MAP Statement in Response to Inspector General Report on D Block
Posted: Friday April 25, 2008
April 25, 2008
For Immediate Release
STATEMENT OF MEDIA ACCESS PROJECT IN RESPONSE TO INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORT ON D BLOCK.
The following statement may be attributed to Harold Feld, Senior Vice President, Media Access Project:
We are pleased that the Commission responded swiftly and thoroughly to our request for an investigation. The Inspector General Report resolves critical questions as to whether Cyren Call, PSST, or potential bidders violated the Commission’s rules or acted with improper motives in the period before the auction. Happily, it appears no rules were broken. These facts could not have been established with certainty without the IG investigation.
Even this narrow investigation showed that the auction was fatally flawed by terms and conditions set both by the Commission and by the public safety community. The controversial lease payments were only one factor. While the Inspector General found that none of this was against the rules, the conclusion needs to be drawn that the auction was doomed to failure. The Commission should take a more active role in future auctions to make certain public safety receives the spectrum it deserves.
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Media Access Project (MAP) is a non-profit advocacy organization dedicated to promoting the public’s First Amendment right to access a diverse marketplace of ideas in the electronic mass media of today and tomorrow. For over 35 years, MAP has promoted the public interest before the FCC and the Courts, advocating for an open and diverse media that protects the free flow of information, promotes universal and equitable access, and encourages vibrant public discourse on critical issues facing our society. For more information please visit our website at www.mediaaccess.org.
Contact:
Harold Feld
Senior Vice President
(202) 454 – 5684
hfeld@mediaaccess.org