Under then Chmn. Reed Hundt, FCC was ’the most intensely regulato...
Under then Chmn. Reed Hundt, FCC was “the most intensely regulatory” of broadcasting of any Commission in the 23 years that former Comr. James Quello was on Commission, Quello said in his new book, My Wars: Surviving WWII and…
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the FCC. “The difference in the way Chairman Hundt and I viewed the First Amendment can be summed up in two sentences,” Quello said. “I see the Bill of Rights as a limitation upon government action; Chairman Hundt apparently saw it as a regulatory mission statement. Second, I considered freedom of expression to be the result of the government’s abstention from editorial decision-making; Chairman Hundt evidently saw it as a gift to be bestowed by politically appointed bureaucrats.” Person Quello called “Attila the Hundt” probably got more mentions in Quello’s book than any other, although it’s studded with mentions of hundreds of others that will be familiar to communications industry. It criticizes Hundt, among other things, for “assumption of unilateral power” at FCC, claiming public interest values were supported by First Amendment, being inflexible on kidvid, pressing FCC indecency actions. Book also repeats many of stories that Quello has used in his speech- making, as well as including detailed analysis of First Amendment and its effect on industry. He devoted nearly half of book to his World War II and broadcasting experiences (before joining FCC), saying that even though FCC can be “blood sport,” his war experiences put it into perspective. Book, just under 150 pages, is available from Alexis de Tocqueville Institution in Arlington, Va.