july 29, 2010 secretary marlene h. dortch 445 12th street ...on july 26th, mabuhay alliance met with...

1801 K Street, N.W., Suite 200-K, Washington, D.C. 20006 │ Office 202 530 1444 │ Fax 202 204 5843 │ www.mabuhayalliance.org

July 29, 2010 Secretary Marlene H. Dortch Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 200554 VIA ELECTRONIC FILING

Letter of Ex Parte

Dear Secretary Dortch, On July 26th, Mabuhay Alliance met with Commissioner Clyburn and had separate meetings with legal advisors of commissioners Baker and Copps. On July 27th, the Black Economic Council met with Commissioner Clyburn. The Black Economic Council and Mabuhay Alliance jointly met with the legal advisor to Chairman Genachowski on July 28th. All information conveyed during all meetings were on behalf of the Black Economic Council, the Latino Business Chamber of Greater Los Angeles and Mabuhay Alliance. The primary issue discussed was the Comcast/NBC Universal merger. The three groups discussed the sweetheart agreement Comcast had made with select Latino groups and commitments the three groups wish the FCC to adopt. The groups conveyed that they met or would be meeting with congresspersons Chu, Honda and Waters to discuss a diversity agreement that the FCC should require as a condition for the merger. We are attaching the proposed diversity agreement supported by the three earliest critics of the Comcast merger, Mabuhay Alliance, Latino Business Chamber and the Black Economic Council. This proposal was submitted by Congresswomen Chu and Waters and will be provided to four Commissioners and their aids, with whom we met on July 27th and 28th. The three minority groups also indicated at the meetings that these requests are consistent with those expressed by the Asian Pacific Congressional Caucus in a letter by congresspersons Honda and Chu. Attached is the congressional letter of July 15th.


It was also conveyed that the nature of the commitment would likely affect all future mergers, not just future mergers subject to FCC scrutiny. That is, the Comcast merger could influence the direction of public interest diversity requirements for all companies seeking mergers subject to either regulatory approval or Department of Justice Antirust approval, particularly in light of the Dodd/Frank reform bill and the provisions added by Congresswoman Maxine Waters on diversity as it affects the SCC and bank regulatory bodies. We stated that this could require appropriate diversity commitments that are transparent, measurable and enforceable. Sincerely, Faith Bautista President and CEO Mia Martinez Deputy Director Len Canty Chairman Black Economic Council


July 28, 2010

COMCAST REQUEST PRESENTED TO MAXINE WATERS AND

ASIAN PACIFIC CONGRESSIONAL CAUCUS

TRANSPARENCY

Comcast/NBC should turn over data for 2009 related to employment contracts and

philanthropy to include:

A breakdown of employment data at every level of employment by race, ethnicity and gender;

A breakdown of contract procurement dollars spent by total dollar value, classification of type of contract by race, ethnicity and gender;

A breakdown of philanthropic contributions by type of contribution, and a breakdown of the organization’s who received contributions by race and ethnicity.

FUTURE COMMITMENTS

1) Board of Directors must represent at a minimum the Bush and Obama cabinets with at least 40% minorities (two Blacks, two Latinos and two Asian Americans).

2) The merged company within five years must reach a goal for minority contracts comparable to at least the verifiable records of AT&T and Verizon in 2009.

3) Its employment at all levels of management must reflect the percentage with

proportionate representation of minority groups in the population or its general audience. This is attainable as there are currently a number of companies successfully achieving this goal. Both AT&T and Verizon have employment data that is reflective of the ethnic and race goals.

4) Philanthropy goals for the new merged company committed over the next ten years should be at least 2% of pretax dollars to underserved communities. (This goal is attainable, as Bank of America has exceeded this figure).


5) Allocate 25% of total cost savings estimated to be realized from the merger over the next 10 years to the Black, Latino and Asian American media communities to be used for capacity building for minority-owned media for long-term sustainability in:

a) Production of content; b) Distribution of content; and c) Education and technical assistance.

6) The Minority Advisory Council must represent the minority diversity of the nation. Selection should be a joint effort by the FCC, community groups and Comcast. Community groups cannot be omitted or disqualified from the decision making process as a result of opposing the merger. To ensure qualified minorities as part of that number, they should be compensated at approximately one-fourth the rate of board of directors annually or approximately $50,000 per year.

7) Minorities shall have rights of first refusal for all properties for sale.

8) Establish a $1billion equity fund that will be used to fund the acquisition of above mentioned properties, TV stations and other media outlets. Additionally, this fund will finance TV shows and or movies produced by, written by and directed by minorities, Blacks, Latinos, Asians and Pacific Islanders.

CONGRESSIONAL

A S I A N P A C I F I C AMERICAN C A U C U S

Executive Board

Chair Rep. Michael M. Honda

Vice-Chair Rep. Eni Faleornavaega

Secretary Rep. Madeleine Z. Bordallo

Sen. Daniel K. Akaka Sen. Daniel K. lnouye Rep. Xavier Becerra Rep. Anh "Joseph" Cao Rep. Judy Chu Rep. Charles K. Djou Rep. Al Green Rep. Mazie K. Hirono Rep. Doris 0. Matsui Rep. Gregorio Sablan Rep. Bobby Scott Rep. David Wu

Associate Members

Rep. Gerald Connolly Rep. John Conyers, Jr. Rep. Joseph Crowley Rep. Bob Filner Rep. RaulM. Grijalva ReD. Barbara Lee

Congressman Michaet M. Honda . 1713 Longworth HOB .Washington, D.C. 20515 Tel: 202.225.2631 Fax: 202.225.2699 honda.house.gov/capac

July 15, 2010

Brian Roberts Chief Executive Officer Comcast Corporation 1500 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19 102

David L. Cohen Executive Vice President Comcast Corporation 1500 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19 102

Dear Mr. Roberts and Mr. Cohen,

The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) is committed to increasing diversity in America's media market, particularly through the representation of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs). This diversity should cover all aspects of the business from corporate boardrooms to senior executive positions, from business opportunities to M I presence on-screen.

Comcast's proposed merger with NBC Universal (NBCU) is an important opportunity for Comcast to strengthen its commitment to diversity in the five "Focus Areas" outlined in Comcast's and NBCU's Summary of Diversity Commitments: Governance, workforce, supplier diversity, programming, and community investments and partnerships. We appreciate your outreach to CAPAC and your work with AAF'I advocacy groups in the community. Based on multiple conversations we have had with you, we write today to make clear our expectations and to seek additional details concerning a number of important issues particular to the AAF'I community.

~e'p. Zoe Lofgren Rep. Betty McCollum Commitment to Improving Corporate Board and Workforce Diversity Rep. Jerty McNerney We appreciate Comcast's public commitment to being an industry leader in the area of Rep. Laura workforce diversity, as well as diversity on its ~ o a r d o f ~irectori . We would like to know how Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard R ~ P . ,anice schakowsky Comcast will act upon this commitment. In the past few years, CAPAC Members have raised ~ e p . Jackie Speier the issue of the lack of AAPI representation on Comcast's board. These discussions included Rep. Pete Stark Rep. Lynn Woolsey meetings that followed the cancellation of the AZN Television Network, and during more recent

discussions. We expect that Comcast will add an AAPI member to its Board of Directors within two years of the merger closing.

In addition to the board of Directors, diversity in Comcast's workforce at all levels of employment is very important. We expect that Comcast's commitments will include a serious look at promoting AAPIs to senior and mid-level management positions. We also expect that Comcast will work closely with the AAPI Advisory Counsel to identify recruiters and candidates when vacancies occur. We would like to know what specific investments Comcast will make over the next five years to ensure that these plans are successful; and what benchmarks will be used to measure success.

Finally, the current pipeline for AAPI talent in the media industry needs to be more robust. To that end, we expect that Comcast will increase support for internship programs and scholarships that encourage AAPI students to work in the media industry.

New External Diversity Advisory Councils We appreciate that Comcast and NBCU have announced the creation of new external Diversity Advisory Councils, with one council of nine members specifically tasked with sharing the concerns of the AAF'I community with the proposed merged corporation. According to the public commitments on diversity, these councils will evaluate and monitor the company's diversity initiatives. For these councils to have a meaningful role, Comcast and NBCU must have a relationship of openness and trust with the advisory board. With the importance of transparency in mind, data on the five "Focus Areas" of diversity outlined above and performance metrics must be shared with the Diversity Advisory Councils each year, and that there will be meaningful mechanisms in place for Comcast to consider and act upon the proposals, requests, and recommendations from the Councils.

On-demand Channel Featuring AAPI Content We appreciate Comcast's commitment to launching an Asian Cinema On-Demand Channel in the fall of 2010 that will feature films from across the Asian Pacific Islander diaspora. This content will highlight the experiences, accomplisl~ments, and points-of-view of the AAPI community. As you know, we were disappointed by the cancellation of the AZN Television Network in 2008. To prevent this fate for the Asian Cinema On-Demand Channel, Comcast must make significant investments to ensure the success of this offering.

In this vein, the Asian Cinema On-Demand Channel should be a long-term endeavor, with substantial investments in marketing and promotion. We would like to know the timeframe of Comcast's commitment to this offering, the types and amounts of investments that Comcast plans to make in the new On-Demand Channel, and the availability of this programming in terms of cost and geographic availability.

Finally, we applaud Comcast's plan to hire a curator, ideally an expert in AAPI arts and media, to ensure high quality and cutting-edge programming that appeals to AAPI audiences and beyond. This position will require sufficient resources and authority to ensure the success of this new channel.

Community Investment: Original AAPI Media Content As part of the proposed merger, Comcast has made specific commitments to expand minority-focused programming and to increase the diversity of on-camera talent and production executives. We expect that Comcast will make significant investments in original AAPI media content, and that Comcast will work with the AAPI Advisory Council to help identify opportunities to work with the AAPI community. We would also like to know Comcast's plans to increase diversity on the production set, both in front of and behind the camera.

Development of an AAPI Owned and Operated Cable Network As part of the proposed merger, Comcast has committed to creating six independently owned and operated cable networks to its systems over the next three years. As part of this commitment, Comcast has promised that three of the six channels will be networks in which minorities have a substantial ownership interest. One of these channels should be AAPI-owned, and should distribute diverse content that caters to the AAPI community.

Commitment to Increasing Supplier Diversity Comcast has pledged to enhance diversity in the procurement of goods and services and to increase procurement with diverse business partners. We expect that Comcast will take this pledge seriously as it relates to the AAPI community. We would like to know what specific steps Comcast will take to improve supplier diversity with respect to AAPI-owned businesses. Finally, what benchmarks will Comcast use to measure improvements in supplier diversity? We expect that Comcast and NBCU

will strive to increase the percentage of business conducted with AAPI owned vendors to be on par with the percentage of AAF'I owned businesses in the communities they serve.

Commitment to Forming an MOU

Finally, we ask that Comcast and NBCU work with the AAF'I community leaders to develop a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that can formalize Comcast and NBCU's commitments to investing in diversity initiatives with respect to the AAPI community. We believe that an MOU between your companies and the AAF'I leadership organizations would show that Comcast and NCBU are willing to negotiate in good faith and are serious about achieving these diversity commitments.

We appreciate Comcast's efforts to create an open dialogue about its commitment to diversity, and look fonvard to your response.

Michael M. Honda Chair, CAPAC Task Force

july 29, 2010 secretary marlene h. dortch 445 12th street ...on july 26th, mabuhay alliance met with...

Documents