August 2003

MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Commentary: A Private Windfall For Public Property

21ST CENTURY SKILLS
IT Literacy Needed for Promotion in Thai Civil Service
Women, Rural Malaysians Lack Exposure to Technology

E-GOVERNMENT
Commentary: Let's Fund E-Government
US Points to E-Government Law

INTERNET
Commentary: If You Owned Your Inbox, Spammers Would Pay to Get
Inside

EDTECH
Virtual PE Class Works Out

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MEDIA OWNERSHIP

A PRIVATE WINDFALL FOR PUBLIC PROPERTY
[Commentary] The battle between Congress and the FCC over media ownership
limits may be obscuring another important communications-related debates in
Washington. The commission is also altering the existing spectrum allocation
model, moving to a more privatized framework that critics argue would be
"the biggest special interest windfall at the expense of American taxpayers
in history." Under the current "command and control" model, spectrum is
licensed for a limited period in exchange for some public service. The new
model, which has begun to take effect via FCC rulings this year, allows
license holders to sell or rent unused swaths of spectrum -- regardless of
whether the licensee paid for the license. Nonprofit and educational
licensees are also permitted to sell off their spectrum to private firms,
which the authors suggest provides an incentive for public interest
institutions to "abandon their educational use of the airwaves in return for
a quick buck." While the authors agree that the command and control
framework has contributed to spectrum scarcity and needs revamping, the $500
billion windfall to a few lucky industries strips the public of a valuable
asset while slowing the emergence of "smart radio" technologies that would
more efficiently use bandwidth. The authors believe that spectrum reform can
be market-based "without a massive giveaway."
SOURCE: The Washington Post; AUTHORS: Norman Ornstein and Michael Calabrese
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A46939-2003Aug11.html

21ST CENTURY SKILLS

I.T. LITERACY NEEDED FOR PROMOTION IN THAI CIVIL SERVICE
Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Suvit Khunkitti is chairing a program to
improve Thai civil servants' IT literacy. The program, to be managed by the
Thai Civil Service Commission, will train 3,000 high-ranking and 150,000
middle-ranking civil servants. While the initiative will be costly -- an
expected 3.6 billion baht (USD $86 million), cabinet officials believe that
civil servants who aspire to be managers should be expected to know how to
use computers.
SOURCE: Bangkok Post; AUTHOR: Pradit Ruangdit
http://www.bangkokpost.com/070803_News/07Aug2003_news20.html

WOMEN, RURAL MALAYSIANS LACK EXPOSURE TO TECHNOLOGY
At the launch of a telecenter dedicated to women's IT literacy needs,
Malaysia's Energy, Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Amar Leo
Moggie said that the number of women involved in technology remains too low
in the country. "We want more women to enter this field," he said. "The
government wants more people to become IT-literate." The new telecenter is
part of a broader "Networking Women" project, which will include the
establishment of more telecenters, training programs, and a netwomen.net
portal for women's IT literacy issues. Meanwhile, Deputy Science, Technology
and Environment Minister Datuk Zainal Dahlan added that it's also important
to insure that rural communities are given opportunities to build 21st
century skills so they don't fall behind their urban peers. The Malaysian
government has established programs such as the National Science Centre in
Villages initiative to raise IT literacy within rural villages.
SOURCE: Daily Express; AUTHOR: Bernama Press Agency
http://www.dailyexpress.com.my/news.cfm?NewsID=20893

E-GOVERNMENT

LET'S FUND E-GOVERNMENT
(Commentary) The US Congress is on the verge of funding the federal
e-government initiative at only two percent of the recommended level,
causing the editors of EWeek.com to ask, "Is this any way to run a
government more like a business -- an e-business in particular?" The
e-government legislation, authored by Senators Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) and
Conrad Burns (R-MT) and signed into law by President Bush in November 2002,
was initially expected to receive $45 million, but the House Appropriations
Committee has cut this to a "laughable" $1 million. "These are difficult
economic times, but the point of the bill is not to pamper the taxpayer with
convenience; the point is to yield a return on investment by making
government more efficient," the editors write. If the government wishes to
use e-government to save tax dollars in the long run, it requires making a
sensible, but serious investment up front. "If there's an issue on which
citizens can agree, it's that government services can be greatly streamlined
through IT.... Legislators should take a hard look at costs and benefits of
the measure and then fund it in an amount that will result in better, faster
services."
SOURCE: EWeek.com
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,3959,1216873,00.asp

US POINTS TO E-GOVERNMENT LAW
Meanwhile, at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue, the Bush administration
has sent a memo to government officials laying out how the federal
e-government law should be put into practice. The memo, issued August 1 by
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), tackles a range of topics
including IT training for officials, privacy requirements, ways to help
citizens access services, and IT for crisis management. "The administration
sees this Act as a significant step forward in the way that federal agencies
should consider using information technology (IT) to transform agency
business into a more citizen oriented and user friendly process," OMB
director Joshua Bolten wrote in the memo. Putting the memo into practice
might be easier said than done, though, given the proposed congressional
funding cutbacks (see above story). The situation is compounded by the fact
that the US e-government czar, Marc Forman, has just announced his
resignation; Congress is pushing for the White House to replace him as soon
as possible.
SOURCE: KableNET.com
http://www.kablenet.com/kd.nsf/Frontpage/D19DB2FB49BA22D080256D80004DBF05
August 1 OMB memo on e-government:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/memoranda/m03-18.pdf

INTERNET

IF YOU OWNED YOUR INBOX, SPAMMERS WOULD PAY TO GET INSIDE
[Commentary] Author Jonathan Rauch suggests a new method for avoiding spam:
shift the cost from the "spammee" to the spammer. "The answer, I think, is
this: I should have property rights to my email inbox, and I should be able
to charge you for admission." Rauch likens the email problem with the
economic "tragedy of the commons," in which a freely available resource
tends to be overused by consumers, assuring its exhaustion. The solutions to
such an unsavory outcome typically come in the form of a conservator, such
as the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Rauch proposes that individuals act as
the conservator of their owns inboxes, which have become so freely available
that he refers to it as a "dumpster" through which he must sift to find
items of interest. "The whole problem is that email is expensive, and the
wrong people are paying for it. The solution is to make spammers pay their
targets, instead of forcing the targets to pay for spam." The "negotiation"
over price could be handled digitally, using technology similar to a
"digital handshake." As to the cost to the user, Rauch reminds readers,
"today's system is anything but free. You are already paying for it, and the
costs are going only one way."
SOURCE: Slate; AUTHOR: Jonathan Rauch
http://slate.msn.com/id/2086880/

EDTECH

VIRTUAL P.E. CLASS WORKS OUT
Students in Florida are taking gym class outside the gymnasium, thanks to a
widely available online course offered through the Florida Virtual School.
"We've found these kids have really made lifestyle changes," says Julie
Young, executive director of the state-funded public high school, which has
franchised the program to districts in Kansas, Ohio, Wisconsin and Texas.
The course involves a weekly workout regiment, online progress reports and
access to a live instructor using the Web, phone or fax. Students are also
asked to read up on nutrition and write reports. The program has attracted a
variety of students, from high academic achievers saving space in their fall
schedules to shy students seeking to exercise away from the pressures of
in-school class to active students seeking credit for their after school
hobbies. Judith Young of the National Association for Sports and Physical
Education sees value in such programs, though her preference would be for
them to supplement in-school programs, not replace them. "If we can convince
kids to be taking some responsibility for their own levels of health in
non-school time, they may be more likely to incorporate it in their outside
life," she says.
SOURCE: USA Today; AUTHOR: Scott Brooks
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2003-08-11-online-gym-usat_x.htm

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MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Disney Out of Ownership Cap Fight=20
Powell at Center of FCC Storm
Spanish-Language Media Expand

E-GOVERNMENT
Government Portal Registers 129,000 Transactions
Day Laborers' Solution?=20

DIGITAL DIVIDE
E-Learning Trends Not All They Seem

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MEDIA OWNERSHIP

Disney Out of Ownership Cap Fight=20
The Walt Disney Company has decided to throw in the towel and stop =
lobbying
Congress to quash legislation that would roll back the 45 percent media
ownership cap to 35 percent. "Disney lobbyists have indicated that the
company is no longer playing hard on this issue," said a congressional
source. Until now, Disney and its ABC television network had stood with =
its
fellow networks -- NBC, CBS and FOX -- in the fight to ease US media
ownership rules. But with growing interest in Congress to block the =
FCC's
rollback of the rules, Disney has concluded that it is not worth the
political effort. Unlike the other networks, Disney's total cache of
stations is still well below 35 percent, giving them room to grow if
Congress successfully returns the cap to that level.=A0 "The whole =
emotional
issue of raising ownership levels from 35 percent to 45 percent has =
taken on
the proportions of a mountain when it's really a hill," Disney CEO =
Michael
Eisner tells Time magazine. "We support having the caps raised, but =
we're
not violently supportive of it."
SOURCE: Television Week; AUTHOR: Doug Halonen=20
http://www.tvweek.com/topstorys/081103disney.html=20
See also:=20
10 Questions for Michael Eisner=20
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1101030818-474556,00.ht=
ml=20

POWELL AT CENTER OF FCC STORM
FCC Chairman Michael Powell has presided over a turbulent stretch in =
the
FCC's history, overseeing technological advances and market failures. =
As a
result, observers have speculated as to Powell's future on the =
Commission
and rumors of his resignation abound, particularly in the wake of =
public and
Congressional backlash over the media ownership deregulation vote in =
June.
"I'm not going anywhere," insists Powell, who also faced internal =
resistance
earlier this year from fellow Republican Commissioner Kevin Martin,
prompting initial murmurs about his future. The media rules are set to =
take
effect September 4th, though legislative rollbacks and court challenges =
may
overturn or delay their implementation. Powell insists that the rumors =
have
not been a distraction despite drawing criticism from former supporters =
such
as Republican Senator Trent Lott. "This is a professional agency," =
Powell
said. "We have a lot going on."
SOURCE: New York Newsday; AUTHOR: James Toedtman
http://www.newsday.com/business/printedition/ny-bzfcc3408871aug10,0,2907=
905.
story
(NOTE: The list at the bottom of the linked page contains statistics on =
the
major media companies' campaign and lobbying budgets as well as their
respective positions on the ownership issue -- the chart does not =
indicate
Disney's recent change of heart as reported above.)

SPANISH-LANGUAGE MEDIA EXPAND
Not long ago, Spanish language media offerings were few and far =
between. In
recent years, however, economic and social factors have led to an =
increase
in such outlets - new Spanish newspapers are set to launch in major =
cities,
Spanish TV stations receive top ratings in some large markets and =
Spanish
radio companies are gobbling up space on the FM dial. The landscape is
expected to grow when the FCC approves a merger next month to create =
the
first Spanish media conglomerate - a deal between Hispanic Broadcasting
Company and Univisi=F3n that will combine radio and TV holdings. "We =
liken it
to when the baby boomer generation was coming out of World War II," =
said
McHenry T. Tichenor Jr., president of HBC. "It's a young population =
just
forming households in numbers similar to the baby boomers.... [They] =
are a
very desirable consumer for a lot of categories and a lot of =
advertisers."
To wit, the buying power of Hispanics rose rapidly in the 1990s, from =
$223
billion in 1990 to $580.5 billion last year, according to a University =
of
Georgia report. The growth is fueled not only by immigration but also =
by a
birth rate that far exceeds the death rate. The Univisi=F3n-HBC merger =
has
been a contentious proposition for market observers who fear that the =
deal
would create a monopoly over the Spanish-language media market despite
allowing the new company to better compete with its English-language
counterparts for advertising dollars.
SOURCE: The Washington Post; AUTHORS: Frank Ahrens and Krissah Williams
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41905-2003Aug10.html

E-GOVERNMENT
Government Portal Registers 129,000 Transactions=20
This e-government success story hails from the island of Malta.=A0 =
Statistics
from Malta's IT Ministry show that the public is clearly willing to use
online services.=A0 The gov.mt portal reported no fewer than eight =
million
hits and a record129,000 transactions in the month of July. In =
addition,
transactions have more than doubled in two months.=A0 Forty-eight =
percent of
all transactions originated from overseas.=A0 (Transaction figures =
refer to
users who actually download a form or interact with the government, =
while
hits refer to the number of times a particular website is accessed.)=A0 =
The
Ministry for Social Policy's website was most popular, with 42 percent =
of
all transactions.=A0 A spokesman for the ministry said the most popular
downloads were tax documents, fringe benefits guidelines and children's
allowance forms.=A0 IT Minister Austin Gatt explained that online =
processing
saves time and money for both government and business.=A0 The =
government is
aiming to have 90 percent of its services available online within a few
months.
SOURCE: The Times of Malta; AUTHOR: Herman Grech=20
http://www.timesofmalta.com/core/article.php?id=3D132903=20

Day Laborers' Solution?=20
How to address the problem of day laborers gathering on the streets =
while
awaiting work is a controversial issue in Marin County.=A0 Plans to =
open a
work center have been unsuccessful, in part because of community and =
city
politics.=A0 Now Marin County is pursuing the idea of a virtual work =
center,
an Internet-based brokerage similar to Ebay that matches employers and
workers.=A0 The Marin County Board of Supervisors contributed $10,000 =
and
secured a matching grant from the Marin Community Foundation to study =
the
concept.=A0 "Here's a really concrete way to bridge the digital divide =
--
here's a way to use the Internet to help the working poor," said Kevin =
Rath,
executive director of a consortium of house cleaners and day =
laborers.=A0 Not
everyone shares his optimism, however.=A0 Tom Wilson of Canal Community
Alliance sees cultural barriers that could impede adoption of the =
idea.=A0
Other critics say that authorities should focus on enforcement.=A0 =
"This is
the establishment breaking the law but not saying they are breaking the =
law
to support illegals here when they should be enforcing the thing," said =
Rick
Oltman of the Federation for American Immigration Reform.
SOURCE: Marin Independent Journal; AUTHOR: Jennifer Upshaw=20
http://www.marinij.com/Stories/0,1413,234~24407~1564073,00.html=20

DIGITAL DIVIDE
E-LEARNING TRENDS NOT ALL THEY SEEM
A survey conducted last year at Charles Sturt University in New South =
Wales,
Australia, found that women,rural residents and older students go =
online
more than do men, city dwellers and the young, respectively.=A0 =
Researcher Les
Burr said this contradicts the myth that significant social hurdles are
keeping certain groups offline.=A0 The study found that women accounted =
for 58
percent of the university population, yet represented 61 percent of
participants in online forums.=A0 Students from Melbourne and Sydney =
composed
less of the online population than their representation in the general
survey population, by 3 percent and 9 percent respectively.=A0 Burr =
found that
online activity significant decreases after age 20, but rises again for
those aged 51 and older.=A0 Burr said, "This goes against the three =
things
that are said to be hurdles to studying online -- that it is =
male-dominated,
that it is only for the young and that those living in rural areas are
disadvantaged."=A0 He concludes, "This shows that if people see a real =
need to
be online they will find a way."
SOURCE: The Sydney Morning Herald; AUTHOR: Nathan Cochrane=20
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/04/1059849330019.html=20
=A0=20
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MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Media Ownership Rules Facing Appeals
Commentary: Public TV the Last True Local Broadcaster
Commentary: The FCC's Ghost from Watergate

DIGITAL DIVIDE
St. Louis Metro East Towns to Benefit from New Digital Divide Fund
Regulators Push for Rural Communications

PRIVACY
In Florida, Police Database Sparking Orwellian Fears

EDTECH
'Virtual School' Clicks with District

INTERNET
SBC Beefs Up Broadband Offering With Wi-Fi

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MEDIA OWNERSHIP

MEDIA OWNERSHIP RULES FACING APPEALS
One day after the FCC's new media ownership rules were officially published
in the Federal Register, two groups have filed legal challenges to have them
overturned. On one side of the argument, the National Association of
Broadcasters has filed a suit against the rules in the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the District of Columbia, arguing that the FCC's decision to loosen the
rules doesn't go far enough. Specifically, the NAB is challenging how the
FCC defines particular radio markets, as well as rules that prevent TV
station mergers in smaller markets. On the other side, a coalition of more
than 600 local television stations have filed suit, taking the position that
new rules should not have raised the ownership cap from 35 percent to 45
percent. Meanwhile, Andrew Schwartzman of the Media Access Project says that
public interest groups may file their own legal challenges as early as next
week.
SOURCE: Austin American-Statesman; AUTHOR: David Ho, Associated Press
http://www.statesman.com/business/content/business/ap/ap_story.html/Fina...
l/AP.V9382.AP-Media-Ownership.html

PUBLIC TV THE LAST TRUE LOCAL BROADCASTER
[Commentary] James N. Morgese, president and general manager of Rocky
Mountain PBS, writes that the current debate over media ownership has
overlooked America's strongest local broadcasting asset -- public
television. "Our stations' contribution to delivering local service may
provide many of the answers to questions raised by the media-ownership
debate," he states. "With our 'ownership' not in question, public television
stations aren't looking over our shoulders at who might acquire us."
However, public television faces enormous financial challenges given the
fact that Congress continues its attempts to slash funding. Morgese argues
that the conversion to digital television creates powerful opportunities for
public broadcasters to assert themselves as leaders in providing local
content, from educational materials to homeland security information. The
challenge, he says, is making the transition to digital without bankrupting
stations -- a situation exacerbated by federal funding cuts. "The
media-consolidation debate will continue," he concludes. "We just ask those
who are concerned about the preservation of locally controlled media to
direct some of their concern public broadcasting's way."
SOURCE: Denver Post; AUTHOR: James N. Morgese
http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~158~1555657,00.html

THE FCC'S GHOST FROM WATERGATE
[Commentary] The Washington Times offers an unusual historical perspective
on the media ownership debate in one of its editorials today. Quoting
Democrat FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein, who stated the decision
"threatens to degrade civil discourse and the quality of our society's
intellectual, cultural and political life," the Times offers "a stroll down
memory lane" back to the Nixon administration. Nixon introduced many of the
media ownership restrictions that the FCC voted to loosen, but the Times
takes the position that Nixon's policies may have simply been a dirty trick
to prevent the Washington Post from investigating the Watergate scandal.
"The Post owned television stations and was looking to acquire more, but the
planned FCC rules prohibited it from doing so, and the company sold its
Washington broadcast arm," the Times writes. "In this case, ownership limits
on a media conglomerate could have restricted a groundbreaking story."
SOURCE: Washington Times
http://washingtontimes.com/op-ed/20030806-092209-5775r.htm

DIGITAL DIVIDE

ST. LOUIS METRO EAST TOWNS TO BENEFIT FROM NEW DIGITAL DIVIDE FUND
Small-town Illinois customers across the state border from St. Louis,
Missouri, are gearing up for broadband Internet access in the next six
months, thanks to recent telecommunications reform. Shortly after Illinois
Governor Rod Blagojevich signed legislation designed to connect rural areas,
SBC Communications Inc. pledged to invest $90 million to offer the service
statewide. SBC also retracted 500 proposed layoffs scheduled for this year
and committed to no additional layoffs in 2004. The legislation provides for
a subsidy for broadband ISPs if the state commerce commission determines
that "advanced telecommunications services are underprovided to residential
or business users; if the community has a low population density; and the
community lacks a competitive market for advanced technology."
SOURCE: St. Louis Business Journal
http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2003/08/04/daily46.html

REGULATORS PUSH FOR RURAL COMMUNICATIONS
The FCC said it would begin a 16-month education program to inform people
about government programs that can improve access to telecommunications
services in underserved areas. The campaign will focus on the Appalachia and
Mississippi Delta regions and Native American Indian lands. The programs
include federal discounts for local phone service and phone line
installation for low-income consumers. The FCC will hold a workshop next
month to study rural companies that use grain silos, water towers and
pumping stations as broadcast towers for wireless high-speed Internet
access. FCC staff will visit Alaskan native villages to study problems with
deploying communications services. Additionally, the commission's vote to
eliminate restrictions on satellites used for telephone service in remote
areas of Alaska will increase the availability of affordable long-distance
service in the state. The commission is also seeking comment on regulations
to promote the conversion to digital television among low-power stations,
which often serve rural communities. Congress has set a goal of December
2006 for TV broadcasters to switch from analog to digital signals, which
offer clearer pictures and crisper sound.
SOURCE: Springfield News Sun; AUTHOR: David Ho, Associated Press
http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/biz/content/business/ap_story.html/Fin...
al/AP.V9039.AP-FCC-Rural-Commu.html

PRIVACY

IN FLORIDA, POLICE DATABASE SPARKING ORWELLIAN FEARS
Florida's Multistate Anti-Terrorism Information Exchange, or Matrix,
combines police records with commercially available collections of personal
information, enabling investigators to find patterns and links among people
and events faster than ever before. A senior official overseeing the project
acknowledged that it could be intrusive. "I can call up everything about
you, your pictures and pictures of your neighbors," said Phil Ramer, special
agent in charge of statewide intelligence. Defenders of the system say that
the data has always been available to investigators, but Matrix brings it
together and allows police to access it with extraordinary speed. "In this
age of risks that appear immediately, you have to be able to respond
immediately," said Paul Cameron, president of Seisint, Inc., the company
that developed the system and donated it to the state of Florida. The Matrix
project began soon after Sept. 11, 2001, and authorities credit Seisint with
helping to identify links among the hijackers who crashed planes into the
World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The Department of Justice and the
Department of Homeland Security have pledged $4 million and $8 million
respectively to advance the project. At least a dozen states want to add
their records to the database.
SOURCE: Austin American-Statesman; AUTHOR: Robert O'Harrow Jr.
http://www.statesman.com/asection/content/auto/epaper/editions/wednesday...
s_f3038a83d6e941e300df.html

EDTECH

'VIRTUAL SCHOOL' CLICKS WITH DISTRICT
As more school administrators in Florida are cutting courses to contend with
budget deficits, they are increasingly funneling students to the Florida
Virtual School, which can educate children for nearly $1,000 less than a
traditional facility. Palm Beach County Schools Superintendent Art Johnson
sees virtual learning as a way to offset cuts to his district's course
offerings. Students taking algebra or history online frees up time for
once-jeopardized classes such as art and music, he says. Interest in the
virtual school has skyrocketed from 77 classes offered in 1997 to an
anticipated 19,000 classes this fall. Also this fall, the Broward County
district will conduct a pilot virtual high school, with 300 high school
students taking all their classes online. The Classroom Teachers Union,
which represents roughly 10,000 county educators, has concerns with removing
children from a classroom setting. "I don't think there's anything that can
replace having an experienced teacher on hand to interact with the
students," said Shelley Vana, union president.
SOURCE: Palm Beach Post; AUTHOR: Cynthia Kopkowski
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/auto/epaper/editions/thursday/...
_f3139cdc83e142da0048.html

INTERNET

SBC BEEFS UP BROADBAND OFFERING WITH WI-FI
SBC Communications Inc. plans to enter the Wi-Fi market for public hotspots.
The Baby Bell announced that it would offer the service in roughly 6,000
locations over the next three years in an effort to leverage its existing
broadband investment. The service will use SBC's existing network
infrastructure and it Cingular wireless holdings to allow customers to roam
amongst 20,000 total hotspots. While the company did not indicate specific
costs, SBC predicts that deployment expenses will be "relatively low."
Pricing levels are also unreleased. SBC also signed a deal with Wayport Inc.
to allow customers the use of Wayport's 565 locations, further augmenting
the service.
SOURCE: Wireless Week
http://www.wirelessweek.com/index.asp?layout=document&doc_id=124093

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MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Federal Register Publishes Media Ownership Rules
Huh? NBC Forecasts 2003 Profit Up 18%, Says Must Own More Local
Stations to Survive

21ST CENTURY SKILLS
Report: Preparing Disadvantaged Youth for the Workforce of Tomorrow
Tech Seeds of Hope for Homeless

INTERNET
Commentary: Stealing the Internet
'Flash Mobs' Spread to Europe
Word of Mouse: Viral Marketing on the Net

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MEDIA OWNERSHIP

FEDERAL REGISTER PUBLISHES MEDIA OWNERSHIP RULES
In today's Federal Register, the US government officially published the new
FCC rules on media ownership. Included in the register are the Broadcast
Ownership Rules, Cross-Ownership of Broadcast Stations and Newspapers,
Multiple Ownership of Radio Broadcast Stations in Local Markets, and
Definition of Radio Markets. This official publication of the rules is
significant, because it acknowledges that the rules will take affect in 30
days. Similarly, petitions for reconsideration are due at the FCC within 30
days.
SOURCE: Federal Register
http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fedreg/a030805c.html
Text of new rules:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo...
/2003/03-19106.htm
Text of proposed rules regarding the definition of radio markets for areas
not located in an Arbitron survey area:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo...
/2003/03-19091.htm

HUH? NBC FORECASTS 2003 PROFIT UP 18%, SAYS MUST OWN MORE LOCAL STATIONS TO
SURVIVE
Contradicting articles in yesterday's newspapers reinforce the lack of
clarity in media companies' support for the FCC's new ownership rules --
primarily the argument that networks must be allowed to buy more stations in
order to compete with cable and other outlets. In Daily Variety, NBC Chief
Robert Wright "predicted NBC would see 18 percent profit growth for the full
year 2003 to $1.9 billion, with cash flows up by a hefty 30 percent and
revenues topping $6.7 billion." Meanwhile, in the Chicago Tribune, NBC vice
president B. Robert Okun, the network's chief Washington lobbyist, says that
what opponents of the FCC decision "didn't understand was that to the
networks a higher national audience cap that would allow them to buy more
television stations was essential to the future of free broadcast TV." The
seemingly crossed messages prompted the Center for the Creative Community to
quip, "Thanks. Now we understand."
SOURCE: Center for the Creative Community
http://www.creativecommunity.us/page/page/205608.htm

21ST CENTURY SKILLS

REPORT: PREPARING DISADVANTAGED YOUTH FOR THE WORKFORCE OF TOMORROW
Germany's Digital Opportunities Foundation (http://www.digitale-chancen.de)
has published Preparing Disadvantaged Youth for the Workforce of Tomorrow.
Based on a conference co-hosted by the Benton Foundation in November 2002,
the report examines strategies to engage underserved youth populations to
help them develop 21st century skills. The report is made possible by the
Jacobs Foundation, the William T. Grant Foundation and the AOL Time Warner
Foundation, with additional support from Benton's Digital Divide Network,
the European Commission and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The report's text
is published in both German and English.
SOURCE: Stiftung Digitale Chancen, Benton Foundation
http://www.benton.org/publibrary/ttr/teentech02.pdf

TECH SEEDS OF HOPE FOR HOMELESS
Urban Seed, a nonprofit foundation in Melbourne, Australia, will offer
information technology courses for homeless people in the city's central
business district. The "urban classroom" is on the ground floor of a center
with four floors of accommodations for homeless people above it. The
curriculum, provided by Cisco Systems, will consist of short courses on IT
essentials. However, students could progress to the Cisco Networking Academy
program, a 280-hour course that includes designing, building and maintaining
computer networks. Urban Seed operations director Paul Ronalds said his
organization hopes to offer guaranteed traineeships at the end of the
program. "We wanted to say we will manage IT training in a way that gives
some real employment opportunities but in a way that is easily accessible,"
Ronalds explained. "Urban Seed is about how we create skills in the next 10
or 20 years and we don't want people to be left behind in growing areas."
SOURCE: Australian IT; AUTHOR: Diana Thorp
http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,6864192%5e15345%5e%5enbv...
5306-15316,00.html

INTERNET

STEALING THE INTERNET
The RIAA's recent rash of lawsuits over alleged file swapping on the Web is
only a small part of a larger plan to reshape the Internet, argue Jeff
Chester and Steven Rosenfeld. A cadre of Internet, software and
entertainment companies are working to create a pricing structure for
different levels of broadband service and content, threatening to render
moot the Web's early promise as a free medium of exchange. Last week a
coalition including Amazon.com, Microsoft, Yahoo, Apple, Disney and others
told Congress that ISPs should be able to impose volume-based fee
structures, a proposal that would force lower-income users to limit the
amount of content they can access. The potential for Internet "metering,
monitoring and monetizing" has led to various new business ventures while
delaying others, including the introduction of next-generation digital
television, as the industry "figure[s] out how to impose [its] pricing model
-- to extend [its] current distribution and sales monopoly." While the
authors agree that a fee-based introduction of some high-bandwidth content
may be legitimate, they also caution that public interest content, such as
streamed video of political candidates or public meetings, should clearly be
exempted from this model, striking a balance between "private sector goals
and public policy needs."
SOURCE: TomPaine.com; AUTHORS: Jeff Chester and Steven Rosenfeld
http://www.tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/8528

'FLASH MOBS' SPREAD TO EUROPE
A phenomenon known as the "flash mob" is spreading across the United States
to Europe, Singapore and Australia. Responding to websites and emails, flash
mob members voluntarily and simultaneously converge at a specified location
and take part in what is often a silly, harmless activity before dispersing.
In June 2003, the first flash mob assembled in a Macy's department store in
Manhattan. As instructed, participants inquired about purchasing a "love
rug" for their "suburban commune." On another occasion, a flash mob of 200
standing at the balcony railings of the Hyatt Hotel, next to Grand Central
Station, spontaneously applauded for 15 seconds. Rome saw the first European
mob on July 24, when 300 people entered a music and bookstore asking for
non-existent titles. "Bill," the reported creator of the online movement,
theorized about the appeal of flash mobs, suggesting that people may be
motivated by the humor, the social aspect or an aesthetic sensibility.
"Flash mobs are fun because they are out of the ordinary," says Fred
Hoysted, a mobber in New York. Author Howard Rheingold notes that the same
techniques of organizing can been used for political action.
SOURCE: CNN News; AUTHOR: Sandra Shmueli
http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/internet/08/04/flash.mob/index.html

WORD OF MOUSE: VIRAL MARKETING ON THE NET
Several weeks ago, Internet chat rooms around the world lit up with fiery
debates regarding the metal band Metallica's decision to sue an obscure
Canadian band, Unfaith, for their sequential use of the guitar chords E and
F -- chords that are a longstanding musical trademark, if not a legal one,
of Metallica's music. Word of the suit spread quickly via discussion groups
and news outlets around the world, making Unfaith perhaps the most talked
about band on the Net. The only problem was that the lawsuit was a hoax
perpetrated by Unfaith, which published the "news" on a web page made to
look like it came from MTV News. The hoax is a classic example of viral
marketing, which exploits the Internet's ability to spread information
through a grapevine of thousands of sites and discussion groups. (One of the
first such hoaxes occurred six years ago when a Scandinavian PR firm used
the domain name TASS.net -- easily confused with the Russian ITAR-TASS news
service -- to report that former Cambodian dictator Pol Pot was seeking
exile in Stockholm.) It's hard to predict which stories get picked up in a
viral fashion, but once it starts, it's nearly impossible to stop. "I never
expected the parody to reach as far and wide as it did," says Unfaith lead
singer Erik Ashley. "I'm just annoyed that this satire has done more for us
in a day than three years of hard work and door-knocking ever did."
SOURCE: The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/news/0,12597,1012053,00.html
See the Unfaith hoax:
http://www1.scoopthis.com/411/met_uf/stc_met_uf_mtv.htm
Read Unfaith's perspective on the hoax:
http://www.unfaith.net/pages/hoax/
See the Tass.net hoax from 1997:
http://www.tass.net/

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