The National Association of Broadcasters has named Jane Mago to head up its legal and regulatory affairs shop as executive VP.
She replaces Marsha MacBride, who is leaving the association but will remain a "strategic advisor" on issues at the FCC and with the new administration, according to an e-mail from NAB President David Rehr to the board and NAB staffers late Thursday.
FCC veteran Jane Mago joined the NAB in September 2004, replacing Jack Goodman as general counsel.
Mago was general counsel of the FCC under Chairman Michael Powell from 2001 to 2003, then moved to the FCC Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis. She exited the FCC after 26 years, where her stint included advising to three commissioners and working on such issues as children's TV and indecency.
MacBride and Mago worked together during their years at the FCC while serving Chairman Powell in a variety of staff positions. Before joining NAB, MacBride was Powell’s chief of staff.
"Jane is a member of the New York Bar Association and has argued cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, as well as the Second, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth and Eleventh Circuits," Rehr said in the e-mail. Her areas of expertise include First Amendment issues, ownership rules, political broadcasting, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and licensing matters."
"As you know, Marsha and Jane have been an incredible team leading NAB through many regulatory challenges in the past few years," he continued. "In their new roles, they will continue to work closely together to advocate on behalf of the broadcast business before the FCC, administration and the courts. As we begin 2009 with a new administration and new FCC leadership on the horizon, NAB’s advocacy efforts will be critically important to the future of broadcasting and we have a strong team working on your behalf."
NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton had no comment on the e-mail.
Broadcasters have had some high-profile setbacks this year on the lobbying front, most notably the FCC's approval of the XM/Sirius merger, and more recently a road map to allowing unlicensed devices into the white spaces between TV channels. Both of those were strongly opposed by NAB.
