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Some remarkable women have come to power in D.C. during the change. Gigi Sohn is agenda-setting, Kathy Brown has become Verizon's public face, Jessica Rosenworcel is the key staffer, Jennifer Schneider is with Boucher as he takes over the House sub-committer, and Susan Crawford was quietly the sould of the transition with her insistance they start from the data, not the rhetoric.

Gigi Sohn, tireless public advocate, emerged on January 5 as a key D.C. agenda-setter, leading a remarkable event featuring two former FCC Chairmen, four commissioners, and many of the D.C. elite, Reforming The FCC. Keynoter Phil Weiser opened the event with “The FCC is Broken.” That afternoon, Phil and Gigi opened a website http://fcc-reform.org/ loaded with suggestions. Gigi recalls “I remembered sitting in an older version of that meeting room (at 20th and M Streets, NW) dozens of times from 1988-1998, and recalled how my face would flush with anger and frustration as the requests of the public interest community were denied again and again.” She adds, about the net neutrality victory, “It's been a long 20 years, and nobody knows whether this is the start of a trend or an aberration. What I can promise is that public interest advocates are not about to rest on their laurels. Playing offense is a lot more fun than playing defense, and industry and policymakers should expect more of the former in the near future.” HuffPo

Gigi turns out to “have known Julius for over 15 years ... in his role as Chief Counsel to then-FCC Chairman Reed Hundt and then as an aide to Barry Diller when Diller and I were members of the Advisory Committee on the Public Interest Obligations of Digital Television Broadcasters (Gore Commission).”

Jessica Rosenworcel remains Senior Communications Counsel as Jay Rockefeller takes over the Senate Committee, where she oversees the FCC. She spoke at the Reforming event, where she said “"You have an agency that has lost sight of its mission...how do you create an agency that's more accountable to the American public?” http://fcc-reform.org/article/liveblog-reforming-federal-communications-commission

Bob Atkinson (Columbia) worked with her when she was a young lawyer at the FCC a decade ago, and tells me she was already a star. She's never sought the limelight, but everyone in D.C. knows her role. One of the top lobbyists told me she is the most powerful staffer in Communications. I remember her fast fingers on the ARMIS database, where she could find data that eluded everyone else. I included her on my list of suggested FCC nominees, although that's probably precluded by her role in the Senate. (With legal specialist Genachowski as Chair, the next open FCC jobs should be filled by technologists and people who know economics and the industry, not another lawyer. With lawyer Obama in charge, and lawyers Levin, Werbach and Crawford leading the FCC transition, that's not guaranteed, although I know the transition team has discussed the issue.)

Kathy Brown, chief of staff for Bill Kennard, is becoming the public face of Verizon in a newly Democratic town. She's sharp, respected, and public-spirited. Like all the Verizon staff, she has the skill to advocate while respecting the truth. Verizon under Tom Tauke has been perhaps the most effective influence organization in D.C., largely defining the FCC and Congressional agenda. Tauke's endorsement of Kevin Martin was crucial in his campaign for the Chairmanship. Tom is a highly partisan Republican who was offered the job of Presidential campaign manager in 2000, so not a natural public lead these days. (WP speculated he turned down the job because he didn't want to take orders from Karl Rove.) Tauke has the courtesy and grace to work effectively across party lines, but is of an age he might choose to retire.

Jennifer Schneider, a recent grad of Yeshiva Law School, will be Rick Boucher's chief aide as he takes over the House subcommittee from Markey. She's mostly worked behind the scenes so far, but is respected by those who know her.

Susan Crawford is probably going back to her job teaching at Michigan, so won't be “anything of the hill.” She played a crucial role in the transition putting together the data that informed the bill. She's become a star in comm policy incredibly rapidly, because her work and creativity stand out.