Washington Beat

Advertisements for HCG Platinum claim that the product can help users lose a pound a day and have helped the manufacturer to multiple millions of dollars in sales. But the FTC wants to see the manufacturer in court.

The unanimous Senate approval of the nominees Tom Wheeler to become the next Chairman of the FCC and of Michael O’Rielly to be the second sitting Republican Commissioner generated the usual round of congratulations and commentary for interested parties inside the Beltway. Here’s what people and organizations had to say.

The Federal Trade Commission comment window was scheduled to close 10/21/13 for those wishing to weigh in on Nielsen’s big $1.26B acquisition of Arbitron. The government shutdown has led to an extension.

Obtaining capital for broadcast investment has long been a major hurdle for those wishing to enter the broadcasting business, and it is hoped that...

There are 53 million Hispanics in the US, comprising 17% of the total population, and the FCC is going to conduct a study to determine how well their television needs are being met.

Once again, confirmation of nominees to the FCC is on ice because of one disgruntled senator. This time, the New York Times is calling on the colleagues of Ted Cruz (R-TX) to pressure him so Tom Wheeler and Michael O’Rielly can get to work.

If a company is going to claim that its wares are made in the USA, it had better be able to back up that claim – and the claim better refer not just to the finished products, but to all of the components of the finished product.

In an address to National Religious Broadcasters, FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai said the organization’s members should not need to seek FCC permission every time they want to collect donations for a local soup kitchen or shelter for battered women.

But its October Open Meeting is out of business – after a forced two weeks-plus vacation, FCC staffers aren’t going to be able to get the session together. It was originally scheduled for 10/22/13. And guidance is forthcoming if you missed a filing deadline due to the shutdown.

Henry Waxman (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Commerce and Energy Committee and the Democratic members of the committee wrote a letter to Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) telling him that important government work, including prepping for the incentive spectrum auction program, needs to get back on track.

Pillsbury attorney Scott R. Flick has explained the rules pertaining to broadcast tobacco advertising and now he turns his attention to a new but related category – electronic cigarettes. Click and learn.

A quartet of senators are concerned about the adverse effect of too much caffeine when consumed by America’s youth and is calling on manufacturers of energy drinks that contain large amounts of the substance to avoid marketing to children.

Recent attempts to improve diversity of ownership in the communications field have relied on a careful definition of small business, which has been necessary to enable any such measure to withstand judicial scrutiny. MMTC is concerned that a definition used in a recent Senate bill may be deleterious.

The Senate Commerce Committee under Chairman Jay Rockefeller has announced the witness panel for an inquiry into the impact of the government shutdown on the US economy. Looking at the panelists, it’s safe to say the state of the communications business will not be a central focus