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Comcast Caught Ghost Writing Merger Support Letters

While this is sadly the status quo for most companies in most industries, The Verge does a good job in a report highlighting how Comcast has been ghost writing letters for politicians expressing gushing support for their merger with Time Warner Cable. Comcast has been frequently crowing about the amount of support their merger enjoys, often forgetting to mention that the lion's share of this support has to be paid for in some fashion.

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The letters are being provided for any politicians that values Comcast campaign contributions, and they very often involve quite simply lying about the amount of support Comcast enjoys in many towns:
quote:
Not only did the mayor’s letter express personal excitement for the gargantuan deal — which critics say will create a monopoly that will harm millions of consumers — but it also claimed that the entire town of Roswell adored Comcast. "When Comcast makes a promise to act, it is comforting to know that they will always follow through," Wood's letter explained. "This is the type of attitude that makes Roswell proud to be involved with such a company," the letter asserts, "our residents are happy with the services it has provided and continues to provide each day."
When asked for comment, Comcast would only state:
quote:
"We reached out to policy makers, community leaders, business groups and others across the country to detail the public interest benefits of our transaction with Time Warner Cable," Sena Fitzmaurice, a Comcast spokesperson, said in an email. "When such leaders indicate they’d like to support our transaction in public filings, we've provided them with information on the transaction. All filings are ultimately decided upon by the filers, not Comcast."
In other words, the slimy process of doing the thinking for politicians is ok because hey, these political leaders can simply choose not to use the letters. That makes it all ok, right?

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goalieskates
Premium Member
join:2004-09-12
land of big

3 recommendations

goalieskates

Premium Member

good article

This alone should be grounds for rejecting the merger. You don't reward liars and crooks, be they in business, in government, or lobbyists.