Author: Diane Bartz
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U.S. government antitrust lawsuit against American Airlines, JetBlue to go forward, judge says
By Diane Bartz WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. judge said on Thursday that the U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust lawsuit against American Airlines Group Inc and JetBlue Airways Corp would go forward. A trial in the case has been set for Sept. 26. In its lawsuit filed in September in Boston, the government asked Judge Leo…
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Senate confirms Bedoya, giving Dems FTC control
WASHINGTON • The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to confirm privacy expert Alvaro Bedoya to be a commissioner on the Federal Trade Commission, giving President Joe Biden’s Democrats control of the agency. Bedoya, who teaches at Georgetown Law School, was confirmed on a vote of 51-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie. Bedoya’s confirmation…
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Republican leader asks for FTC nomination to be pulled
WASHINGTON • U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell urged the Biden administration on Tuesday to reconsider its nomination of privacy expert Alvaro Bedoya to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, possibly extending the Democrats’ inability to take control of the agency. In a floor speech, McConnell said of Bedoya: “He is an essentially foolish choice —…
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Big Tech regulators pass key hurdle before Senate vote
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A divided U.S. Senate Commerce Committee voted Thursday to send President Joe Biden’s nominees to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to the Senate floor for confirmation votes. U.S. Senator Ben Ray Lujan, a Democrat who suffered a stroke earlier this winter, appeared at the hearing to…
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Senators announce bipartisan social media data transparency bill
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Three U.S. senators, two Democrats and a Republican, announced on Thursday a bill to require social media companies like Facebook, now known as Meta Platforms Inc, to give certain researchers access to its data. Senators Chris Coons and Amy Klobuchar, both Democrats, announced the bill along with Rob Portman, a Republican. It…
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U.S. sues to stop Penguin Random House bid to buy Simon & Schuster
By Diane Bartz and David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit on Tuesday aimed at stopping Penguin Random House, the world’s biggest book publisher, from buying competitor Simon & Schuster, saying the deal would give the company “outsized influence” over what Americans read. German media group Bertelsmann, which owns Penguin…