Powell Agrees to One Public Hearing
By Ted Hearn -- Multichannel News, 12/4/2002 2:05:00 PM
Democratic Federal Communications Commission member Michael Copps scored a minor bureaucratic victory Wednesday when FCC chairman Michael Powell agreed to hold one public hearing next year on proposals to do away with media-ownership rules.
Copps -- who is fiercely opposed to media consolidation abetted by changes in federal rules -- threatened to hold his own public hearings with or without the presence of other FCC officials.
Powell, who was not eager to hold hearings, released a statement saying he would agree to one hearing sometime in February in Richmond, Va., about 120 miles from FCC headquarters in Washington, D.C.
"I agree that a local public hearing can provide value to our proceedings. Severe budget constraints and a commitment not to further delay completion of this critical proceeding are also paramount considerations in conducting such a hearing and the choice of venue. Conducting a hearing in Richmond appropriately balances those concerns," Powell said.
Copps, who has been campaigning for hearings for months, said he hoped Powell would reach out to other communities.
"This is a good step forward. But I remain convinced that we need to have other hearings in diverse venues to flesh out the record needed for this single most important decision the [FCC] will make next year," Copps said in a prepared statement.
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