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FCC official Baker set to join Comcast Corporation
MUMBAI: Meredith Attwell Baker, one of two Republican commissioners on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) who approved the Comcast/NBC Universal deal, is leaving the commission to work for Comcast Corporation, where she will serve as senior vice- president of government affairs.
Comcast Corporation is one of the nation‘s leading providers of entertainment, information and communications products and services.
In her new role, Baker will be in charge of lobbying the government on issues pertinent to the company like piracy and labour relations.
Comcast said Baker would not be able to contact the FCC regarding the Comcast NBCU merger and would not be able to lobby any executive branch official for the remainder of the Obama administration, including during any potential second term for the president. Baker will, however, be able to contact members of Congress.
Baker was one of four members of the FCC, who approved the Comcast‘s deal to acquire ownership of NBC Universal in January. The vote at the FCC passed 4 to 1. Commissioner Michael Copps, a democrat, was the only one who opposed the deal.
Baker will leave her government post when her term expires this June.
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With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
