Comcast spends big, casts wide net in lobbying
By Jonathan Tamari, The Philadelphia Inquirer | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
His bill has never gone anywhere.
Through its subsidiary,
The effort to stall the "Say No to Drug Ads Act" is just one tiny example of how the lobbying arm for
Along with lobbying on issues with obvious ties to its business -- cybersecurity, Internet taxes, telecom regulations, and others --
It lobbied on the assault-weapons ban and on the farm bill, which determines agriculture policy (think: crop insurance, sugar subsidies, and policies on poultry and beets) and food aid for the poor.
The array of bills shows just how much of American life is touched by a cable and Internet giant that now also owns TV networks (
"It's something that involves extending the influence of
Copps, now with the public-interest group Common Cause, added: "This is a much more diverse enterprise than that."
Matters big and small
So when the
When an international trade agreement, the
As immigration reform moved through the
And when
The program, which mostly supports smaller, community-based Internet providers in areas largely ignored by big companies, gave out
That might not seem like much to
Still, four lobbying firms reported working on the issue for
'The real story'
The depth of
"The real story is that seemingly innocuous bills that wouldn't be relevant to a media and technology company in fact have significant impacts on our business, which is one of the reasons we have to constantly be watching and evaluating what the government is doing," Fitzmaurice wrote in an e-mail. "It can affect our customers, our ability to operate our business, and impact our workers."
Given the small stature of the providers serving rural areas, Wacker called the interest by a "mammoth" like
"You just wonder why they would even care," Wacker said. "Don't they have bigger fish to fry?"
'Playing all three angles'
With more than 100 lobbyists either in-house or contracted from outside firms in 2013,
To be sure, it's not clear exactly how much of the millions
The company monitors 300 to 400 bills in every session of
Allies and enemies alike speak with admiration -- sometimes grudging -- for
"Very few people are good at playing all three angles," said
One telecom lobbyist, a former senior staffer on the
'Self-sufficient'
"
Talks on
The appropriations bill for the
And Nadler's bill on drug ads threatened to cut into one of the biggest pots of money in advertising -- an issue affecting
Drugmakers spent
Like all businesses, pharmaceutical companies can deduct from their taxes their advertising costs on TV and elsewhere as they hawk Cymbalta, Celebrex, Viagra, and the like.
They have fought to protect that tax break, and so has
Time
But few touched as wide a range of issues as
They're well-connected
When the gun bills were brought up,
As
On the farm bill,
Others who worked that issue for
The farm bill
At issue in the farm bill was a long-running tussle over the federal loan program for expanding broadband in rural areas.
The program's roots are in the 1930s, when the government helped bring electricity to the countryside. Then came help for telephone coverage and, in the 21st century, broadband.
Tighter rules, they say, will prevent overlap, keep the playing field level, and steer loans to where they are needed most: areas with no Internet service.
Supporters of the loan program and consumer advocates, though, scoff at the idea that small rural companies could be a threat to established players such as
In the end,
The issue was mainly a concern for the association's smaller members, spokesman
That left Wacker, of the rural broadband association, wondering why
Wacker said ruefully, "They probably had a day when they weren't too busy."
Crops, Guns, and Drugs
The farm bill: The sweeping law sets policy on crop supports and nutrition programs for the poor, but one section in the 357-page bill also sets the rules for federal loans that help expand broadband service to rural areas.
The assault-weapons ban: There was talk of adding a study
that would look at the effects of violence in the media, among other issues, to the gun-control proposal.
Immigration reform: Potential changes to visas could have affected foreign visitors who are an important part of
Studios and
The "Say No to Drug Ads Act": The long-shot bill aims to prevent drug companies from using their marketing expenses as a tax deduction. Pharmaceutical companies are among the biggest advertisers on television. A bill affecting that business could hurt both
Homeland Security spending: The appropriations bill for the
Protecting Financial Aid for Students and Taxpayers Act:
The bill aimed to block colleges from using federal education
aid for advertising or marketing. It could affect ad time sold by
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