The Broadcast Flag was up on the Hill Wednesday for a full hearing in front of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. The two-hour, two-panel hearing solicited general feedback on whether or not Congress should provide the FCC with the authority to put the broadcast flag in place. Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) presided over the hearing, which included discussion on the merits of the broadcast flag for both television and radio.

In general, the hearing was slightly learning towards supporting the broadcast flag, although it was clear from listening to the two-plus hour hearing that not all parties involved understand the technology or what is at stake, while some others are embarrassingly dishonest and disingenuous. In what follows, I am going to highlight the most important points of the discussion, and engage those points where I see problems.