the fcc has a number of options. the fcc could petition for a rehearing with the d.c. circuit court, or agency could appeal the decision to the supreme court. the court essentially said this, the fcc's regulations wrongly applied the same rules to broadband internet service that apply to common carriers. what we know as telephone companies. in essence, net knew centrality, the concept that all traffic should be treated equally, is, quote-unquote, common carriage in the court's view. since the agency in 2002 had classified broadband as a non-common carrier information service rather than a common carrier telecommunications service, the rules themselves were null and void. but the site striking -- despite striking down the rule, the court handed the fcc a small but significant victory. it said that section 706 of the telecommunications act of '96 does give the commission some authority to regulate broadband. so the fcc is considering its options. as i noted, the fcc could petition for an en banc rehearing, but if the fcc does appeal the case, it runs the risk that the su

fcc chairman tom wheeler commented . joining us on "the communicators" this week to discuss this, craig aaron, who is president and ceo of free press, and former fcc commissioner rocket mcdowell -- robert mcdowell. commissioner mcdowell, can the fcc put the kibosh on comcast/time warner cable mergersome. >> guest: oh, it could, absolutely. and the department of justice could try to do so as well. sometime in the past when mergers have been proposed not necessarily at the announcement stage we've heard words such as unthinkable. they haven't put the kibosh on it just yet, and the application, i don't think, has even been filed at the fcc. but, sure, as a matter of law, its ability, it could deny the merger if it wanted to. >> host: from what you've read about this, do you think the fcc should stop this merrier? >> guest: well, so, actually, i think the better question is will it. and i don't think it will. and, you know, i'm in a think tank now, the hudson institute, so i have in dog in the fight. so trying to look at obj

perhaps free press or comcast at the fcc? >> the fcc has a team of career-pointed servants who work on merger transactions like this and they integrate and the department of justice or the federal trade commission. they work very well together and are meeting and talking throughout the day and some of the durations go beyond a year. and they are looking at economic, competition, consumer protection issues, integration of technology issues. and so it is rare i get asked, what if doj went one way and the fcc wept went the other, and i don't think that has happened with me because the teams are integrated. there is an assistant attorney general in u pointed and the fcc commissioners are also a political appointee so you will see the same philosophy given whoever the president is at doj and the fcc to work through these things. they will come at it from different respectives. it is different from the public interest which is more define. anti-trust has a century of precedent there. i cannot think of when the two centuries diverge

the fcc appointments are also political. you will see probably the same philosophy given whoever the president is at the fcc. they will come at it from different perspectives. public interests are more ambiguous. century ofas over a interest. i cannot think of when the two agencies have diverged. i am sure that they will reach the same inclusion at roughly the same time. not necessarily exactly the same time, but it has been an interesting process to watch. >> will congress play a role in this? >> absolutely. the signals from the hill will matter. -- senatorb sharp amy klobuchar has authority called for work on this. hopefully the fcc will do their own hearings. there are not a lot of for the public to engage. that is key for congress. that is the way that people who are dissatisfied with their and both of these companies regularly ranked among the worst happening in america, they will have their chance to weigh in. they have a really important role to play here in elevating this and letting people know just how big a deal t

the fcc is considering its options. for ac could petition hearing and could repeal the decision to the supreme court. if the sec does repeal the case, it runs the risk that the supreme court could oversee that overturned the findings with respect to 706. i believe tom wheeler is considering all options right now. he said this week they may take a case-by-case approach in the aftermath of the decision. >> what are you hearing from businesses and interest groups who are involved in telecommunication policy about the appeals court decision? >> certainly, there are some mixed feedback. isp'se hearing from the that this is certainly good news. it gives the isp's clear authority now to manage their networks as they see fit. bandwidthle any high- traffic that may crash the network. they are now open to entering into pay for priority arrangements with content providers. certainly good news for the isp's and their interests. for the public interest communities and for consumers, they are quite concerned. in the aftermath of the

but the court handed the fcc a small but significant victory. it said section 704 of the 1996 telecommunications act does give authority to regulate broadband. the fcc is considering options and could appeal or petition for a new inbank hearing. bethey appeal the case they run the risk that the supreme court would overturn the court's finding with respect to 706 and they certainly don't want that. so i believe fcc chairman tom wheeler is considering all options. he suggested this week that the agency may take a case-by-case approach in the aftermath of the decision. >> host: what are you hearing from businesses and interest groups who are involved in telecommunication's policy about the appeal court's decision? >> they are mixed feedback. you are hearing from the isp's and the people close to them that this is good news. it gives the isp's clear authority now to manage their networks as they see fit. to throttle any high broadband bandwith traffic that may crush the network. they are open too pay for priority rangements with content providers. s

court of appeals struck down fcc regulations. the court ruled the fcc does have regulatory authority, but it used the wrong legal justification. so now, the fcc can rewrite the rules or congress can act. the concern is that comcast and other broadband providers could give preampcial treatment to their own produced content and that, critics say could drive up the price for consumers. the planned acquisition comes at a critical time in the history of cable television. over all subscriptions and ratings are on the decline. online video on demand services like netflix and hulu are on the rise. a new wave of court cutters, households opting out of cable television are putting pressure on cable providers like time warner and comcast. time warner lost close to 1 million cable t.v. subscribers in 2013 and more than 5 million subscribers opted out of cable overall between 2010 and 2013. >>> the merger that seeks to join two big players in american communications: comcast and time warner cable on this edition of "inside story" joining us n

this is the fcc. every eight years they can decide whether or not to renew your license to broadcast. >> they are going into print news rooms. this is so outrageous, it's terrible. ben? >> a few things. if anyone at home is confused, it's like the atf walking into a gun shop asking for details on the weapons and ammo sold to customers. that's how i equate it. we have the first amendment as reporters. but, another thing. you made the point or the congresswoman made the point, finally, a news room that is going to do this. i doubt any would seriously entertain this. if they did, what's to say the reporter for that organization would sit there and watch them and find out what they are asking. >> you make a good point. it's the culture. if this administration, the nsa spying with a warrant, that's bad. now killing americans overseas with drones, a discussion we need to have in this nation. now a lot of people upset with the president with cherry picking obamacare and now the fcc that doesn't have authorit

fcc suspending its newsroom monitor program after the fcc commissioner who blew the whistle went on the record. commissioner joining us again. commissioner, this is good news, i suspect, based on what you wrote in your op ed. >> i think it is. this is a big victory for the first amendment. fcc announced it won't send researchers to the government to news rooms across the country. i think that's a good thing for all citizens. >> you were one of five bosses for the fcc. was this idea ever even voted on by the commission? >> it was not. >> who came up with this idea? do you have any idea? >> that's one of the questions that i have, but unfortunately we don't have any insight into the process by which the study came about. but the good news is, going forward, current chairman wheeler announced that any study that fcc does in any of these markets is not going to require media owners, news directors or journalists to answer any of these kind of intrusive questions about editorial judgment. >> i applaud you. but i must say i'm a little bit taken aback by the commissioner now saying that the ch

the fcc didn't lose the net neutrality case. they had the orders struck down, but the court granted them broad authority. so the fact of the matter is what while i think that the fcc should be more careful in regulates and they are the brorder authority to regulate. if there is a concern in the future, the fcc can address that then and the conditions in place today are not just about net neutrality but about making sure that comcast doesn't leverage the media content it owns against other net works and not discriminating against the video providers. this deal actually means better broad band for time warner cable subscribes. the comcast upgraded the speeds and faster speeds in the markets that time warner does and if we are concerned about the better broad band this is a great deal for the consumers and saving one and a half billion dollars in if efficients of running the companies together. >> we hear about the cable cutters, does this position the company in a different way to handle a public that is already starting to look p

we want to do better. >> host: you're now in your fifth year at the fcc. have you been surprised at the engagement of the american public with your commission? >> guest: i am -- the word may not be -- i'm pleased. because people recognize, particularly with one of our key objectives, providing more ubiquitous and affordable broadband opportunities to this nation, more and more people, more and more communities realize how important this is, how enabling this is. so i'm really pleased with the willful of engagement -- the level of engagement. i'm really pleased that people have figured out that i'm at the fcc and not the ftc because that's an issue back home. they recognize how important in this agency is and how it can be partner to progress. so the word is pleased for me in this context. >> turning briefly back to broadcast, some groups here in town have been circulating concerns over the lack of diversity among the owners of broadcast stations. it seems the broadcast market has consolidated quite a bit in the last couple years, and now there are, by some

, someone at the fcc has to say this is not true. because if it is true then president obama ought to be firing everybody he can over there who thought about this idea. by the way, i have to say with all due respect, eric, there is not a single fact to justify your linking barack obama to what happened at the irs. which i also said i would disapprove of. not one fact do you have to say that. but in any case -- >> well, no one got fired there either. so i doubt, lanny that anyone will get fired this time around either. i have an idea. why don't in true spirit of the first amendment put reporters maybe in every room of the government to monitor them, how about that idea? i think that is a better one. thanks guys. >> yeah, that would give me a headache. >> i bet it would give them a headache, too. thank you. >>> coming up, baltimore ravens runningback ray rice is in a heap of trouble after his arrest in atlantic city last weekend. tmz has obtain thunded this foo which allegedly shows him dragging his fiancee out of the elevator. so how

i am happy people are realizing i am at the fcc not the ftc. they recognize how important this agency is and how it can be a partner to its progress. >> host: turning back to broadcast, some groups have been circulating concerns over the lack of diversity among the owners of broadcast stations. we have seen the market consolidate. and by some counts, there are no full stations owned by african-americans. is this a concern to you? do you see the internet filling the gap at all? >> that is absolutely a concern. i am looking at the internet and other platforms to augment. it isn't a substitution. i am not going to be satisfied until there are pathways to parity. it is important by way of programming and ownership that the american experience is reflected. i think that is important for opportunities, information desen sem nation and the needs of the society are better met when there is reflective engagement. i remain concerned and will not be satisfied until there are opportunities for all on all platforms >> representation of minorities has declin

was how the fcc interpreted the ruling. the court said it shouldn't be this way, but you should consider the following items and that is unusual for a court to do. i am thought a lawyer, but i think that is unusual. this will now be in the hands of the fcc. i think they have a roadmap. i think that they have a deep and broad awareness of what has made the internet the powerhouse it is. i don't think there is anything who uses the internet that would say i want blocking and i want discrimination. so let's see what they do. i think it is important for the commission to be cautious, of course, because the court case is split. but i think the upside to this is that the court gave them a direction where discrimination and blocking can still be addressed in a way that would meet the muster of the court. >> host: anna eshoo, could you support broadband being reclassified as a common carrier? >> guest: i think, you know, as a legislator, i am not so much in the weeds on that. if that is the best way to accomplish that and the fcc b

they did not want the fcc to have any kind of authority in broadband. that says something in and of itself. two, the court's response was the fcc does retain authority in broadband. where they, what they struck down was how the fcc had interpreted the different sections of authorities that they draw from. but very interestingly, the court said it shouldn't be this way, but you should consider the following items. which is unusual for a court to do that. i'm not a lawyer, but i think that that's unusual. so this now will be in the hands of the fcc. i think that they have a road map. i think that they have a deep and broad awareness of what has made the internet the powerhouse that it is and that i don't think there's anyone that uses the internet that would say i want blocking, and i want discrimination. so let's see what they do. i think it's important for the commission to be cautious, of course, because the court case, you know, was kind of split. but i think upside of it is is that the court gave them a direction where discrimination and blocking can

and about-face from the fcc after plans from critics who said the fcc questioning the journalist about story system too intrusive and now the chairman said he grease. and also a crippling blow to u.s. farmers and the feds are cutting off much needed water supplies in an unprecedented move and how it blows you have your grocery bill. and tonight, a young woman overcoming incredible odds. she fought her way to the summer olympics and took home the gold and now wants to do it again. >> i am harris faulkner. a plan to put government researchers in newsroom is on hold now. the fcc scrapped that idea after back lash from news outlets and republicans and journalist. it would cover how we do do the nows. it is a victory for the first amendment. he's acknowledged that the study design came to close to the line when it came to intruding on core principles. in my few it was over the line and grad to make that concession as a victrow. >> the fcc spokes person defends the intentions and said any suggestion that the fcc is regulating the news is false. the fcc will fulfill to report on barriers and

challenging the fcc having any authority over broadband. >> having some authority? >> they do have authority in broadband. what the court also did was to strike down two sections relative to broadband and net neutrality. the nondiscrimination clause and the blocking clause. but very interestingly, what the court did, they stated -- they went on to state, i should say, that they gave the fcc a road map of actually how to structure -- to draw the legal thread through this or needle the thread legally in order to be approved by the court. so earlier this week, the fcc chairman came out with how he plans to do that through the commission. and i think it will put the consumer back in the driver's seat. >> does that mean congress doesn't have to get involved? >> i think that congress will certainly speak out about what they think the fcc and what chairman wheeler has plans to do. very importantly, he wants to enhance a transparency for consumers. so that isps can either slow down or block content and then on the blocking and the anti-discrimination, he will come up with r

the fcc spokesman released this statement.must study the entrepreneurs to compete in the marketplace. they will not interfere in newsroom or editorial decision making. the draft questions in the study are being revised to clear up any confusion. what's your response? do you take the fcc, your organization, at its word? >> i certainly think it's a positive step for the fcc to instruct the contractor to remove any questions about news philosophy, editorial judgment, and to keep the government out of the newsroom. my preference would be not to do the study at all so it doesn't relate to our purpose which is reporting to congress on barriers to entry. as i said, this is a positive step and the devil is going to be in the details when the study is actually implemented. >> is there not an interest -- i'm going to play devil's advocate. as a news man, i have a bias in that way. but to play devil 's advocate, aren't there places where local political parties have too much influence and it might be in the interest of the public to try

the fcc regulates the media. it has the power to remove your license, meaning to ruin you overnight. any question is never innocent. what is it asking about critical information? who decide what is is critical information need? critical information needs is a concept you have in kiev and moscow, not the united states. everybody decides on their own. the idea we don't have enough diversity, there are no media today than in the history of mankind, including cave drawings. this is an outrage. what the house of representatives ought to do tomorrow is pass a law with holding up every penny from every such study now or ever more. >> i need to correct charles. it's actually cin, critical information needs, which is full of acronyms. this would be funny, if it wasn't scary. they are going to train government bureaucrats to come in and talk about how they do their jobs. sound familiar? obamacare. they are going to ask things like what is your news philosophy. they are going to be trained not to show too much alarm or emot

if fcc had pulled outrage, the rest would protest immediately.cism pure and simple. >> what's interesting is how he is about the fcc question -- was the free press at work stopping something that the government was doing? which is exactly what it's supposed to be doing. >> some media outrage is warranted. >>> moving on to buzz worthy "vanity fair" has killed a major profile of gwyneth paltrow who asked friends not to cooperate and called carter to complain. he writes in the new issue, there was nothing wrong about the piece, but the media chatter created expectation of an epic takedown that would make a story seem like a disappointment. it seems like only example of coziness with the hollywood crowd. i've been arguing that they've fixated on the chris christie scandal. here's bill maher saying just about the same thing. >> i love this network, but i thought they were a little over the top in how much they had been covering this story. a lot of the shows, it is the first story, the top story every night. it's two months into this scandal. >> i am

and after those exceptions expire, the fcc has broad authority to police those negotiations.u're concerned about if you think the cable company is going to get bigger, it's worth noting that the cable's market share has decreased. in fact, comcast is not the number one movie distributer, that's the satellite company. and it's chipped away at the market over the years. and new entrance in the broadband markets such as verizon, google, which is building on its own fiber network, century link, this is where i agree with craig, we should be doing everything we can to make sure that those companies have as easy a time as possible and don't have to go through burden some regulatory hurdles to roll out fiber. if that's the problem, we don't have enough competition in broadband, we can deal with that problem. if we spend the next six months that otherwise would be wasted arguing about this deal in place, if we instead encouraged broadband deployment we would encourage the market. >> we'll have a very good conversation in the future about what the future holds for people trying to get

we're going to get into that with a former fcc commissioner coming right up. liz: tell us what you think. could the squeeze being put on netflix by the providers hurt the stock? which stock? netflix or the bad guys in this game? as some perceive it to be. tweet us at fbnatv. answers later this hour. have you been getting hurt when it comes to downloading those shows? ♪ ♪ [ bell ringing, applause ] five tech stocks with more than a0%... change in after-market trading. ♪ all the tech stocks with a market cap... of at least 50 billion... are n the day. 12 low-volume stocks... breaking into 52-week highs. six upcoming earnings plays... that recently gapped up. [ male announcer ] now the world is your trading floor. geteal-time mket scanning wherever you are with the mobile trader app. from td ameritrade. legs, for crossing. feet...splashing. better things than the joint pain and swelling of moderate to severe rheumatoidrthritis. if you're trying to ma, now may be time to ask about xeljanz. xeljz (tofacitinib) is a small pill, not an injection or infusion, for adul

sign this letter that went to the fcc chair? was it brought up by republicans? if you feel that way, isn't this a bipartisan issue? >> it should be. i don't speak for all democrats. i'm a liberal. i don't agree with a lot of things democrats do. i think the democrats should be very outspoken about this. i agree with chris that if ainie doing this, liberals would be all over it. >> alan, should the president say something about it? >> yes, he should. he should be very clear that this is not something that the government should do, although he appoints the fcc and he's not responsible for everything the fcc does, it operates as a so-called independent agency, but it would be good to see the president weigh in and say, look, this is not what we want to do as a government. >> all right. >> we don't want to give the impression -- >> we have our reporter at the jay carney briefing. he's asking right now and we'll bring that to you when we get the tape. >>> president obama seeing a bit of a rebound in the polls, his job approval rating

, a response by tom wheel, the head of the fcc.he commission has no intention of regulating political or other speech of journalist or broadcasters by way of this research design, any resulting study or through any other means. >> they sure have a lot of gall. >> they do have a lot of gall. >> what is gall? >> i never know what gall is. >> "house of card" actress robin wright is convinced weesy is sleazier, way kleesier than hollywood when it comes to sleeping around. hear why, and why jerry seinfeld's issues about parents and how they [ male announcer ] meet mary. she loves to shop online with her debit card. and so does bill, an identity thief who stole mary's identity, took over her bank accounts, and stole her hard-earned money. unfortunately, millions of americans just like you learn all it may take is a little misplaced information to wreak havoc on your life. this is identity theft. and no one helps stop it better than lifelock. lifelock has the most comprehensive identity theft protection available. if mary had lifelock's b

why do i need an fcc? >> that's a great question.ry framework that creates an environment where investment and innovation and competition can thrive, the american people benefit. we've seen it in the wireless industry, we're seeing it in the broadband industry and the story of the media marketplace over the last 40 years since we last adopted our media rules has been one where competition has flourished. i think that's something the fcc would do well to remember when it steps into this marketplace. >> i'll tell you, sir, i mean i'm glad you're there and you're doing the lord's work. but whether it's broadband issues or the old fairness doctrine, the fcc is on the wrong side of every issue. you talk about innovation and entrepreneurship, you're right, god bless. the fcc on the wrong side, the ftc, all these independent agencies. i say get rid of them. >> part of the frustration that you have with agency comes into sharp relief when it comes to the media because we do have a core first amendment freedom. so when you combine the way tha

even if they don't, the fact of the matter is the fcc didn't really lose the net neutrality case. had their order struck down. the fcc actually had the court grant them broad authority to regulate much more than they even tried to do with their open internet orders. the fact of the matter is that while i think the fcc should be more careful, they have broad authority to regulate. for that reason, i think that's precisely why you will see the merger go through, because if there is a concern in the future, the fcc can always address it then. and the conditions that are in place today are not just about net neutrality but about making sure that comcast doesn't leverage media content it bought from universal against other networks to make sure it doesn't discriminate against over-the-top video providers. those should allay the concerns here this means better broadband for time warner cable subscribers. comcast has upgraded speeds 12 times over the last 12 years. it offers faster speeds in many markets than time warner cable does. so, if what we are concerned about here is americans ge

, a response by tom wheel, the head of the fcc.ommission has no intention of regulating political or other speech of journalist or broadcasters by way of this research design, any resulting study or through any other means. >> they sure have a lot of gall. >> they do have a lot of gall. >> what is gall? >> i never know what gall is. >> "house of card" actress robin wright is convinced weesy is sleazier, way kleesier than hollywood when it comes to sleeping around. hear why, and why jerry seinfeld's issues about parents and how they are raising their kids today. ♪ ♪ (announcer) the subaru forester. motor trend's two thousand fourteen sport utility of the year. when you get some recognition, you can't help feeling alit, and a little pro. love. it's what makea subaru, a subaru. all stations come over to mithis is for real this time. step seven point two one two. verify and lock. command is locked. five seconds. three, two, one. standing by for capture. the most innovative software on the planet... dragon is captured. is connecting tod

the court ruled against the fcc.o now you have chairman wheeler coming back and saying he is going to do it yet again. so my bill will be filed this morning. then we have been on the critical information needs study. we've already written the fcc. we've asked them to retract or pull this back. martha: this is right in your wheelhouse. you've done a lot of work on it. congresswoman, thank you very much. see you next time. >> good to be with you. thank you. martha: you too. eric: martha, a delta iv rocket thundering into space. >> liftoff of the delta viv rocket. eric: coming up how what it is boosting way, way up there will help us down here on the ground. martha: and this unbelievable story of a baby who stopped breathing and the desperate attempt by pedestrians and people on the side of the road to save this child. >> look at my phone, look at my radio and i look up again and a woman pops out of a car holding a baby screaming you know, help me, help me, my baby's not breathing! ♪ ho ho ho [ female announcer ] at 100

they are not regulated by the fcc. i can't imagine even the most liberal outfit coming from this profession being willing to share their philosophy and change the way they cover anything whether it's education or othe environment because of the way that the government conversation. >> can i just say a news organization. you want to know their philosophy? look at the product. look at what they cover. >> of course. >> look at what they write. it's all out there. >> meant to intimidate and stifle and to chill. >> looking at newspapers is outrageous but even television as well. this is rooted in an idea that the fcc had when there were three broadcast television networks and nothing else. you would go to a medium or big city and there would be three tv stations. they dominated the market 90% between them. that is prehistoric times. we have all sorts of media out there. television through the internet. all sorts of other ways. and the idea that the public is not -- does not have the a diversity of information before it is j

he is fcc commissner ajit pai.d to have you with us, commissioner. >> good to be with you, lou lou: i want to compliment you, congratulate you and thank you for bringing this to the public's attention because this is suchn outrageous intrusion on the first, you know, in newsrooms and on the first amendment. imagine, it is just iredible to me that the fcc would even think to under steak - undertake a so-called study the way the news is both developed and covered and the decision-making process therein. >> and that is partf the concern i had when i looked into how this study was being designed. that the notion that the government could figure out for the american public what their critical information needs were, then go to nsrooms across the country and ask basic intrusive questions ho do you gather the news what is your news philosophy and does your station have a bias? those are not questions that belong in any newsroom certainly imsed by a government researcher. lou: the idea of those questions being posed, it is

fcc chairman has said he is all in.be making moves to look at the e-rate program, to add to this commitment they're making today. fcc is committing money that they have in hand which will go to schools and students this year to begin this connectivity process which again will transform teaching and learning in this country. >> it's my understanding this is supposed to be a five-year plan, meaning that the fcc over that five-year period could increase fees if they had to in order to pay for this program, is that correct? >> if they were to do this, we understand the increase would be modest but the fcc is considering that. the goal is to make sure we get high-speed connectivity to every student, every chair in every school in a way that allows teachers, for example, to use devices to figure out which students are moving quickly and can move ahead, which students need a little bit more help. the school that the president is visiting today has flipped its classroom by using this technology. students are working in groups m

he's the fcc commissioner and republican appointee.ut an end to this. what do you think? >> well, it's funny. just to back up a little bit when we talk about this big conspiracy and how they are going after other networks and so on, this was a confidential anonymous survey that had no consequences attached to it. it was done anonymously. it's not like they are going in with the clipboards and saying, you can do that story. >> with all respect, blake, and you know i have -- i think you're terrific. i think that's exactly what they were going to do. i think they would come in with clipboards and check off stories. remember the fairness act, the fairness balance act which ended during the reagan years? i think this is a modernized story of that. every pro has got to have a con. every con's got to have a pro. that's crap. we've come way beyond that because we have so much competition now. blake? >> yeah. look, i don't think it's exactly the same thing as the fairness doctrine act. that was a totally different media environment that we had

the fcc wanting to go into newsrooms.r commissioner coming up will join us live to tell us what he hopes agency is staying out of newsrooms at least for now. >> here we go again, folks. the polar vortex is back, we will tell you who is in for another round. more extreme winter weather. go away, polar vortex. go away. we are done. to talk to you about hotels. all-you-can-eat is a hotel policy that allows you to eat all that you can. the hotel gym is short for gymnasium. the hotel pool is usually filled with water. and the best dot com for booking hotels, is hotels.com. it's on the internet, but you probably knew that. or maybe not, i don't really know you. bellman: welcome back, captain obvious. captain obvious: yes i am. all those words are spelled correctly. martha: all right, here we go again. much of the country bracing for another round of extreme winter weather. yet another polar vortex pushes several states back into the deep freeze, it used to be just cold before. dangerous windchill in the forecast for big cities

the fcc causes of multi market stud.tizens decide to cover with stories hat are under perceived station bias and hal underserved populations, as they're called, are better srved. never mind, that is usually the dull stuff of academia studies carried out by journalism profeors and sociologists. but for mr. obama's government to sub wesley into our newsrooms most journalists ithis country are typically mild mannered, slow to anger, almost never willing to venture beyond neutral. it will be interesting to see whether these journalists themsels will send up tsuch a government intrusion our weather station management will be provoked to do wha mr. obama often does, which is to talk about drawing lines. a line has been already drawn. it is in the constitutionthe unid states, and the ultimate test of the fourth the state will be whether these folk can be entered to action, whether they, their management and owners will permit the fcc and the obama government to do something theyhave never sough to do before, which is to simply

these would give the fcc more power. now the commission is justifying that neutrality protection with a different part of the law. >> they believe they still have sufficient authority to be able to protect against any of the potential abuses that people have been worried about over the basis of net neutrality in the first place. >> reporter: the commission is soliciting public comment on its new guidelines, focusing on transparency and making sure consumers can access all lawful content. chairman wheeler does not seem to be trying to regulate more strictly than the prior rules, a win for internet providers. this comes amid controversy about verizon fios slowing netflix streaming speeds, a part of internet service not directly connected to net neutrality rules. but the fcc's comment indicate intent to ensure weaker operators or potential competitors like netflix don't face discrimination. >> this probably chills the whole idea that carriers will start to charge netflix. it doesn't necessarily prohibit it. and it also does

here is the statement from the fcc.ome of the questions may not have been appropriate. chairman wheeler agreed that survey questions in the survey directed towards managers, news directors, reporters overstepped the bounds, any subsequent market studies conducted by fcc if determined necessary will not seek participation from these individuals. so, again, they are not saying they are not going to study it. saying they are going to do it in a more subtle way. >> suspended but just for. >> now the plug is pulled just for now. the big issue with this too is we wouldn't know about. this nobody at the fcc seemed to have a problem with this except one man ajit pai one of five boss only wanted to speak out blow the whistle. he actually spoke out on the kelly file last night are on greta van susteren. excuse me. left's take a listen to what he had to say. >> this is a big victory for the first amendment. the fcc has announced it is not going to send researchers hired by the government into newsrooms across the country. that's a

the fcc causes of multi market study.want to determine how citizens decide to cover with stories that are under perceived station bias and hal underserved populations, as they're called, are better served. never mind, that is usually the dull stuff of academia studies carried out by journalism professors and sociologists. but for mr. obama's government to sub wesley into our newsrooms most journalists in this country are typically mild mannered, slow to anger, almost never willing to venture beyond neutral. it will be interesting to see whether these journalists themselves will send up to such a government intrusion our weather station management will be provoked to do what mr. obama often does, which is to talk about drawing lines. a line has been already drawn. it is in the constitution of the united states, and the ultimate test of the fourth the state will be whether these folks can be entered to action, whether they, their management and owners will permit the fcc and the obama government to do something they have ne

fcc commissioner ajit pay. stopped fcc effort to police newsrooms. he stopped the effort cold. he is our special guest tonight. peace of mind is important when you're running a biness. century link provides reliable it services like multi-layered security solution to keep your information safe & secure. century link. your link with what's next. afghanistan, in 2009. orbiting the moon in 1971. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generatin to generation. because it offers a superior level of protecon. and because usaa'commitment to serve current andormemilitary members andheir families isithout equal. begin your legacy. get auto insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve. i ke prilosec otc each morni for my frzero heartburn.n. becat wohoo! [ male announcer ] prilosec otc frequent heaburn medicine dfor 8 straht years. one pill each morning. 24 hours. zero heartburn. what is this place? where are we? this is where we bring together the fastest internet and the best in entertainment. we call it the x1 entertainment operating

fcc suspending its newsroom monitor program after the fcc commissioner who blew the whistle went on the commissioner, this is good news, i suspect, based on what you wrote in your op ed. >> i think it is. this is a big victory for the first amendment. fcc announced it won't send researchers to the government to news rooms across the country. i think that's a good thing for all citizens. >> you were one of

it may be quite a battle at the fcc.eo of time warner cable had to say about why he believes it will pass muster with regulatory authorities. >> naturally when you evaluate a transaction you take into account both the transaction itself and probability that it will, in fact, be completed. in our estimation here is that this transaction will, in fact, clear regulatory hurdles and be completed. >> make the point, of course, that there is no overlap. in fact, between any of the time warner cable properties that include new york no, and los angeles amongst others. and comcast properties and that they will, in fact, even enforce net neutrality even though that is no longer the law of the land having been overturned by a court. the we'll see. that is a key consideration in my reporting over last few months. after i first reported comcast interest in time warner cable. many had said that brian roberts was still reluctant to enter into a another consent decree with the fcc along the likes that comcast did when it acquired contro

and there was a response actually back today of the chair, fcc chair, wheeler.'s no intention to regulate speech via the study and that fcc staff looking at ways to possibly modify the study to meet the concerns that have been raised. is that a victory in your mind? >> well, it's a beginning of a pullback. but it's not a victory. because they say there's nothing in there that's going to deal with content. but when you look at what the monitors are asked to find out, philosophy and viewpoint, you know, i've arked a lot of cases at the support on philosophy and viewpoint. the supreme court is unanimous. when you go after viewpoint, the court says you can't do that. i have no solace in the response from the fcc chairman except for the fact that it is certainly on their radar screen right now. i think if the american people continue to push, this policy, this 87-page plan will be removed. but it needs to just -- they just need to stop doing this. there's not a middle territory here. it's all or nothing. it needs to be nothing. >> jay sekulow, thanks much. >>> time t

this time it is the fcc. >> the study was conceived under the previous head of the fcc. there are reports that the current chairman is considering tweaking it. >> we'll look forward to that. my next guest is calling this creepy. katy pavlich talks about the fairness doctrine. >> you know what, megyn? i don't understand why the obama administration has not understood this idea that when the department of justice monitored the phone line of journalists and their parents, by the way, that was not enough to them. now they want to send investigators into news rooms all over the country whether it is broadcast or prints. they have no business sending those people into our news room. how we gather news is none of the government's business. and this is not about the fcc getting the information that they say they need, this is about controlling the people and intimidating the news -- >> what kind of crazy talk is this? i mean, they're saying oh, and now we're going to take a second look at this. whose brain child was this in the first place? and it gives you a window, does it not