Robert Pitofsky, FTC chairman 1995-2001, died Oct. 6. He was 88. Pitofsky directed the Consumer Protection Bureau 1970-73 and was commissioner 1978-81. He was dean of the Georgetown University Law Center, where he was dean emeritus, and retired from Arnold and Porter. When he was chairman, the FTC cleared AOL buying Time Warner. He moved the commission “toward an aggressive enforcement-based approach," said current Chairman Joe Simons. "He was a proponent of a consumer welfare standard grounded in sound economic principles.” Survivors include his wife, three children and seven grandchildren. Funeral services were Tuesday.

Joseph Flaherty, 87, former CBS senior vice president-technology and widely heralded as the “father of HDTV,” died Tuesday in Greenport, New York. Flaherty organized the first HDTV demonstrations for the Hollywood production community at the February 1981 SMPTE technical conference, and his efforts led to his appointment as planning committee chairman of the FCC’s Advisory Committee on Advanced Television Service. Flaherty’s work made the U.S. “the first country in the world to convert to a digital HDTV system,” blogged Robert Seidel, CBS vice president-engineering and advanced technology, Wednesday. “Television viewers around the globe are still benefiting from the technology innovations of Joe Flaherty,” said Seidel. Broadcasters “have lost a friend and broadcast innovators have lost a true legend” with Flaherty’s passing, said NAB President Gordon Smith. “As broadcasters prepare to bring American consumers the wonders of Next Generation Television, we honor the life, legacy and extraordinary accomplishments of Joe Flaherty.” People around the world today “enjoy a richer TV viewing experience than ever, in no small part because of Joe's focus on excellence,” said CTA President Gary Shapiro of Flaherty, a 2009 Consumer Technology Hall of Fame inductee. Flaherty's survivors include his wife and five children. A funeral Mass is planned for 10 a.m. Tuesday at St. Agnes Church in Greenport, New York, said Seidel.

Gerry Lenfest, cable television and newspaper executive, died Sunday. He was 88. The cause of death was complications from chronic illness, a family spokesperson told The Washington Post. Lenfest formed Lenfest Communications after buying two cable systems from Triangle Publications, where he had worked as a lawyer. He later sold what had become Suburban Cable to Comcast. Lenfest and his wife, Marguerite, donated their ownership of The Philadelphia Inquirer, Daily News and philly.com to The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. In addition to his wife, survivors include three children and four grandchildren.

Bill Colwell, 48, assistant general counsel of Northrop Grumman, died Sunday of cancer. The expert in government contracts, who used to work for Boeing and Wiley Rein, had been on the Federal Circuit Bar Association board. He was married to Robin Colwell, who worked for FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly before going to the House Communications Subcommittee as a key staffer. "Bill Colwell was a wonderful person, a devoted father, and the best partner imaginable for my former chief of staff, Robin," O'Rielly said Monday. Colwell's also survived by twin daughters, a brother, and his mother and grandmother. Funeral Mass is Friday at 11 a.m. at St. John the Beloved in McLean, Virginia, followed by a reception at the Columbus Club of Arlington.

Angelo Falcon, 66, board member of National Hispanic Media Coalition, died Thursday. He was also on the boards of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda and the National Latino Council on Alcohol and Tobacco Prevention and was a founding member of the Defend the Honor campaign, a national coalition of Latino organizations and activists that pressured PBS and Ken Burns to include the Latino experience in their World War II documentary series, The War, in 2007. No information on survivors was immediately available.

Byron St. Clair, 93 and a well-known low-power broadcast advocate and past National Translator Association president, died Sunday in Denver of brain cancer. He's credited with helping bring low-power TV and FM to rural areas with little terrestrial service in the West to extend broadcasters' reach, and he headed NTA for 19 years, where at death he was president emeritus. He belonged to various broadcast committees and other groups. St. Clair is survived by wife, daughter, brother and two grandsons. A memorial gathering is being planned for June. Contributions can be made to the St. Clair Memorial Scholarship Fund: afcce.org/scholarships.

James (Jim) Tulley, 51, Sony Electronics vice president and 28-year veteran of the company, died suddenly Saturday at his Algonquin, Illinois, home of undisclosed causes. Tulley began his Sony career in customer service and rose through the ranks to regional manager, director and vice president. Sony Electronics President Mike Fasulo praised Tulley as “a constant inspiration” who will be remembered “for his enthusiasm, optimism, generosity, humor and visionary ideas.” Tulley’s “significant contributions to Sony, our industry and society at large are irreplaceable,” said Fasulo. Tulley’s wife and four children survive.

Wayne Huizenga, 80, onetime Blockbuster Video owner, died of cancer Friday at his Fort Lauderdale home. Huizenga bought Blockbuster in 1987 and helped build it into a $4 billion business with 3,700 stores in 11 countries. He sold Blockbuster to Viacom for $8.5 billion in stock in 1994, and founded AutoNation, from which he retired as chairman at the end of 2002. He also founded Waste Management before buying Blockbuster. “Huizenga's lifelong commitment to our community, his philanthropy and his entrepreneurial spirit ensure that the Huizenga family legacy will live on in South Florida,” said Vincent Viola, owner of the NHL’s Florida Panthers, one of three professional sports franchises Huizenga owned or founded. Survivors include four children.

House Rules Committee ranking member Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y. and 88, died Friday, her office said. Slaughter had fallen at her Washington home last week and in recent days was hospitalized. She was co-chairwoman of the Congressional Arts Caucus and in recent years had taken an interest in music licensing, accessible communications and FCC regulation of wireless mics (see 1609290041, 1701110065, 1705010053 and 1705100057). House Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore., was among lawmakers mourning Slaughter’s death.

Ray Baum, 62 and a longtime telecom expert and regulator who was House Commerce Committee staff director, died from complications of prostate cancer Friday at Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. He spent "many years fighting cancer" and died surrounded by his family, said committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore. Officials who worked with Baum on Capitol Hill and elsewhere offered condolences, with FCC Chairman Ajit Pai among them. A lawyer, Baum was a longtime Oregon official, including a state legislator and regulator at the Oregon Public Utility Commission, where, Walden noted, "as the lone Republican, he was named" chairman. Baum also worked for the House Communications Subcommittee when Walden was its chair, and in Washington worked for NAB. Baum is survived by his wife, six children and many grandchildren. Funeral is 1 p.m. Feb. 17 in his hometown of La Grande, Oregon, at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Stake Center.