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Congresswoman Blasts Comcast-NBC Deal, Says FCC-Imposed Conditions Will Have Little Effect

Jan 26, 2011  •  Post A Comment

The conditions imposed by the Federal Communications Commission on the Comcast-NBC Universal merger will do little to convince the company to meet its public interest obligations, says Congresswoman Maxine Waters, the L.A. Times reports in its Company Town blog.

Waters, D-Calif., has been an outspoken critic of the deal throughout the regulatory process–even getting the attention of the NBC sitcom “30 Rock,” which aired a parody of her starring Queen Latifah.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Waters said, "There is nothing in the Commission’s order that Comcast-NBC did not agree to or previously offer as their ‘public interest commitments’ early in the review proceedings."

Comcast agreed to more content for minority groups and more local news and children’s programming, while also saying it won’t withhold programming from online competitors and that it will debut new independent cable networks.

In her statement, Waters said, "I do not believe the American public can have much confidence in Comcast-NBCU’s commitment to launch 10 new independent channels when current networks have had so many challenges negotiating reasonable carriage terms with the cable giant."

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