Media Giants for Health Care

I said on Twitter yesterday that Comcast was endorsing health care reform as a sop designed to butter up Obama’s regulators who must approve the Comcast-NBC deal. But that becomes even more clear when you look at the letter Comcast’s CEO Brian Roberts wrote.

Roberts starts with an utterly shameless suck up. Congratulations, Mr. President, you rock! But as part of that suck up, Roberts appeals to the themes–job creation, investment, and innovation–taht Comcast will mobilize to justify its acquisition of NBC. (He does not, for some reason, mention the real reason behind the deal: profits.)

Congratulations on today’s Summit on Jobs and Economic Growth. I believe that hosting a thoughtful and vibrant discussion with the Vice President, members of your Cabinet, business leaders, scholars, and other public officials about the persistent economic challenges confronting America and the path we must forge to foster job creation, investment, and innovation is a really important initiative.

Then, Roberts uses his non-attendance at the summit as his excuse for making his transparent bid to suck up to Obama.

Because of our announcement today that we have formed a joint venture with General Electric consisting of NBCU’s businesses and Comcast’s cable networks, I am unable to attend the Summit. I very much appreciate the outreach to the business community, and want to express one of the thoughts I intended to make at the Summit –that enactment of comprehensive health care reform legislation is, in my judgment, critical to putting this country on a path of sustained growth and prosperity.

“I can’t attend because I’m busy becoming an even bigger media behemoth and oh by the way I’m sorry I haven’t mentioned yet that I support your signature policy issue but I do.”

From there, Roberts goes on to prove that he has been paying attention to Obama’s talking points, citing the cost and the amount by which it reduces deficits–which Roberts labels “a strong dose of fiscal responsibility.”

Then Roberts’ letter gets really interesting. He makes a sustained pitch for the digital technology aspects of reform.

I also strongly support the development of standards and protocols to promote the digitization of health records and documents, electronic data matching, and the interoperability of systems for enrollment in health services programs. Such steps could revolutionize how health centers and hospitals operate and enrich how health providers and patients communicate. Telemedicine and  distant health services will literally transform the delivery and monitoring of health care services and the training of health care professionals. As a leading information and communications technology company, Comcast understands the generative power of broadband technology and its potential to improve the overall quality of health care, while stimulating job creation and restoring our economy.

Notice that Roberts assumes this will all be done via broadband and not–say–satellite.

The second to last line of the letter–just before Roberts says he looks forward to working with Obama in the future–reiterates the ties between information technology and healthcare.

We also look forward to working with your Administration to make health care information technology the best in the world.

It appears that Roberts is not just endorsing Obama’s big policy initiative at an opportune time, he’s also suggesting that Comcast, the biggest cable company, will be the one driving the expansion of health care tech.

Now, as it happens, I sat next to a Michigan state employee pitching a health care information technology project for stimulus funds earlier this year. He made it clear that the need to wire Michigan’s rural UP to improve health care was critical to improving care. But he acknowledged that by wiring for health care, you would effectively provide a foothold for consumer broadband.

Golly, what a surprise, then, that the nation’s biggest cable company is so hot to support Obama’s health care program. Gosh, what a surprise that he thinks this might be a route to jobs.

Roberts has it pretty (ahem) wired. If he can get the Obama Administration to approve this merger and in the process have it understood that he will be very cooperative in efforts to wire for health care technology, he not only gets less competition for health care advertising focused on reaching the 30 million new insurance customers that health care reform will create. But he also stands to get a big share of the business wiring our nation’s hospitals … and living rooms.

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16 replies
  1. TarheelDem says:

    Good catch. To my mind, the money quote is this:

    by wiring for health care, you would effectively provide a foothold for consumer broadband.

    Watch for similar sentiments from other telecommunications companies interested in expanding broadband and in media companies interested in exploiting consumer broadband for content.

    Can Time-Warner or Viacom be far behind?

  2. fatster says:

    Yes, good catch all right. These people are so transparent in their pursuit of the almighty (well, not so much anymore) dollar. Watch out UP!

    On another topic, for Yoovian observers, here’s an article on DOJ “double downing” its defense of Yoo. Plus, some interesting looking related articles in the left-hand sidebar.

  3. readerOfTeaLeaves says:

    Roberts:

    consisting of NBCU’s businesses and Comcast’s cable networks…As a leading information and communications technology company, Comcast understands the generative power of broadband technology and its potential to improve the overall quality of health care, while stimulating job creation and restoring our economy.

    Fantastic catch, EW.

    Cable.
    Cable.
    Cable.

    One question worth asking in all this wonderfullness and ooey-gooey-gooshiness is: “And, Mr. Roberts, what is the position of you, your board, your employees, and your industry on the subject of Net Neutrality in all its myriad ramifications.”

    Paging Lawrence Lessig and the eWheelies, plus whoever reads and comments over at Danger Room…

    And that’s just for starters.

  4. earlofhuntingdon says:

    Would it be too much to ask that Barack Obama, Esq., a scion of the Harvard Law School, resuscitate the anti-trust divisions at the DoJ and FCC? They were wan and pale before Bush, and he drove a stake into their hearts.

    Media consolidation, consolidation of content delivery, and uniting the two, are not in the consumer’s best interest. Not without adequate regulation and oversight of their excesses, not without first setting out universal access rules for, say, the Internet. Not without establishing rules about who owns and can use personally identifiable consumer data, disclosed via cable viewing and Internet use.

    I have no illusions that Mr. Obama will do anything but triangulate for support in exchange for letting a mega-merger go through, while suggesting to the public that its cable reception will better, if more costly. But he and Rahm should not get free passes for another display of doing a Bush.

    • bobschacht says:

      …Would it be too much to ask that Barack Obama, Esq., a scion of the Harvard Law School, resuscitate the anti-trust divisions at the DoJ and FCC?

      A most excellent idea.

      The thing that worries me most about the Comcast buyout is that they are about as conservative as Rupert Murdoch, IIRC. Would they stifle Olbermann and Maddow?

      Bob in AZ

  5. readerOfTeaLeaves says:

    the anti-trust divisions at the DoJ and FCC

    What are these anti-trust divisions of which you speak?
    Neverheardofum.

    • earlofhuntingdon says:

      My point exactly. They did give a free pass to Spring/Nextel, to SBC, to P&G/Gillette and others during the Bush anti-anti-trust regime.

      • emptywheel says:

        Well, yeah, most of those companies happily worked with the govt to spy on Americans.

        Don’t you think Comcast would (if it hasn’t already) be willing to do the same for bigger profits and merger approval?

  6. jeaton says:

    Oh, I see. The merger is a public service. And after the merger Comcast will do what it can to kill net neutrality. F**k Comcast!

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