Jessica Melugin is director of the Center for Technology & Innovation at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. Her research focuses on technology issues including antitrust, online privacy, Internet taxation, telecommunications, social media content and net neutrality regulation. Her writings have appeared in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, USA Today, Bloomberg Law, National Review, Forbes, Fortune, The Hill, Washington Examiner, The Washington Times, FoxNews.com, CNBC.com, various regional papers. She has been cited in The Washington Post, Politico, U.S. News and World Report and Variety, among many other publications. Ms. Melugin has appeared on Fox News, CSPAN’s Washington Journal, CNBC’s Power Lunch, and Varney & Co. on Fox Business Network. She’s been featured on NPR’s Marketplace, The David Webb Show on SiriusXM, and is regularly interviewed on terrestrial radio programs.
She is a 2022 Innovators Network Foundation Antitrust and Competition Policy Fellow.
Ms. Melugin graduated magna cum laude from Claremont McKenna College, with a degree in government and art history. Her honors thesis explored the development of American antitrust law as it pertains to the Microsoft trial. She lives in Virginia’s horse country with her children.
Authored by Jessica Melugin
News
CEI TV Ad “Versus” to Run Sunday During NBC’s Meet the Press as Part of Eye on FTC Campaign
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) will run a 30 second television ad as part of its Eye on FTC campaign on Sunday,…
CEI Launches “Eye on FTC” Campaign to Raise Awareness of Agency Overreach and Lack of Transparency
WASHINGTON—The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) launched a new “Eye on FTC” educational campaign today to raise awareness about overreach and a lack of…
Why DOJ’s Antitrust Suit Against Google’s Digital Ad Business Misses the Mark
The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against Google today, a division of parent company Alphabet, alleging the company has a monopoly over digital…
Blog
FTC Should Not Trade Consumer Welfare for an Antitrust Crystal Ball
A Federal District Court in California today denied the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) request for a preliminary injunction to stop Meta’s purchase of virtual…
The Federal Trade Commission Is in Dire Need of an Intervention
In recent years, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has become increasingly aggressive in its antitrust actions and policies. This expansion will be harmful to American…
Gonzales v. Google: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Algorithms
- By: Jessica Melugin
Today the Supreme Court agreed to hear Gonzales v. Google, LLC, a case that evaluates how broadly the liability protection is for platforms in…
Op-Eds/Articles
National Review
The FTC Soda Wars
- By: Jessica Melugin
The Federal Trade Commission’s new probe into the pricing practices of Coke and Pepsi is the latest step in the agency’s march away from protecting consumers.
MarketWatch
Opinion: Two App Stores Don’t Make a Monopoly
- By: Jessica Melugin
Elon Musk and others’ complaints about the fees Apple and Google ‘s App Stores charge developers are putting pressure…
National Review
Antitrust’s Cloudy Crystal Ball
Even in the wake of Meta’s biggest mass layoff ever and a $71 billion loss this year, antitrust regulators around the world are peering into crystal…
Studies
Don’t Confuse the Platform with the Train
Executive Summary Should social media companies be regulated like common carriers? To answer that question, this paper describes the functions and origins of social media…
Preserving Section 230 Is Key to Maintaining the Free and Open Internet
- By: Jessica Melugin
Passed as part of the Telecommunications Decency Act of 1996, Section 230 was intended to clarify liability rules online and to encourage sites to create…
U.S. Antitrust’s Greatest Misses
- By: Jessica Melugin
Today’s advocates for expanding antitrust regulation often cite famous antitrust cases of the past to suggest that stricter antitrust enforcement can enhance consumer welfare,…
Citations
The Well News
Justice Dept. Sues Google Again Alleging Monopolistic Ad Tactics
- By: Jessica Melugin
A Justice Department lawsuit filed Tuesday against Google accuses the Internet giant of illegally acting like a monopoly with its digital advertising technology. The lawsuit filed…
Reason
DOJ Antitrust Suit Seeks To End Google Ad Dominance. The Market Is Already Taking Care of That.
- By: Jessica Melugin
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed another civil antitrust suit against Google. This one accuses the company of maintaining an illegal monopoly on various aspects…
Fox Business
VIDEO: CEI’s Jessica Melugin Joins Fox Business to Discuss McCarthy’s Actions as Speaker & Big Tech Collusion
- By: Jessica Melugin
Director of the Center for Technology & Innovation Jessica Melugin reacts to Kevin McCarthy’s decision to remove Dems from committees and White House-FBI-Big Tech collusion.