Former FCC Chairman Michael Powell, who was appointed to the agency by former President Bill Clinton, has been named president and CEO of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, effective April 25. Powell, the son of former Secretary of State Gen. Colin Powell, will succeed Kyle McSlarrow, who announced last week that he will be leaving the association to take the reins at Comcast.
Michael Powell led the once-quiet FCC through a number of highly publicized (and highly politicized) battles during his four year tenure as chairman.
Powell was first appointed to the commission in 1998 and was named chairman by then-President George W. Bush in 2001.
In his role at the FCC, Powell was considered a friend of the cable industry. During his high profile tenure with the agency, he pushed for increased fines for obscenity and indecent conduct on television, and was a driving force behind the $550,000 hit Viacom faced after the now-infamous Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction.
He is currently a senior adviser at Providence Equity Partners and is honorary co-chairman of Broadband for America. Before the FCC, Powell was chief of staff of the US Justice Dept.’s Antitrust Division.
Tags: colin powell, FCC, michael powell, national cable and telecommunications association, ncta, telecommunications lobbying
