New FCC Website, ECFS 2.0 in the Works, Sohn Says
CAMBRIDGE, Md. -- A new FCC website and an updated electronic comment filing system (ECFS) are in the works, said Gigi Sohn, Chairman Tom Wheeler's counselor, on a panel Saturday at the 2015 FCBA annual seminar. The beta version of the new fcc.gov is expected to launch this year. Sohn declined to offer a date for what she called “ECFS 2.0.”
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The current version of ECFS “failed” the FCC several times during its recent 4 million comment proceeding on the net neutrality order, and needs a revamp to cope with the FCC's more visible position in the modern age, Sohn said. She contrasted the present era of commission-centered stories appearing on the front pages of major newspapers with the industry landscape when she began at the Media Access Project in the 1980s -- Communications Daily was one the few publications then covering the FCC, she said. The newer version of ECFS will be built to better handle a high volume of comments, while the new website will be easier to navigate and contain more useful information, Sohn said.
Many of the millions of comments on net neutrality were filed by citizens using online forms, and Sohn said she doesn't oppose that method of activism or consider such comments to be less authentic than individually authored ones. “When real people express comments in their own name, it means people are getting engaged in the policy process,” Sohn said. “I don't know why that's bad.”
Social media is a useful tool for letting regulators connect with the citizens they serve, but it shouldn't be used as a proxy for actually meeting with stakeholders and citizens, Sohn said. “If we don't have a complete record, we can't make policy.” The FCC doesn’t make policy “based on what's trending on Twitter,” Sohn said. Private citizens referenced by Wheeler in his recent speeches at open commission meetings came to his attention through social media, Sohn said.
Sohn would like Wheeler to do more town meetings, field hearings and similar “face-to-face” events outside the Washington area that would let him connect with more Americans “outside the Beltway,” she said. Social media isn't a substitute for such events, Sohn said. “We have to go outside our comfort zone.” More face-to-face events are being planned, Sohn said.