Dec 11, 2017

How Ajit Pai tore up the rulebook for the information age

David McCabe

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has rewritten the rules of the information age so thoroughly that there's no mode of communication under his control where the rules aren't looser than they were a year ago. Here's a look at what he's done.

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Be smart: While some of his deregulation has been bipartisan, his big-ticket proposals have divided the agency and the nation. He's actively courted fans of President Trump's populist rhetoric and inspired scorn on the left.

Why it matters: Many top Republican priorities have been mired in Washington gridlock since Trump took office. Not so at the FCC. Pai swiftly orchestrated the wholesale deregulation of the networks Americans use every day, which will likely alter the way people experience the internet, broadcast TV and even AM radio. Those changes will play out over years — not immediately.

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Ina Fried

The product announcements to watch for at CES 2020

Attendees grasp at objects in an AR game at CES 2019. Photo: Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

While we don't yet know the full details of everything that will be unveiled at CES this year, we have a pretty good idea of who will be making the announcements and the types of products to expect.

Why it matters: Vegas during CES is a noisy place. It pays to know which direction to point your ears.

Go deeperArrowJan 3, 2020
Kim Hart, Margaret Harding McGill

Commerce Department telecom head is departing

Diane Rinaldo. Photo: Riccardo Savi/Getty Images for Concordia Summit

The head of the Commerce Department's tech and telecom branch is leaving the agency, according to an internal email obtained by Axios.

Driving the news: Diane Rinaldo, who is acting administrator for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, emailed staff a "fond farewell" on Monday.

Go deeperArrowDec 16, 2019
Orion Rummler

Radio personality Don Imus dies at 79

Don Imus at the 2010 AFTRA AMEE Awards. Photo: Larry Busacca/Getty Images for AFTRA

Famed radio personality, author and TV host Don Imus died Friday morning in Texas after being hospitalized since Christmas Eve, his publicist told Axios in a statement.

  • Imus spent nearly 50 years as a shock jock, hosting major political players like President Trump and former Sens. Joe Biden and John McCain and uttering controversial remarks and racial slurs.
  • Imus won four Marconi Awards, was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 1989, and was named one of the 25 Most Influential People in America by Time magazine in 1997.

Go deeper: Radio's decline is podcasting's gain

Keep ReadingArrowDec 27, 2019