Today's Outrage: FCC's Communication Breakdown

No one was quite sure why the Federal Communications Commission took nearly a year and a half to review the merger between Sirius (SIRI Quote) and XM Satellite Radio. Many people wondered what exactly it was the FCC was doing during that interminable wait.

Now we know, thanks to a nearly year-long investigation by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, which released a report on its findings Tuesday. The report's damning title, Deception and Distrust: The Federal Communications Commission Under Chairman Kevin J. Martin, gives away the plot of the entire 110-page summary.

The report discusses in detail instances in which Martin manipulated, withheld or suppressed data, reports and information. The investigation also found that important FCC matters were not handled in an open and transparent matter, which raised suspicions that interested parties and various issues were not treated fairly. ...