Schumer eyes Starks for FCC

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With help from Margaret Harding McGill, John Hendel and Steven Overly

SCHUMER EYES STARKS FOR FCC — Sources tell Margaret and John that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has settled on FCC official Geoffrey Starks as his pick to take over the seat of Democratic FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn upon her expected departure. Starks, an assistant chief in the agency’s enforcement bureau, could receive a public nod from Schumer soon, some of the sources said. Reps. Bobby Rush, G.K. Butterfield and Yvette Clarke of the Congressional Black Caucus offered their backing for Starks in a Wednesday letter to Schumer. Clyburn’s term expired in June, and she must leave her seat by the end of this year.

WHAT HAPPENED AT THE WHITE HOUSE VIDEO GAME MEETING — “President Donald Trump opened a White House meeting with video game executives Thursday by screening a series of clips of extreme game violence, but offered little sign of what he wants to do about such graphic content, which he’s suggested could be a factor in mass shootings,” Steven reports. “Trump gathered the video game industry and some of its most ardent critics amid the roiling national debate over gun violence. He’s emphasized mental health concerns following the Parkland, Fla. high school shooting last month, including the notion that violent video games affect children. Some Democrats, though, say the issue is a distraction from the need for immediate gun control measures.”

DEAR CONGRESS — Broadcom is taking its increasingly contentious fight to buy Qualcomm to Congress. In a letter this morning, the Singapore-based semiconductor company aims to set lawmakers at ease over the hostile acquisition, which the Treasury Department determined earlier this week merits scrutiny because it could benefit Chinese competitors and harm U.S. defense agencies. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is currently evaluating the deal.

— In the letter, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan reiterates the company’s argument that it will make the U.S. a leader in next-generation wireless technology by investing in 5G and training American engineers. “Any notion that a combined Broadcom-Qualcomm would slash funding or cede leadership in 5G is completely unfounded,” Tan writes. He also says the majority of Broadcom’s executives, employees and investors are either based in the U.S. or hold citizenship. The company itself is in the process of shifting its headquarters to San Jose, Calif. The letter is addressed to 15 lawmakers who have either raised questions about the proposed merger or hold positions of power, including the heads of the House and Senate intelligence committees.

INTERNET RESEARCH AGENCY TROLLED TRUMP CAMPAIGN — Facebook messages reveal how Russian trolls made contact with the Trump campaign using fake personas, The New York Times reports. Russians, leveraging these personas, reached out to the Trump campaign for help coordinating rallies, with a focus on the battleground state of Florida. “Court papers do not indicate whether the Russians succeeded in winning help from the campaign’s Florida operation,” according to the Times report.

GOOD FRIDAY MORNING and welcome to Morning Tech, where we’re looking forward to checking out Mindy Kaling’s new project. Send your tech tips to [email protected] Catch the rest of the team’s contact info after Quick Downloads.

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OBAMA IN TALKS WITH NETFLIX — “Former President Barack Obama is in advanced negotiations with Netflix to produce a series of high-profile shows that will provide him a global platform after his departure from the White House, according to people familiar with the discussions,” The New York Times reports. “Under terms of a proposed deal, which is not yet final, Netflix would pay Mr. Obama and his wife, Michelle, for exclusive content that would be available only on the streaming service, which has nearly 118 million subscribers around the world.”

D.C. TAKES AUSTIN — A slew of Beltway insiders including Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.), Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) are heading south for the annual SXSW confab in Austin this weekend. Warner is slated to talk cybersecurity and Russian interference as part of two Saturday panels, while Moran will focus on the U.S. startup economy during two discussions that same day, including one alongside Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.). On Sunday, Coons will headline a panel about innovation in legacy industries.

— Other techies to watch: Rep. Will Hurd (R-Tex.) will discuss the EU’s approach to tech; Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) and Ro Khanna(D-Calif.) will talk about the future of work in two separate panels; and Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) will highlight patent trolls. Also on the ground: the White House Office of American Innovation’s Matt Lira will offer an overview of the administration’s approach to tech policy, and USPTO Director Andrei Iancu will debut a new patent design.

— FCC Commissioners Brendan Carr and Mignon Clyburn are in town for the conference as well. Carr is meeting with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott this morning before appearing on a SXSW panel with NTCA’s Shirley Bloomfield, Brookings’ Nicol Turner-Lee and LGBT Tech’s Chris Wood to discuss the digital divide. Clyburn has two panels on Saturday — one hosted by Full Color Future, a think tank focused on people of color in media and tech, and another hosted by Dell on the importance of diversity in tech. On Sunday, Clyburn will join New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and Airbnb’s Kim Rubey for a TechNet SXSW panel on tech’s role in disaster response.

NEWS DIRECTORS FOR TECH COMPANIES? — Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) floated the idea of tech platforms like Facebook and YouTube having “news directors,” during an episode of C-SPAN’s The Communicators set to air this weekend. Responding to a question about the Parkland shooting, she mentioned the cycle of information that’s facilitated by Facebook, YouTube, Snapchat and Twitter. She cited conversations with people who said that if these platforms are considered a news source, “maybe they should have a news director, like traditional news outlets do, so there is someone who is being able to sort through what is a reputable source and what is not a reputable source for news.” Blackburn, who chairs the Energy and Commerce telecom panel, also lamented the “subjective nature” of social media companies as to “how they censor or what they push forward or what they do not.” She mentioned Christian film producers who found a trailer blocked on YouTube.

FCC SAYS MORE MONEY COMING — Broadcaster cost estimates continue to climb as the FCC plans its next disbursement of funds to cover expenses for TV stations moving to new channels in the post-spectrum auction repack. The FCC noted Thursday that estimated costs were up to $1.95 billion, from $1.86 billion in October, when the agency made an initial $1 billion tranche of funding available. The FCC said it would make a second disbursement of funds available sometime in the next four to six weeks. The agency has a $1.75 billion fund to cover the costs of relocating broadcasters, but lawmakers are advancing legislation that would add money to cover the shortfall.

MARKEY HITS AT KENNEDY BILL — Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), the sponsor of a Senate measure to undo the FCC’s net neutrality repeal via the Congressional Review Act, criticized a separate net neutrality bill from Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.). Kennedy has released companion legislation to a bill that Blackburn sponsored in the House ( H.R. 4682 (115)) , which would bar ISPs from blocking and throttling content, but does not address paid prioritization. “Senator Kennedy and Congresswoman Blackburn’s #NetNeutrality bills allow #BigBroadband to establish internet fast & slow lanes,” Markey wrote in a tweet. Kennedy has said he’s still considering signing onto Markey’s legislation.

TECH GIANTS GATHER ON GENDER EQUITY — Google, Facebook and LinkedIn are huddling to discuss policies to promote gender equity at a forum hosted by Silicon Valley Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna on Saturday. The gathering at Santa Clara University will address the “leaky pipeline” for talent in the tech workforce.

— The forum will focus on recruitment, retention and promotion of workers of all genders. Expected attendees include Google Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion Danielle Brown, Facebook Head of Diversity Engagement Jeannine Brown, LinkedIn Head of U.S. Public Policy Nicole Isaac and Cisco Systems Senior Director Parisa Naseralavi. This meeting comes as the disproportionately male tech industry grapples with problems related to sexual harassment and gender discrimination. “We have a long way to go to achieve gender equity in tech or in the workplace,” Khanna told MT in a statement. “This is a small step in helping us make progress, and I am grateful to the trailblazing and amazing women who are participating and leading the conversation.”

SILICON VALLEY MUST-READS

— About that mute button: “A judge recommended Thursday that President Donald Trump mute rather than block some of his critics from following him on Twitter to resolve a First Amendment lawsuit,” The Associated Press reports.

— The Senate candidate taking on Alphabet: Bloomberg profiles Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, who is backed by Peter Thiel and who has already taken action to review Alphabet’s antitrust practices.

— Study: Fake news beats out real news on Twitter: “According to MIT research published Thursday in the journal Science, false news is 70 percent more likely to be retweeted than real news stories,” Mashable reports.

TRANSITIONS — Laurent Crenshaw, previously Yelp director of public policy, is the senior director of policy for Eaze, a startup that sells and delivers legal cannibis. … Assaf Ronen, a vice president for Amazon’s voice shopping division, is now Uber’s head of product. Daniel Graf, Uber’s previous head of product, has left the company, per Recode. … Parag Agrawal has been named the new chief technology officer for Twitter, per Reuters.

AND THE AWARD GOES TO — The American Library Association honors Reps. Issa and Mike Quigley (D-Ill.) with the 2018 James Madison Award for championing public access to government information.

QUICK DOWNLOADS

Musk tweets strike again: “ Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Elon Musk took to Twitter on Thursday to lobby the president on China’s trade stance on auto makers, saying the Middle Kingdom’s current rules ‘make things very difficult,’” The Wall Street Journal reports.

Crypto corner: “U.S.-based Multicoin Capital, an asset management firm with a long-term positive view on digital currencies, has raised capital from a slew of big individual and institutional investors led by influential venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, its co-founder and managing partner told Reuters.”

VC firms detail harassment policies: “A group of venture capital firms are publicizing their sexual harassment policies, some for the first time, as part of a new directory co-led by one of the women who publicly accused a VC of harassment,” Recode reports.

The latest on that blue checkmark: “Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey said in a Periscope livestream [Thursday] that the company is working to allow any user to become verified,” The Verge reports.

Tips, comments, suggestions? Send them along via email to our team: Eric Engleman ([email protected], @ericengleman), Kyle Daly ( [email protected], @dalykyle) , Nancy Scola ([email protected], @nancyscola), Margaret Harding McGill ([email protected], @margarethmcgill), Ashley Gold ([email protected], @ashleyrgold), Steven Overly ([email protected], @stevenoverly), John Hendel ([email protected], @JohnHendel) and Li Zhou ([email protected], @liszhou)