I was sorry to hear of Jim Quello’s passing.
A truly gracious man, he also was thoughtful and prepared for interviews. I could see he would have penciled or inked in remarks by my questions to remind himself about points he wanted to make when we would talk.
His staff was always helpful in discussing the thoughts of “The Boss”; this was before the Federal Communications Commission moved to the Portals and when things were a little more informal.
(But if you think the commission under Kevin Martin was full of spats, you should have been around during the Quello-Reed Hunt years!)
Quello was an unusual commissioner in that he had real broadcast experience, which of course was one of the criticisms against his appointment — should someone who was coming from the industry and maintained strong ties to it also be a regulator? — but I felt his background gave him insight into how the agency’s decisions would truly affect stations.
He will be missed.
