Posted October 29th, 2010 by Mignon Clyburn - FCC Commissioner
I just returned from a 36-hour trip to Georgia, during which I visited a great group of folk at the FCC’s field office in Duluth (which is overseen by our Enforcement Bureau). It was my first experience with one of our field offices, but interacting with our people on the ground – my hard-working colleagues outside of the bubble of Washington – was an invaluable experience for me…and one I intend to replicate soon.
Upon my arrival, I was picked up by Doug Miller, the District Director of the field office, in one of the FCC’s Mobile Direction Finding (MDF) vehicles. While it looks like a run-of-the-mill SUV on the outside, it contains state-of-the-art detection equipment that Doug and his team use to detect illegal (“pirated”) radio broadcasts. Armed with technology and experience, innumerable unauthorized radio broadcasts, which trespass into the airwaves of licensed programming as well as airplane/airport transmissions, have been located and shut down by the FCC’s Duluth team.
The field team also walked me through the technology and labor needed to detect and stop illegal cell phone jamming. This practice is increasingly prevalent throughout our prisons and schools, and my FCC colleagues showed me how jamming devices operate and how small and inconspicuous they can be.
Later in the evening, I met and spoke to the Federal Communications Bar Association’s Atlanta chapter. I saw some old friends and met many new ones, and listened to their feedback regarding what we’re doing in DC and what they’re doing in and around metropolitan Atlanta. I truly enjoy chatting with communications practitioners and attorneys throughout the country, as they offer so many insights that I don’t regularly hear in Washington.
The following day, I had the privilege of addressing the annual meeting of Eastern Regional Public Radio (ERPM), an association of over 70 non-commercial radio stations from Florida to Maine. I gave them an update on the FCC’s current deliberations on a variety of radio-related items and fielded questions from a number of the attendees. I am grateful to Georgette Bronfman, ERPM’s Executive Director, for giving me the opportunity to address such a great group and I look forward to staying in touch with many of those in attendance.
Posted inPosted October 19th, 2010 by Mignon Clyburn - FCC Commissioner
This week I had the pleasure of traveling home to South Carolina to deliver remarks at the Rural Cellular Association’s Business and Technical Conference. When I heard RCA wanted me to drop by, I was honored, naturally, but when I saw that this event was being held in South Carolina, I realized that they are excellent planners, too. This is not just because the Palmetto State is home to me, but also because South Carolina, with its rural communities and economic struggles, is a good example of the challenges this Commission must address if it really wants to meet the National Broadband Plan’s goal of promoting world-leading mobile broadband infrastructure. South Carolina is also a great example of the challenges facing the 90 or so wireless service providers, all members of RCA, who are trying to bring the benefits of advanced mobile voice and data services to all parts of rural America.
My remarks before RCA's membership highlighted the number of actions this Commission has taken, in the past year or so, to promote the deployment of more advanced mobile services to rural consumers. These actions include the declaratory ruling in November 2009, which established timeframes for processing tower siting applications, the Roaming Report and Order, the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Notice of Inquiry to remove regulatory barriers to greater use of microwave services for wireless backhaul, and the Mobility Fund Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that we adopted today. I also took this opportunity to compliment one of RCA’s member companies, U.S. Cellular, for implementing its “Belief Project.” U.S. Cellular conducted a survey of its customers and found that 90 percent of them believe that wireless providers should earn their loyalty, and a vast majority of U.S. Cellular’s customers also said that service providers should not require loyalty by forcing consumers to sign two-year contracts. U.S. Cellular decided to listen to its customers and eliminate early termination fees for U.S. Cellular consumers after their initial two year contract. In my opinion, this project is a major step forward for wireless customers, and I hope it will encourage other large carriers to follow a similar course.
Posted October 8th, 2010 by Mignon Clyburn - FCC Commissioner
Taking part in last Friday’s “Broadband Comes to Harlem” was a great pleasure for me. The open event felt much like a town hall exchange with seniors, students, politicians, policy makers and anyone wanting to learn more about broadband availability and how it can improve their lives. I had the honor of meeting Florence M. Rice, the host of the event and the founder of the Harlem Consumer Education Council (HCEC). At 91 years of age, Ms. Rice is just as active and committed as ever in her quest to keep Harlem’s citizens informed and empowered.
I shared with those gathered my experiences with my Grandmother in rural Berkeley County, South Carolina, and how the “protocols” of the past had the potential to perpetually stifle one’s ambitions. Affordable and available high-speed internet can and will take any granddaughter beyond the structural limits of those “unpaved roads”, and has the capacity to boost the confidence and abilities of an entire household.
The adoption numbers affirm that seniors in America are just learning the benefits and joys of being online, through word of mouth or from peering over the shoulders of their children and grandchildren as they type away and share memories, pictures and a host of experiences. They are re-discovering old friends and making new ones. They are realizing that fascinating information is just a click away, and that access to hobbies and places to visit await them. They are saving time and money by purchasing goods and services online and spending less on transportation by accessing essential government information and services with these technologies.
But all of these benefits come with some realities that we, as decision makers, must take into account when we enact policy. An elderly man expressed his fear of possible invasions of privacy should he log-on and begin to share small bits of information in cyberspace. I tried my best to reassure him that current technology has come a long way toward ensuring web safety, and to be cautious when sharing important information to the people and entities with whom he interacts during his time on the Internet. I told him that the same common sense approach we use in our daily interactions with others completely mirrors the behavior we should demonstrate on line. It felt good to dispel at least some of his fears and for the others assembled to hear our exchange.
I really loved my time in Harlem. Meeting Ms. Rice was an incredible moment for me, and I plan to return as soon as I can to see the library’s computer area buzzing with even more activity and to meet more people dedicated to improving their community.
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