Change is on its way to the alphabet agencies with media, telecom, tech and internet oversight—but it’s taking two tracks. While the Obama-Biden transition team fits potential appointees to posts, review teams are diving in deep at the agencies and departments to provide the kind of info needed to make “strategic policy, budgetary, and personnel decisions.”  (That includes ensuring senior appointees can “begin implementing signature policy initiatives immediately after they are sworn in.”) This provides us with a new pastime: trying to figure out what the review team choices mean.

—FCC: The appointment of review co-leaders Susan Crawford and Kevin Werbach, (not Ken, as the transition site still has), translates as a boost for net neutrality but that’s the simplistic view. Crawford believes the internet is a utility and that the U.S. is far behind on broadband adpotion. Werbach is an assistant professor of legal studies at Wharton, the founder of the Supernova tech conference and a former FCC counsel for new technology. Crawford teaches internet law and communications law at the University of Michigan Law School; she was on the board of ICANN and founded OneWebDay.

From Werbach’s blog: “The FCC has a vital role to play in the nascent Network Age. During the campaign, Barack Obama and his advisors demonstrated an understanding of the transformative power of today’s communications technologies.  I’m excited to help carry over that understanding in the Transition to his Administration.”

—FTC: The team leads are Susan Ness, a Clinton appointee to the FCC and commissioner for seven years, and Phil Weiser, a professor of law at the University of Colorado (antitrust policy, innovation policy, and internet policy).

—FCC vets: The transition team is dotted with FCC vets including Don Gips, the Level 3 exec on leave to colead the agency review process, was chief of the International Bureau; Reed Hundt, the former FCC chairman, is part of the working group for international trade and economics agencies; Henry Rivera, co-lead for the NSF review team, former commissioner; Jon Wilkins, a member of the working group; and Gregory L. Rosston, former deputy chief economist.

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