OfcomWatch friend Roger Darlington today posts about a new Ofcom initiative: The regulator has apparently created an invite-only online discussion forum. We had wind of this earlier, and I basically maintained a wait-and-see attitude.

Like the snooze button on an alarm clock, any change in Ofcom’s procedures has its trade-offs:

The good? Ofcom are taking advantage of learning opportunities at an early stage of regulation, apparently engaging in online discussion of issues with NGOs and academics. Ofcom clearly recognise the benefit of external critical input, sometimes informally solicited and exchanged, to the regulatory process.

The bad? Well, Roger says it best: “The problem is that it’s a closed discussion.” As a closed discussion, there is no guarantee that Ofcom is receiving the proper amount or range of critical input. Worse still, who selected the invitees? It doesn’t do much good if the most likely critical voices are not invited to participate. What justifies someone’s elevation to the status of a consigliere whilst others are shut-out?

This practice of exclusion fosters the type of cynicism that keeps our little blog going!