Jesse Jackson pushes AT&T/BellSouth merger

by Matthew Lasar Oct 20 2006 - 9:46pm Media Ownership

The Reverend Jesse Jackson has filed a statement with the Federal Communications Commission urging the agency to approve AT&T's proposed takeover of BellSouth.

"I firmly believe that the merger would benefit people of color and all Americans, in the years to come," concludes Jackson's letter, sent to the Commission on October 11th. Jackson filed on behalf of the Rainbow Push Coalition, of which he is President.

The FCC has opened a brief window for public comment on the proposed merger that will end this Tuesday, October 24th, ten days before the Commission's next Open Meeting scheduled for November 3rd. The agency may make a decision about AT&T's application at that gathering.

Jackson's statement argued that the proposed union will allow the new telecom giant to put more money into broadband and offer cheaper rates to customers.

"The 'digital divide' in this country is very real: technology and training is expensive, and the lack of access to it is creating a segmented society between those who are connected and those who are not," Jackson wrote. "Lower broadband prices and more investment in broadband networks would help extend new technologies to low-income communities and propel the next generation of great leaders and young minds into the digital era."

Not all advocates for the urban poor agree with Jackson's stance. Earlier this year the mayors of New Orleans, Detroit, and Compton, California asked the FCC to deny AT&T's proposed merger with BellSouth, alleging that the telecom giant has a history of redlining minority regions.

"The proposed merger has the potential to exacerbate the differences in access to telecommunications services based on race, income level, and geography," wrote mayors Kwame M. Kilpatrick of Detroit, Eric J. Perrodin of Compton, and Ray Nagin of New Orleans, in a filing dated June 5th.

The three mayors described the regions they govern as the "last wired and the last hired," and expressed concern that the merger could reduce opportunities for minority contractors.

Obviously, Jackson disagrees with this analysis. His letter argued that a merged AT&T/BellSouth will more quickly roll out broadband based video services, "providing a much-needed alternative in communities served by a single cable operator."

"Without video competition, incumbent cable operators have been able to raise their rates and skimp on service without fear of losing customers," Jackson stated. "People of color, who tend to subscribe to premium channels in higher numbers than whites, have been disproportionately affected."