Looks like TV stations are gonna go the same way.

      Ijit Pai is just another corporate shill...doing whatever his masters order him to. Repealing Net Neutrality rules is an example...just what the biggest ISPs want...to let them rape their customers even worse than they already do!

      Anyone familiar with radio and TV station licenses knows that radio and TV stations are licensed to serve the public interest. Well, few if any of them serve the public interest any more, so maybe all of their licenses need to be revoked!

    3. Re:It would be nice... by BlueStrat · · Score: 2, Interesting

      ... to see Ajit Pai in an orange jumpsuit being led off to prison in handcuffs. Maybe that would wipe the stupd shit-eating grin off his face. He is an arrogant sociopathic twat, and I would love to see justice served. But I don't expect to.

      Nice how you can be so certain of a crime having been committed with only some allegations and a fraction of the facts to go on.

      It couldn't be that, no matter the timing of this rule change or the enactment of any similar change in regulation, there would be major players who jump at the chance to take actions the old rules prevented. Right? That's just too simple and logical. It *must* be some criminal shenanigans if it's someone on the "other side" doing something you disagree with.

      Especially if that guy knows a guy who knows a guy whose granddaughter once attended a corporate party for employees where her boyfriend worked. He may as well be carrying bags of money with corporate logos into his office.

      If someone broke the law I'd like to see them pay the price, but this smells too much like witch-hunting and the Spanish Inquisition.

      Here's a radical idea; How about waiting for facts before calling for somebody's head on a pike just because you disagree politically? I know, that's crazy-talk, but give it a try sometime. Might start a trend that ends up saving *your* bacon down the road.

      Or, not.

      Strat

      --
      Progressivism (aka US 'Liberalism'): Ideas so good they need a police/surveillance-state to enforce.
    4. Re:It would be nice... by Gr8Apes · · Score: 2

      Or, not.

      Strat

      We're calling for his head for abdicating his responsibilities to regulate broadcasters for the good of the people. Instead, every step he's taken has been to de-regulate corporations so they can maximize their profits. Prove me wrong with actual facts if you disagree.

      To go back to the case for illegality, it does seem given his career that there's just a little payback going on there, somewhere. There's no way someone would be so corporate leaning and anti-consumer without some profit attached for him somewhere, we just need to find them. Unfortunately, I'll bet it is as future 7 figure jobs on multiple corporate boards as a reward, to which we'll just have to nod in knowing acceptance with shit-all we can do about it.

      --
      The cesspool just got a check and balance.
  2. In other news... by ZorinLynx · · Score: 5, Funny

    The fox has been put in charge of investigating missing chickens. The chickens have not been seen since last week and the fox, who has been guarding the henhouse for a month now, has promised to get to the bottom of this.

    "I won't sleep until I find out what happened to those delicious chickens," he said, his breath smelling strongly of Listerine.

    1. Re:In other news... by sessamoid · · Score: 5, Informative

      Obama included him as one of the FCC commissioners largely to appease Republican Mitch McConnell who pushed for his appointment, IIRC, but he was NOT made chairman. He's McConnell's dog, and clearly a Republican tool.

      --
      "No, no, no. Don't tug on that. You never know what it might be attached to."
  3. They'll pay a fine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    No one ever goes to jail. This country is so fucking corrupt.

  4. Swamp Thing by PopeRatzo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Serious question: Did Donald Trump appoint anyone who isn't corrupt, tied to neo-nazis or doesn't beat women? I mean, you'd think that by accident he'd have chosen at least one person for some department who isn't crooked or in some other manner fucked up. There's been so much turnover in the administration, at some point he will run out of shitty people to appoint.

    If any of you know of any member of the current administration who doesn't have the stink of corruption on them, could you please list them? I'll wait here. I really want to be proven wrong, because otherwise I'd have to accept Donald Trump as the world's greatest supervillain, and that would make me have to give him some grudging respect.

    --
    You are welcome on my lawn.
    1. Re:Swamp Thing by sgage · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Trump drained the swamp alright - he drained it right into his administration. What a scam his whole campaign turns out to be - surprise surprise!

    2. Re: Swamp Thing by PopeRatzo · · Score: 4, Informative

      The Ambassador to El Salvador.

      Man is squeaky clean.

      He was appointed by Obama in 2015.

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    3. Re:Swamp Thing by PopeRatzo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Pai was at the FCC before Trump.

      Trump made him the chairman of the FCC, so he gets to set the agenda on all rules and regs.

      Obama was required by convention to appoint a certain number of Republican jackoffs, but as long as they were safely in the minority, it wasn't a problem.

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    4. Re: Swamp Thing by pots · · Score: 2

      I actually bothered to look this up, because 1) Like the parent, I'm wondering if it's possible for Trump to do something competent by accident at least. and 2) I believe that most of our experienced diplomats have been removed since Trump took office and replaced by... no one. Unless things have changed.

      But no, as it turns out the ambassador to El Salvador is a woman appointed by Obama. At least we still have an ambassador to El Salvador.

    5. Re:Swamp Thing by Actually,+I+do+RTFA · · Score: 2

      Sure, there seem to be quite a few:

      Ben Carson: I have no reason to think he's corrupt or beats women, and he certainly isn't tied to neo-nazis. Now, whether he's competent in his current position, or any political position, is a different question.

      Rex Tillerson: He seems to be apathetic about his job, and not having fun, but he doesn't seem corrupt. Does have some high level ties to Russia in the past, but I'm not sure we've seen it effect his performance..

      Jim Mattis: Other than getting involved in Theranos (that blood testing startup that was shut down for being a scam) he seems fine. And for all I know, he was taken in by the scam.

      Nikki Haley: I don't actually have anything to add here.

      I'm happy to keep going (btw, does Pence count as an appointment?). But I think really you want to clarify your criteria.

      --
      Your ad here. Ask me how!
    6. Re:Swamp Thing by PopeRatzo · · Score: 3, Insightful

      James Mattis (Secretary of Defense) is I think the only appointee in the entire administration that is worth half a damn.

      I love the fact that the one Trump appointee that can be pointed at as a competent, honest and decent person has the nickname, "Mad Dog".

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
  5. I don't see a problem by bogie · · Score: 5, Funny

    If we had one single company that owned all the TV stations all the magazines all the radio stations and all the Internet infrastructure i'm sure we would get better customer service and the pricing would probably be better too. Why do liberals keep wanting to harm corporations who are just trying to innovate?

    --
    If you wanna get rich, you know that payback is a bitch
    1. Re:I don't see a problem by smooth+wombat · · Score: 2

      You jest, but remember, it was Republican Senator Owen Brewster who pushed for legislation that would give Pan Am the single-carrier international air monopoly for the U.S..

      In the movie The Aviator, Brewster, played by Alan Alda, makes the claim that a single carrier would be able to provide better service to fliers than could multiple carriers.

      --
      We will bankrupt ourselves in the vain search for absolute security. -- Dwight D. Eisenhower
  6. What's the difference, politican or criminal? by bobstreo · · Score: 2

    Getting caught publicly.

    Couldn't happen to a more deserving person.

  7. Modernizing? by omnichad · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yeah, "modernizing" a rule means forgetting what corruption led up to making the rules in the first place. Forget learning from past mistakes - corporations are better now. Less evil.