Corporations and individuals are known to contribute thousands of dollars to politicians’ campaigns which is why its not surprising at all to see politicians voting to appease their donors. Comcast may have taken it a step further. The company is reportedly writing letters for politicians that lend support to the Comcast and Time Warner merger, and those politicians are simply putting their names on the letters and sending them to the FCC.
Ever since the Comcast and TWC merger was announced strong arguments have been made by people who are for and against this marriage. Critics say that this merger is going to create a monopoly which will not be beneficial for consumers, and many consumers agree with this reasoning.
The Verge has compiled evidence to show that Comcast has been doing this. It points towards a letter sent by Roswell, Georgia mayor, Jere Wood to the FCC. The letter was actually written by Comcast’s vice president of external affairs. Wood only added a sign off line and a signature before sending it off. The Mayor has received almost $10,000 from Comcast for two campaigns.
In one instance the final touches to a letter sent by a town councilman from Jupiter, Florida were put by a former FCC official name Rosemary Harold. The councilman had previously received the letter from a Comcast official. Comcast has already tapped Harold to lobby the FCC in approving this merger.
Clearly there’s more going on behind the scenes than the public can comprehend. Time will tell if it affects the FCC’s decision on the Comcast/TWC merger.
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