But challenges to this proposed merger must also come from the anti-trust lawyers at the Department of Justice and the congressional watchdogs over consolidation and monopoly issues.
"Stopping this kind of deal is exactly why we have antitrust laws," says Free Press's Aaron.
The congressional role cannot be underestimated. The Department of Justice, the FTC and the FCC get cues from Congress. And the voices of members of the House and Senate will play a critical role in determining whether the merger goes forward.
Some of the initial signals have been good.
"This proposed merger could have a significant impact on the cable industry and affect consumers across the country," says Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar, the chair of the Senate Antitrust Subcommittee, who announced: "I plan to hold a hearing to carefully scrutinize the details of this merger and its potential consequences for both consumers and competition."
The ranking Republican on the committee, Utah Senator Mike Lee , supports the review, as do public interest groups ranging from Public Knowledge to Consumers Union .
But hearings will not be enough. The Senate, in particular, must send clear signals.
Former FCC Commissioner Mike Copps is precisely right when he says of the idea of creating an even larger telecommunications conglomerate, "This is so over the top that it ought to be dead on arrival at the FCC."
Copps, who now serves as a special adviser to Common Cause's Media and Democracy Reform Initiative, is also right when he says, "The proposed deal runs roughshod over competition and consumer choice and is an affront to the public interest."
But the public interest will prevail only if the public, and its elected representatives, raise an outcry in defense of the robust competition that opens "all the avenues to truth."
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