MMTC Criticizes FCC Data Collection Performance

Expresses Concerns

The MINORITY MEDIA AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS COUNCIL's comments in the FCC's review of data collection procedures charged that the goals enunciated by FCC Chairman JULIUS GENACHOWSKI at the MMTC's Access to Capital and Telecommunications Policy Conference of fostering equal opportunity "cannot be achieved if the Commission fails to act and instead maintains its record of poor data collection in the areas of equal employment opportunity, media, telecom and broadband ownership, broadband deployment and broadband adoption."

"The Commission’s civil rights and social justice initiatives, many of which have been pending for years, cannot move forward unless the agency changes course," wrote the MMTC's DAVID HONIG. "The agency needs reliable, transparent data that Commission staff, other government agencies, researchers, and advocates alike can use to shape policy to ensure greater opportunity for all."

Among the deficiencies cited by the MMTC are the Commission's "refusal" to collect broadcast employment data for 10 years, flaws in ownership data collection, and other problems.

« see more Net News