Mignon Clyburn Announces FCC Departure - Clyburn’s Exit Comes During Pivotal Time For Radio At The FCC.

Story by Inside Radio

In the coming months the Federal Communications Commission will launch a new quadrennial ownership review process. It will arrive not only with raised expectations among broadcasters that additional ownership deregulation is within reach, but also without the most outspoken consolidation critic on the Commission. Mignon Clyburn surprised her fellow commissioners Tuesday and said she’ll be gone by the time they meet again in May.

The timing of the announcement may have been known to Clyburn alone, but her exit was something that had been expected for months in Washington. One of two Democrats on the Commission, Clyburn’s term officially ended in June 2017, although under federal guidelines she has been allowed to continue serving through the end of the current congressional session or until her successor is sworn-in. With no one waiting in the wings, Clyburn is opting to leave nevertheless. With a 3-2 Republican majority, her move is unlikely to have a significant impact on which way any upcoming votes swing.

Clyburn, 56, was nominated by President Obama and has been an FCC commissioner since August 2009. She even served a stint as interim chairman in 2013, the first woman to have led the agency. “It’s been the most incredible opportunity for me,” she said, struggling to keep her composure. “In my wildest dreams, if I could have crafted my destiny I never would have dreamed of this.”

FCC chair Ajit Pai and Clyburn have had a warm rapport, and as a new commissioner five years ago Pai found an ally in Clyburn when he pushed the agency to launch the AM revitalization initiative. “I think her legacy is one of consistently striving for the public interest, trying to find common ground, and staying true to what she believes in,” Pai told reporters. He said it was only fitting that during her final Commission meeting, all six items on the agenda passed with unanimous votes.

It has been on higher-profile and controversial proposals where the partisan divide has appeared. Among the most notable during the past year have been the GOP majority rollback of Obama-era net neutrality rules and relaxing some media ownership limits—including lifting the newspaper-broadcast and radio-TV cross-ownership prohibitions. As the 2018 quadrennial review of media ownership rules begins, some speculate that it may be easier for Pai to push through his proposals in a four-person Commission where he’ll no longer have to work to bring Clyburn onboard.

“We’re about to find out,” Pai told reporters. Behind the scenes he said Clyburn has consistently put her ideas forward to see if there was a middle ground that could be reached. That has at times delayed some decisions as the Republican majority tried to bring their counterparts onboard. “I’m hopeful that a Commission of four people will find itself similarly inclined to want to find consensus and practical solutions,” Pai said.

‘A Champion Of Diversity In The Media’

Clyburn has long been skeptical of allowing further media consolidation. Just minutes before she announced her departure plans Tuesday, she complained the current Republican majority’s efforts to modernize media regulations have been more about rolling back the rules to appease broadcasters. But Clyburn noted she’s also been open to eliminating some regulations. “While I still worry that the cumulative effects leave consumers worse off, as long as the public interest is served, I will support the examination of certain rules to determine whether they remain useful or are necessary,” she said.

Clyburn’s positions haven’t always put her on the same page as radio and TV operators. When the FCC last November voted to do away with main studio rules to the applause of broadcasters, Clyburn worried the change would only help big media companies grow even larger. Yet at the same time Clyburn’s moves to help rescue AM left her with plenty of goodwill within the industry.

“Mignon Clyburn has served the Commission with distinction, dedication and humility over the past eight years,” National Association of Broadcasters president Gordon Smith said. “She has been a passionate voice on behalf of consumers and a champion of diversity in the media marketplace during her tenure.”

In announcing her departure, Clyburn said she’s unsure what her next move will be. There had been speculation the former South Carolina public utility regulator would return to her home state to run for the congressional seat held by her father. But Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC) has said he intends to run for re-election. The 77-year old is the highest-ranking African American in Congress as assistant minority leader in the House.

In the near-term the Commission will likely be reduced to four members with Rosenworcel the remaining Democrat, alongside three Republican commissioners. Democrats in Congress have reportedly coalesced around Geoffrey Starks as Clyburn’s successor but so far there’s been no announcement from the White House. Starks has served as assistant chief of the Enforcement Bureau since November 2015, where he’s headed the Bureau’s Investigations and Hearings Division—whose team of attorneys is responsible for working out settlements to complaints on non-technical matters such as indecency, underwriting, and unauthorized transfer of control.