Federal Communications commissioner Meredith Attwell Baker announced Wednesday that she will resign from the FCC on June 3 and join Comcast-NBC Universal as its senior vice president of governmental affairs.
Baker, a Republican, joined the FCC in 2009 after working at the National Telecomunications and Information Administration under President George W. Bush. While at the NTIA, Baker oversaw a $1.5 billion coupon program to help consumers make the transition to digital-only television.
The commissioner’s announcement comes four months after she voted to approve a joint venture between Comcast and NBC Universal.
In a March speech on the FCC merger process, she said that, in her opinion, “the NBC/Comcast merger took too long.”
The media reform advocacy group Free Press issued a statement criticizing Baker’s move. “This is just the latest — though perhaps most blatant — example of a so-called public servant cashing in at a company she is supposed to be regulating,” said Free Press president and CEO Craig Aaron. “The continuously revolving door at the FCC continues to erode any prospects for good public policy.”