Pioneers Chair in Telecommunications, Penn State University
Dr. Christopher Ali is the Pioneers Chair in Telecommunications and a full professor of telecommunications in the Bellisario College. He is also an affiliate faculty with the College of Information, Science and Technology (IST) at Penn State. He holds a Ph.D. in communication studies from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania (2013). His research interests include media and telecommunications policy and regulation, broadband policy, critical political economy, critical geography, comparative media systems, qualitative research methods, media localism, and local news.
Ali uses critical, qualitative methods to research broadband policy, planning, deployment and digital equity in the United States. Presently, he has a series of projects dedicated to “broadband stories,” where he is researching how community-based stories can influence public policy. These projects form the basis of his forthcoming book, Where the wires end: Stories from the Digital Divide to be published in Spring 2027 with the University of Chicago Press. In 2026, Dr. Ali also completed a major grant funded research project for the Center for Rural Pennsylvania analyzing how the digital divide impacts rural first responders in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Ali is the author or editor of four books: "Public Service Media’s Contribution to Society"(Nordicom, 2023, with Prof. Dr. Manuel Puppis), "Farm Fresh Broadband: The Politics of Rural Connectivity" (MIT Press, 2021), "Media Localism: The Policies of Place" (University of Illinois Press, 2017), "Echoes of Gabriel Tarde: What we know better or different 100 years later" (USC Annenberg Press, 2014, with Drs. Elihu Katz and Joohan Kim).
Based on his expertise, Ali was called to testify before the Senate Commerce Committee in 2021 on broadband funding and policy programs. He has also briefed members of the House Democrats Task Force on Rural Broadband, the New York State Blue Ribbon Commission on Re-Imagining New York, the Federal Communications Commission, and has presented before numerous state and county governments.
Dr. Ali has published over two dozen peer reviewed articles in high-ranking academic journals including, The Journal of Communication, Communication Theory, Media Culture & Society, and Telecommunications Policy. His writing has also been published in Tech Policy Press, The New York Times, The Hill, Realtor Magazine, Law & Political Economy, Digital Beat, GovTech, Zocalo Public Square, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Washington Monthly, Columbia Journalism Review, and The Conversation. He is a frequent press commentator on the subjects of broadband, media policy, and local news, with interviews in the Associated Press, Hollywood Reporter, Business Insider, Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, Los Angeles Times, NPR, CNET, CBC, Bloomberg, and other major national and international news outlets.
Ali presently serves as the Associate Editor of the journal Communication Law & Policy. He also sits on the advisory board of the Centre County Film Festival.
Previously, he served as the Chair of the Communication Law and Policy Division of the International Communication Association (2021-2023) and was an advisor to the Virginia Joint Committee on Technology & Science. He has also served on the Federal Communication Commission’s Communication Equity and Diversity Council Working Group and was a board member of Charlottesville Tomorrow, a non-profit news organization in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Dr. Ali has held fellowships or grants from the Center for Rural Pennsylvania (2025), the Benton Institute for Broadband and Society (2019-2020), the Global Future Council of the World Economic Forum (2018), the Center for Advanced Research in Global Communications (CARGC) at the University of Pennsylvania (2017 & 2022), the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia University (2016-2017 & 2019-2021), the University of Fribourg in Fribourg Switzerland (2015), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (2011).
Ali is an award-winning scholar, having been honored with the 2024 Bellisario Alumni Association Teaching Excellence Award, the 2025 Dean’s Excellence Award for Research & Creative Accomplishment, and the 2025 Broadband Hero Award.
Vice President and Deputy Chief Counsel, U.S. Chamber Litigation Center, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Jennifer B. Dickey is vice president and deputy chief counsel at the U.S. Chamber Litigation Center, the litigation arm of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Dickey handles a variety of litigation matters for the Chamber.
Dickey joined the Chamber following her service as Acting Assistant Attorney General and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. She also previously served as Deputy Associate Attorney General, providing strategic oversight of the Civil Division, Civil Rights Division, and Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, as well as Special Assistant to the President and Associate Counsel to the President. In the latter capacity, she provided legal advice on a wide array of executive actions and rulemakings, civil litigation, and judicial nominations.
Dickey also practiced law at Kirkland & Ellis LLP before her government service. She was a commercial and appellate litigator, representing businesses in federal and state courts.
Earlier in her career, Dickey served as a law clerk for the Honorable Clarence Thomas of the Supreme Court of the United States and the Honorable William H. Pryor Jr. of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Dickey earned her law degree magna cum laude from Duke University School of Law, where she was an Executive Editor of the Duke Law Journal, and her undergraduate degree magna cum laude from Dartmouth College.
Counsel, U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee
Partner, Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP
Dan leverages a deep understanding of telecommunications regulation and the broader legal landscape to help clients achieve their business goals. He provides practical and creative advice, develops persuasive policy advocacy, and represents clients in court appeals of agency matters. In an era in which courts play a larger role than ever in shaping regulation, Dan’s mix of legal depth, regulatory knowledge, and policymaking experience make him stand out.
His practice encompasses federal and state telecommunications regulation, emerging Internet issues, funding programs, online privacy frameworks, and consumer protection laws. He co-teaches a telecommunications law course at Georgetown Law School.
Prior to joining WBK, Dan spent eight years in leadership positions in the Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau. There, Dan guided net neutrality and broadband infrastructure proceedings, implementation of caller ID authentication and the Robocall Mitigation Database, transaction reviews, and many other agency actions. He is especially proud of his contributions to establishing 988 as the three-digit code for the national suicide prevention hotline.
Today, courts make many of the most important decisions regarding agencies, and Dan regularly represents clients in court appeals concerning agency matters. He and the WBK team prevailed before the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of industry associations in FCC v. Consumers’ Research, which affirmed the constitutionality of the Universal Service Fund.
Dan is a graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law School. Outside of work, Dan enjoys spending time with his kids, baking bread and cooking, playing card and board games, attempting to play sports, and science fiction/fantasy.
Chief Economist, The Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies
George S. Ford is the chief economist for the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Public Policy Studies, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) research organization that studies broad public-policy issues related to governance, social and economic conditions, with a particular emphasis on the law and economics of the digital age.
Of Counsel, Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP
Mr. Halley joined the firm in 2014. For over four and a half years, Mr. Halley served at the Federal Communications Commission, most recently as Associate Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau, with a particular focus on universal service program reform, consumer and competition policy impacted by the ongoing transition to all IP networks, and overall strategic planning. In this capacity, Mr. Halley also served as legal advisor to Chairman Wheeler on the topics of E-rate modernization and inmate calling services reform. Prior to this, he was Acting Director of the Commission’s Office of Legislative Affairs and legal advisor to the Wireline Bureau Chief. Before joining the FCC, Mr. Halley spent over 5 years as the Director of Government Affairs for NENA – The 911 Association where he served as the association’s liaison with Congress, the FCC and other government agencies and organizations on key issues affecting 911 and emergency communications. Prior to this, Mr. Halley served as the Deployment Director for COMCARE, a non-profit emergency response alliance. Additionally, from August 2002 to August 2004 he took time away from Washington to pursue a career in music recording an album and touring the country as the rhythm guitar player for Lava/Atlantic records recording artist Tony C and the Truth, playing with acts such as Sugar Ray, Living Colour, Blues Traveler and others.
Chief Advocate and General Counsel, INCOMPAS
Angie joined INCOMPAS in 2013 as its chief advocate and general counsel, managing the INCOMPAS policy team and its work before the federal government. FierceTelecom named Angie a "Rising Star in Wireline" in 2014 and one of the Top Women in Wireline in 2015 for her advocacy work on behalf of INCOMPAS members. Angie is a member of the Federal Communications Bar Association and has been involved in its leadership as a former Executive Committee and Nominations Committee member.
Before joining INCOMPAS, Angie was legal advisor to FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, where she was primarily responsible for the Commissioner’s wireline and broadband agenda, including the Commissioner’s work as chair of three federal-state joint boards. Prior to that, Angie was a special counsel in the Spectrum and Competition Policy Division of the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. She also practiced telecommunications and media law in the Washington, D.C. office of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP for more than a decade. Angie earned a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America, where she also earned a certification from The Institute for Communications Law Studies, and she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, from Baylor University and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Vice President & State Legislative Counsel, NCTA
President, Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Public Policy Studies
Lawrence J. Spiwak is President of the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that studies broad public-policy issues related to governance, social and economic conditions, with a particular emphasis on the law and economics of the digital age. Mr. Spiwak is a prolific scholar whose work is frequently cited by policymakers, major news media and academic journals around the world, and is in the top 1.3%of authors downloaded on the Social Science Research Network. Mr. Spiwak currently serves as the co-chair of the Federal Communications Bar Association’s (FCBA) committee responsible for overseeing the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS LAW JOURNAL and is a member of the program committee of the Telecommunications Policy Research Conference (“TPRC”). Mr. Spiwak is also the recipient of the FCBA’s Distinguished Service Award. Prior to joining the Phoenix Center, Mr. Spiwak was a Senior Attorney with the Competition Division in the FCC’s Office of General Counsel from 1994-1998. While in college, Mr. Spiwak was accepted into the Presidential Stay-In School program where he was responsible for delivering classified and confidential material among senior White House and Reagan Administration officials and received a full FBI security clearance. Mr. Spiwak received his B.A. with Special Honors from the George Washington University and his J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. Mr. Spiwak is a member in good standing of the bars of New York, Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
Chief Economist, The Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies
George S. Ford is the chief economist for the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Public Policy Studies, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) research organization that studies broad public-policy issues related to governance, social and economic conditions, with a particular emphasis on the law and economics of the digital age.
Of Counsel, Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP
Mr. Halley joined the firm in 2014. For over four and a half years, Mr. Halley served at the Federal Communications Commission, most recently as Associate Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau, with a particular focus on universal service program reform, consumer and competition policy impacted by the ongoing transition to all IP networks, and overall strategic planning. In this capacity, Mr. Halley also served as legal advisor to Chairman Wheeler on the topics of E-rate modernization and inmate calling services reform. Prior to this, he was Acting Director of the Commission’s Office of Legislative Affairs and legal advisor to the Wireline Bureau Chief. Before joining the FCC, Mr. Halley spent over 5 years as the Director of Government Affairs for NENA – The 911 Association where he served as the association’s liaison with Congress, the FCC and other government agencies and organizations on key issues affecting 911 and emergency communications. Prior to this, Mr. Halley served as the Deployment Director for COMCARE, a non-profit emergency response alliance. Additionally, from August 2002 to August 2004 he took time away from Washington to pursue a career in music recording an album and touring the country as the rhythm guitar player for Lava/Atlantic records recording artist Tony C and the Truth, playing with acts such as Sugar Ray, Living Colour, Blues Traveler and others.
Chief Advocate and General Counsel, INCOMPAS
Angie joined INCOMPAS in 2013 as its chief advocate and general counsel, managing the INCOMPAS policy team and its work before the federal government. FierceTelecom named Angie a "Rising Star in Wireline" in 2014 and one of the Top Women in Wireline in 2015 for her advocacy work on behalf of INCOMPAS members. Angie is a member of the Federal Communications Bar Association and has been involved in its leadership as a former Executive Committee and Nominations Committee member.
Before joining INCOMPAS, Angie was legal advisor to FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, where she was primarily responsible for the Commissioner’s wireline and broadband agenda, including the Commissioner’s work as chair of three federal-state joint boards. Prior to that, Angie was a special counsel in the Spectrum and Competition Policy Division of the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. She also practiced telecommunications and media law in the Washington, D.C. office of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP for more than a decade. Angie earned a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America, where she also earned a certification from The Institute for Communications Law Studies, and she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, from Baylor University and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Vice President & State Legislative Counsel, NCTA
President, Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Public Policy Studies
Lawrence J. Spiwak is President of the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that studies broad public-policy issues related to governance, social and economic conditions, with a particular emphasis on the law and economics of the digital age. Mr. Spiwak is a prolific scholar whose work is frequently cited by policymakers, major news media and academic journals around the world, and is in the top 1.3%of authors downloaded on the Social Science Research Network. Mr. Spiwak currently serves as the co-chair of the Federal Communications Bar Association’s (FCBA) committee responsible for overseeing the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS LAW JOURNAL and is a member of the program committee of the Telecommunications Policy Research Conference (“TPRC”). Mr. Spiwak is also the recipient of the FCBA’s Distinguished Service Award. Prior to joining the Phoenix Center, Mr. Spiwak was a Senior Attorney with the Competition Division in the FCC’s Office of General Counsel from 1994-1998. While in college, Mr. Spiwak was accepted into the Presidential Stay-In School program where he was responsible for delivering classified and confidential material among senior White House and Reagan Administration officials and received a full FBI security clearance. Mr. Spiwak received his B.A. with Special Honors from the George Washington University and his J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. Mr. Spiwak is a member in good standing of the bars of New York, Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
Chief Economist, The Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies
George S. Ford is the chief economist for the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Public Policy Studies, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) research organization that studies broad public-policy issues related to governance, social and economic conditions, with a particular emphasis on the law and economics of the digital age.
Of Counsel, Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP
Mr. Halley joined the firm in 2014. For over four and a half years, Mr. Halley served at the Federal Communications Commission, most recently as Associate Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau, with a particular focus on universal service program reform, consumer and competition policy impacted by the ongoing transition to all IP networks, and overall strategic planning. In this capacity, Mr. Halley also served as legal advisor to Chairman Wheeler on the topics of E-rate modernization and inmate calling services reform. Prior to this, he was Acting Director of the Commission’s Office of Legislative Affairs and legal advisor to the Wireline Bureau Chief. Before joining the FCC, Mr. Halley spent over 5 years as the Director of Government Affairs for NENA – The 911 Association where he served as the association’s liaison with Congress, the FCC and other government agencies and organizations on key issues affecting 911 and emergency communications. Prior to this, Mr. Halley served as the Deployment Director for COMCARE, a non-profit emergency response alliance. Additionally, from August 2002 to August 2004 he took time away from Washington to pursue a career in music recording an album and touring the country as the rhythm guitar player for Lava/Atlantic records recording artist Tony C and the Truth, playing with acts such as Sugar Ray, Living Colour, Blues Traveler and others.
Chief Advocate and General Counsel, INCOMPAS
Angie joined INCOMPAS in 2013 as its chief advocate and general counsel, managing the INCOMPAS policy team and its work before the federal government. FierceTelecom named Angie a "Rising Star in Wireline" in 2014 and one of the Top Women in Wireline in 2015 for her advocacy work on behalf of INCOMPAS members. Angie is a member of the Federal Communications Bar Association and has been involved in its leadership as a former Executive Committee and Nominations Committee member.
Before joining INCOMPAS, Angie was legal advisor to FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn, where she was primarily responsible for the Commissioner’s wireline and broadband agenda, including the Commissioner’s work as chair of three federal-state joint boards. Prior to that, Angie was a special counsel in the Spectrum and Competition Policy Division of the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. She also practiced telecommunications and media law in the Washington, D.C. office of Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP for more than a decade. Angie earned a Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America, where she also earned a certification from The Institute for Communications Law Studies, and she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude, from Baylor University and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.
Vice President & State Legislative Counsel, NCTA
President, Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal and Economic Public Policy Studies
Lawrence J. Spiwak is President of the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies, a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that studies broad public-policy issues related to governance, social and economic conditions, with a particular emphasis on the law and economics of the digital age. Mr. Spiwak is a prolific scholar whose work is frequently cited by policymakers, major news media and academic journals around the world, and is in the top 1.3%of authors downloaded on the Social Science Research Network. Mr. Spiwak currently serves as the co-chair of the Federal Communications Bar Association’s (FCBA) committee responsible for overseeing the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS LAW JOURNAL and is a member of the program committee of the Telecommunications Policy Research Conference (“TPRC”). Mr. Spiwak is also the recipient of the FCBA’s Distinguished Service Award. Prior to joining the Phoenix Center, Mr. Spiwak was a Senior Attorney with the Competition Division in the FCC’s Office of General Counsel from 1994-1998. While in college, Mr. Spiwak was accepted into the Presidential Stay-In School program where he was responsible for delivering classified and confidential material among senior White House and Reagan Administration officials and received a full FBI security clearance. Mr. Spiwak received his B.A. with Special Honors from the George Washington University and his J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. Mr. Spiwak is a member in good standing of the bars of New York, Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
Litigation Update: Minnesota Telecom Alliance v. FCC
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The FCC Returns to the Law and Economics Free Zone
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Spotlighting the FCC’s Key Digital Discrimination Rulemaking
The Federal Communications Commission is fast approaching a November 15 statutory deadline to adopt rules...
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Race and Reckoning Come to the Broadband Debate
Section 1 of the Communications Act of 1934 provides that it shall be the policy...
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Digital Discrimination
When does a lack of “equal access” to broadband internet service translate into “digital discrimination?”...
The Future of Universal Service After the Infrastructure Act
George Ford, Patrick Halley, Angie Kronenberg, Alexander Minard, Lawrence J. Spiwak
On November 15, 2021, President Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act which commits...
The Future of Universal Service After the Infrastructure Act
George Ford, Patrick Halley, Angie Kronenberg, Alexander Minard, Lawrence J. Spiwak
On November 15, 2021, President Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act which commits...
The Future of Universal Service After the Infrastructure Act
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