Tag Archives: U.S. State Department

President Joe Biden Nominates Anna Gomez to Serve on Federal Communications Commission

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Anna Gomez is President Joe Biden’s communications commission choice…

The Latina telecom lawyer  has been nominated by Biden to serve on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), a five-member regulatory body stuck in a 2-2 deadlock.

Anna GomezIn addition to the nomination for Gomez, Biden announced the re-nomination of commissioners Geoffrey Starks and Brendan Carr to serve additional 5-year terms.

Gomez, a former FCC and U.S. Senate staffer, is serving as a telecom policy adviser in the U.S. State Department. She also served as deputy administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, a key agency within the Commerce Department involved in improving internet accessibility.

For more than two years, the FCC has been in a stalemate, which has significantly limited its ability to weigh in on all but the most anodyne topics. Commissioners are nominated by the president, meaning the regulatory body should be in Democratic control with Biden in the White House.

Gigi Sohn, a longtime Washington presence and veteran regulator, withdrew her nomination earlier this year after intense opposition from Republican activists and industry lobbyists. Sohn had been part of an effort led by President Barack Obama to achieve net neutrality, a policy opposed by major broadband providers and telecom firms. During confirmation hearings, Senate Republicans said Sohn would shift the FCC too far to the left.

In a statement, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel congratulated Gomez, Starks and Carr. Gomez, she said, “brings with her a wealth of telecommunications experience, a substantial record of public service, and a history of working to ensure the U.S. stays on the cutting edge of keeping us all connected.” She added, “I look forward to working with a full complement of FCC Commissioners to advance our mission to connect everyone, everywhere.”

Negrete Honored for Helping Improve Mexico’s Justice System

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Layda Negrete has been awarded the International Women of Courage Award.

U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Anthony Wayne this week awarded the Mexican filmmaker, who has been an advocate of judicial reform in her home country, with the U.S. State Department’s special honor.

Layda Negrete

“The U.S. secretary of state recognizes women who have demonstrated exceptional courage, determination and leadership in promoting human rights, social justice and women’s equality and progress,” the ambassador said in acknowledging Negrete’s contributions to improving Mexico’s justice system.

Negrete and co-director Roberto Hernandez – both lawyers-turned-filmmakers – made the 2010 documentary “Presunto culpable,” which tells the dramatic story of Mexican Jose Antonio “Toño” Zuñiga, a young man sentenced to 20 years in prison for a murder he did not commit. He was convicted on the basis of false evidence and testimony.

Presumed Guilty

Zuñiga, who served two years in prison, was released after Negrete and Hernandez took up his case and filed an appeal, documenting acts of corruption in the criminal justice system.

“Presunto culpable” is the highest-grossing documentary in Mexico’s history.

The U.S. Embassy said that with her films “Presunto culpable” and “El tunel,” an earlier courtroom documentary, Negrete has “provoked public indignation and generated popular support for the important reform approved in 2008 that will made Mexico’s justice system more transparent and efficient.”

For her part, Negrete dedicated the award to the network of civil organizations advocating for oral trials, saying their “continued persistence will not be halted by continued resistance.”

Negrete, who has more than 10 years of experience conducting research on criminal justice systems across Mexico, is currently a graduate student in Public Policy at UC Berkeley.