NEWS                                                         May 14, 1998


                RICHARD K. WELCH TO BE NAMED SENIOR COUNSEL
                          TO THE GENERAL COUNSEL

     Richard K. Welch will be appointed Senior Counsel to the General Counsel, effective
June 7, 1998.  He will focus on appellate litigation involving the Telecommunications Act of
1996 and other common carrier-related litigation, as well as special projects.

     "Richard Welch has been one of the key policymakers at the center of the
Commission's implementation of the Telecommunications Act and his talent and dedication in
that role have been invaluable to the Commission and to me personally," said FCC Chairman
William E. Kennard.  "I know from my years as General Counsel that Richard is one of the
agency's outstanding lawyers."

     FCC General Counsel Christopher J. Wright added:  "I'm very excited that Richard
will be rejoining the Office of General Counsel.  His thorough understanding of the
Commission's policymaking process will be a real asset to the Office in defending the FCC's
decisions before the courts."

     Welch has served in the FCC's Common Carrier Bureau since the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 became law in February 1996.  He currently serves as
Deputy Bureau Chief, and prior to that was Chief of the Bureau's Policy and Program
Planning Division.

     Previously, Welch served as legal adviser to FCC Commissioner Rachelle B. Chong,
focusing on common carrier issues.  He also has served as a staff attorney in the
Administrative Law Division of the FCC's Office of General Counsel.  He began his FCC
career in 1988 as a staff attorney in the Common Carrier Bureau.

     Welch received his J.D. magna cum laude in 1988 from Washington and Lee
University School of Law in Lexington, Virginia.  He received his B.S.in Business
Administration in 1980 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

                                  - FCC -