FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, a Republican, said today that he will be stepping down from his post once the new administration takes over next week, Reuters reports. Martin will be joining The Aspen Institute, a nonpartisan think tank, the AP reports. Aspen spokesman James Spiegelman told the AP that Martin…

I’m not sure who they all are but a surprising number of people have opted to spend an hour of a pretty nice Las Vegas day in a dark meeting room listening to outgoing FCC Chairman Kevin Martin in his last CES heading the commission. If they were hoping for…

Among the many decisions facing the next president of the United States: the appointment of a new chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. The Hollywood Reporter takes a look at potential successors to Republican Kevin Martin—depending on which presidential candidate makes it to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. (Martin has been on…

During a hearing today addressing whether cable companies are improperly slowing down certain types of web traffic (P2P, video, etc.), FCC Chairman Kevin Martin suggested that the agency may have to take remedial actions to ensure that operators are behaving in a fair and transparent manner. The hearings, held at…

When a casual session with reporters following his appearance at the NBA Tech Summit turned to a la carte pricing and set-top box limitations, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin offered his usual example of what’s wrong: cable. But when he was reminded—ok, by me, since I have a DirecTV (NYSE: DTV)…

The 700 MHz spectrum license auction, which begins later this month, was a big topic in the chat between FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and CEA president and CEO Gary Shapiro this morning at CES. Martin said that the DTV transition in February 2009 is “hard date,” and opening up the…

The $8.2 billion buyout to take the Chicago Tribune private could get FCC approval as early as Friday under a new plan from FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, who proposes granting Tribune two-year exemptions on cross-ownership of newspapers and TV stations in the same market.  Martin’s plan would keep Tribune from…

Removing a potential obstacle to Sam Zell’s purchase of Tribune, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has proposed granting the company a temporary waiver of media ownership regulations, reports Reuters. The proposal by Martin earlier this month prompted some concern that the company would be required to dispose of certain assets, potentially…

Updated: The FCC meeting postponed twice this morning finally wound up tonight with a compromise. Details below. Rather than wind up on the wrong end of a vote, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has postponed the commission’s monthly public meeting. Martin had included an item in Tuesday’s agenda that would have…

The most predictable aspect of Tuesday’s FCC meeting may be its unpredictability. Chairman Kevin Martin is trying to push through several measures, including a last-minute piece of bureaucrat-ese that would escalate the commission’s ability to regulate the cable industry. But that particular push is getting so much push back, it…

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin wants to make it easier for radio and television broadcasters to own newspapers—but only if involves a top 20 market. His proposal would allow cross-ownership of one radio or TV station and a newspaper in one of those markets. The proposal would amend the 32-year-old ban…

Known for his dogged, if quixotic, battles against what he considers excessive media consolidation, FCC member Michael Copps has formally requested that FCC chair Kevin Martin hold an inquiry into News Corp.‘s (NYSE: NWS) $5.6 billion acquisition of WSJ and DJ, B&C reported. If the purchase is allowed to continue,…