FCC commissioner Deborah Tate resigns
(amongothersources) is reporting that FCC Commissioner Deborah Tate has resigned. This is the woman who, less than a month ago, said that World of Warcraft was one of the top reasons for college drop-outs. Now, I can't entirely blame someone for seeing MMOs as a bad thing, there are certainly a lot of people who don't seem to have the ability to throttle their playtime, but that really wasn't her first silly act or statement while she held her position (taking advice from corporations is bad, mmkay). A lot of people will take this news as a godsend.
Of course, that doesn't mean she didn't do any good at all. Your personal views may differ from hers depending on the topic, but she's generally pretty well regarded for her efforts when it comes to issues regarding children and their protection. Personally, I don't agree with the extreme 'think of the children!' mentality (or Tate's approach to it) that's become increasingly common, but again, my opinion doesn't represent a nation. A few out of line comments don't negate her efforts entirely.
I eagerly await the chance to learn more about her replacement when the time comes, and the impending review of the FCC should prove to be interesting at the very least. Especially interesting when you consider the fact that Kevin Werbach, co-chair of President-Elect Obama's FCC transition, is a WoW player himself. Does that say a lot about his political stances, affiliations, and personal opinion? No, not really, but I like to think he'll be a little more tech savvy and modern than Deborah Tate was and will do a decent job bringing the FCC up to speed.
I certainly hold no ill will toward Tate over something as small as a comment about a game I play. I'm just really curious to see how much things in the FCC will change over the next few months (or years).
[Thanks, Craig!]
