As The Dominoes Tumble

So Obama won the election; folks in New York, Chicago, LA and elsewhere danced in the streets; the Bush White House dog bit a reporter; and life as we know it in multiplatform political land has changed dramatically. That's not just because the FCC’s chief-in-blinders, Kevin Martin, will soon depart the Portals. (That sound you hear is the cable chorus warming up for a rousing, circa January 20 rendition of “Ding, Dong, The Witch Is Dead”.) It's also because the entire D.C. power structure vis-a-vis all things multiplatform is tumbling into a radically new order.

Consider this: At the end of last week, the increasingly frail Senator Robert Byrd (D-WV) relinquished control of the mighty Senate Appropriations Committee and the next-in-line candidate – Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI) – quickly snapped the position up. That's not necessarily a biggie for multiplatform matters EXCEPT ... for the past two years Inouye chaired the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee (which handles most multiplatform matters). Inouye was never much of a media buff but either of the two Johns most likely to succeed him - ie Rockefeller (D-WV) or Kerry (D-MA) - would likely take a very different approach. (Given that Kerry's name scores high on the "mentioning" list for a position in the Obama White House, my bet is on Rockefeller for the Senate Committee. Either way, expect big changes.)

Big changes are also afoot in the House where current chairman of the House Telecom Subcommittee (and long-time go-to multiplatform guy) Ed Markey (D-MA) is rumored to be eying a spot on the Energy Committee. If Markey goes, the ballpark for multiplatform matters in the House splits wide open ... and that my friends (to channel John McCain for a moment) is just the start of this year’s great dominoes tumble in D.C.