This developing story will require close scrutiny: Politico's Kenneth P. Vogel describes Comcast's way of wheeling and dealing as it works its way through the political system: Note in particular this sentence:
Once a regional cable company immersed in Philadelphia’s Democratic machine politics, Comcast has approached the highest-profile move in its history by projecting onto the national level the lessons learned in the precincts of South Philly and the collar counties, as well as backrooms in City Hall and Harrisburg, Pa.,’s State Capitol.
There's nothing wrong with lobbying, of course, although the ethics of Philadelphia's politics are a legend--a bad legend. So with that sort of experience, Comcast might be able to teach Washington DC a thing or two.
The title of this post, "Comcast-opus," is an homage to Frank Norris' muckraking novel of 1901 about the railroads in California, back in their predatory and monopolistic heyday, The Octopus.
The railroads were a scourge a century or more ago, because they were so uncontrolled--they could charge virtually whatever they wished, even as quality and service were spotty. Does that sound a bit like the cable industry today? The issue is always the same: unchecked power is always abused power. And as Politico's Vogel details, Comcast's gameplan, in buying NBC-Universal is to gain more unchecked power.
Watch the Comcast-opus.
