January 2007

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MORE NEWS FROM MEMPHIS
What Next for Media Reform?
Markey Pushes Ownership Diversity
Markey Pledges to Keep Net Neutrality Wave Rolling

NETWORK NEUTRALITY
Amazon.com meets with FCC on net neutrality

JOURNALISM
Chandlers may bid for Tribune as last resort
Layoffs at Paper Prompt Uproar Over Diversity
Documents Borne by Winds of Free Speech
Bloggers Take on Talk Radio Hosts
Somalia=92s Transitional Government Shuts 3 Radio Stations

TELECOM
AT&T to offer $20 'naked' DSL service
Cell Phone Subsidies Enrich Telecoms

PRIVACY/SECRECY
Enjoying Technology's Conveniences But Not Escaping Its Watchful Eyes
How to Bury a Secret: Turn It Into Paperwork

QUICKLY -- '24' hitting the shelves in half that;=20
Anywhere the Eye Can See, It=92s Likely to See an=20
Ad; Boys and Girls Use Social Sites Differently;=20
Musical Chairs: Dems Take Over; Hill Quartet=20
Pushes Retrans Hearings; More states use 511 for 411 on traffic

MORE NEWS FROM MEMPHIS

WHAT NEXT FOR MEDIA REFORM?
[SOURCE: Mediachannel.org, AUTHOR: Danny Schechter]
[Commentary] After the Media Reform Conference in=20
Memphis, Schechter poses some questions:=20
Shouldn't we debate what we are or are not=20
accomplishing? Was the recent net neutrality=20
compromise acceptable -- a guarantee on the part=20
of AT&T's least used tier/platform and, then,=20
only for two years? Was that really the big=20
victory it was hyped as? Are we being deluded in=20
hopes that a Democratic Congress will somehow=20
save us? How do we get other issues more=20
attention in the news -- especially Election=20
reform? Are we building a movement or an e-mail=20
list? Are we still trying to build bridges=20
between media makers and media activists? Where=20
were the criticisms of funders like the MacArthur=20
Foundation which announced last week it was=20
cutting off support for documentaries, pending=20
another of those interminable internal=20
"reviews?" Where were the demands on other=20
funders to invest in progressive media the way=20
the rightwing foundations have with generous=20
long-term commitments. Why aren't we lobbying=20
them and not just to promote one institution?=20
There seems to be no shortage of funding for=20
holding conferences but sustaining Indy media is=20
not really on the agenda. Where were the U-Tube=20
Kids, or My Space addicts or the leaders of=20
citizen journalism initiatives? Where were the=20
mainstream journalist organizations, and media=20
freedom groups or were only radicals allowed?=20
Where were the panels debating what=92s really=20
happening in the media -- the appeal of Jon=20
Stewart and Comedy News and the failure of Air=20
America and even concepts like media justice?=20
Bill Moyers at least offered some ideas on how to=20
bring PBS into the 21st Century. And what about=20
the global media movement? Why no presence from=20
the Al Jazeera English Channel that can't get on=20
the air in the US? I was glad to see a rep from=20
Britain's Campaign for Press and Broadcasting=20
Freedom but there were so few activists from=20
abroad. What about publishing? How can we have=20
3000 plus people assemble in one place and leave=20
with no clear focused plan of what we do next,=20
how we work together, what's the next step? I=20
felt the same way when I left earlier conferences=20
in Madison and St. Louis. They were cool events=20
-- and heady networking opportunities =AD- but now=20
what? Enough shmooze=97its time to make some news!
http://www.mediachannel.org/
See also --
* What Does Media Reform Mean to You?
http://www.mediachannel.org/out.php?url=3Dhttp://www.mediachannel.org/wo...
ress/2007/01/12/what-does-media-reform-mean-to-you/

MARKEY PUSHES OWNERSHIP DIVERSITY
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
New House Telecommunications Subcommittee=20
Chairman Ed Markey (D-MA) told attendees at the=20
National Conference on Media Reform Saturday that=20
Congress needed to explore ways to boost minority=20
ownership of the media and took aim at loosened=20
ownership rules he blamed for suppressing a=20
diversity of views. Citing the appropriateness of=20
holding the conference on the Martin Luther King=20
Jr. holiday weekend, Rep Markey called diversity=20
of ownership "a proxy for diversity of viewpoints=20
and diversity of content. Simply put, therefore,=20
elimination of ownership limits eradicates an=20
important tool we have to help ensure that the=20
public has access to a wide array of viewpoints=20
in local news and information." He slammed the=20
remanded media ownership changes of 2003, saying=20
they had been "rammed through the FCC" and, save=20
for the court, would have "eviscerated the public=20
interest" and been a "toxin to Democracy and the=20
death knell for community control of the media."
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6407479.html?display=3DBreaki...
News

MARKEY PLEDGES TO KEEP NET NEUTRALITY WAVE ROLLING
[SOURCE: MediaCitizen, AUTHOR: Tim Karr]
Rep Ed Markey, who now chairs the House=20
Subcommittee that will oversee all=20
telecommunications legislation, promised to=20
protect Internet freedom in his elevated role=20
within Congress. "We are going to, in Washington,=20
have an historic debate over the next two years=20
and I will chair the committee that is having=20
those hearings," Rep Markey told the audience. "I=20
can promise you this, that unlike the last two=20
years it just won't be the CEOs of the telephone=20
and cable companies who are there. You will be=20
selecting witnesses to testify right next to them=20
on the same day before the same Congressmen so=20
that the voices of the American people will be=20
heard as well." "Let me tell you something about=20
Congress," Rep Markey said. "Congress is a=20
stimulus response institution. There is nothing=20
more stimulating than having 1.5 million people=20
who say I don't think I want you to keep your job=20
if you won't keep your hands off the Internet."=20
Rep Markey blasted the phone and cable company=20
assault on Net Neutrality, pledging to foster=20
openness, innovation and neutrality during his=20
tenure. But he indicated he can't safeguard=20
Internet freedom on his own. According to=20
Chairman Markey, the digital revolution has the=20
potential to change our society only if we=20
"animate these technologies with the human values=20
that represent our highest aspirations for our society."
http://mediacitizen.blogspot.com/2007/01/markey-pledges-to-keep-net-neut...
ity.html
* Text of Rep Markey's remarks
http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/01/14/daily.1/
* Neutrality Backers Hope Climate=92s Improved
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6407334.html?display=3DBreaking+News

NETWORK NEUTRALITY

AMAZON.COM MEETS WITH FCC ON NET NEUTRALITY
[SOURCE: Lasar's Letter on the FCC, AUTHOR: Matthew Lasar]
Amazon.com's Vice President for Global Public=20
Policy Paul Misener started the work year off=20
with a meeting with Federal Communications=20
Commission chair Kevin Martin on net=20
neutrality. Misener met with Chairman Martin and=20
his assistant Michelle Carey on Thursday the=20
11th. At the gathering the VP reiterated=20
"Amazon.com=92s continuing concern that network=20
operators may impair and constrain American=20
consumers=92 access to lawful online services and=20
information that otherwise would be available,"=20
according to the company's public filing. Misener=20
urged continued FCC oversight on the issue "with=20
respect to the network neutrality policy=20
statement adopted by the Commission August 2,=20
2005." The latest Amazon.com visit may signify a=20
wait-and-see attitude since the FCC approved the=20
AT&T/BellSouth merger on December 29th, 2006. In=20
exchange for the go-ahead, AT&T promised to=20
"maintain a neutral network and neutral routing=20
in its wireline broadband Internet access=20
service." But several parties involved in the=20
merger debate continue to file with the FCC,=20
urging the Commission to exercise vigilance in=20
holding AT&T to its promises on net neutrality and other commitments.
http://www.lasarletter.net/drupal/node/282

JOURNALISM

CHANDLERS MAY BID FOR TRIBUNE AS LAST RESORT
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: James Rainey and Thomas S. Mulligan]
Tribune probably will attract few, if any, bids=20
for the entire company by Wednesday's deadline,=20
and any offers it does receive are expected to be=20
close to the current share price. Some following=20
the Tribune saga said they expected at least a=20
few bids for the media giant -- perhaps including=20
one from the Chandlers themselves. A successful=20
Chandler bid would put the family back in control=20
of The Times after a 118-year reign that ended in=20
2000 when the paper and other holdings were sold=20
to Tribune. Those following the deal closely=20
believe that the family would make such a bid as=20
a fallback. Despite myriad potential pitfalls,=20
they said the most consistent interest in a deal=20
has been expressed by a group composed of three=20
private equity firms -- Madison Dearborn Partners=20
of Chicago, Apollo Management of New York and=20
Providence Equity Partners of Rhode Island. The=20
consortium has long been viewed as a contender=20
for Tribune because of Madison Dearborn's Chicago=20
roots and its reported interest in hometown=20
assets such as the Cubs and WGN-TV. Former=20
Tribune Chief Executive John W. Madigan was a=20
Madison Dearborn partner until he took a leave of=20
absence in the fall and later resigned. Tribune's=20
control of the Cubs could be viewed as=20
particularly attractive to Madison Dearborn CEO=20
John Canning, a onetime college catcher and avid=20
baseball man who has said he would like to own a=20
major league team. Canning already owns several=20
minor league clubs and has a minority interest in=20
Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Brewers. (So,=20
yeah, Cubs fans... the upside may be that our=20
team is run as well as the brewers soon.)
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-tribune15jan15,1,1692...
.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)
See also --
* Odd Couple Ponder Bid for Tribune
Will there be a bid for Tribune from Eli Broad,=20
the straight-talking billionaire whose art=20
collection and philanthropic efforts to=20
revitalize downtown Los Angeles have put him=20
happily in the public eye, and Ronald W. Burkle,=20
the supermarket mogul, Democratic fund-raiser and=20
F.O.B. (friend of Bill Clinton) who tries --=20
usually unsuccessfully -- to avoid publicity?
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/16/business/media/16tribune.html
* Newspaper Ownership Is Turning The Page
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Frank Ahrens]
A look at parallels between possible Trib sale=20
and that of the orange County Register.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1356.html
(requires registration)

LAYOFFS AT PAPER PROMPT UPROAR OVER DIVERSITY
[SOURCE: New York Times 1/15, AUTHOR: Maria Aspan]
The recent layoffs at the embattled Philadelphia=20
Inquirer have resulted in a round of=20
finger-pointing over their disproportionate=20
impact on diversity in the newsroom. On Jan. 3,=20
the Inquirer began laying off 71 newsroom=20
employees, or 17 percent of its staff, based on=20
seniority guidelines in the newspaper union=92s=20
contract. According to the Newspaper Guild of=20
Greater Philadelphia, 17 of the 71 journalists=20
laid off, or about 24 percent, are minorities. In=20
a Jan. 3 letter to Brian P. Tierney, the=20
publisher of The Inquirer and The Daily News, the=20
National Association of Black Journalists=20
protested the sharp decline in newsroom=20
diversity. Mr. Tierney and union leaders=20
expressed dismay at the impact on newsroom=20
diversity -- and promptly blamed each other.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/business/media/15philly.html
(requires registration)

DOCUMENTS BORNE BY WINDS OF FREE SPEECH
[SOURCE: New York Times 1/15, AUTHOR: Tom Zeller]
A showdown is scheduled for a federal courtroom=20
in Brooklyn tomorrow afternoon, where words like=20
=93First Amendment=94 and =93freedom of speech=94 and=20
=93prior restraint=94 are likely to mix seamlessly=20
with references to =93BitTorrent=94 and =93Wiki.=94 It is=20
a messy plot that pits Eli Lilly, the=20
pharmaceutical giant at the center of several=20
articles in The New York Times suggesting that=20
the company tried to hide or play down the health=20
risks of its leading antipsychotic drug, Zyprexa,=20
and lawyers representing various individuals,=20
organizations and Web sites -- all arguing that=20
their online speech has been gagged. The case has=20
attracted the attention of the Electronic=20
Frontier Foundation, the venerable digital rights=20
group based in San Francisco, and one of its=20
lawyers, Fred von Lohmann, who is now=20
representing an anonymous Internet user caught up=20
in the legal fracas. =93One of the core missions of=20
the foundation=92s 16-year history has been to=20
establish that when you go online, you take with=20
you all the same civil rights with you had with=20
you in prior media,=94 said Mr. von Lohmann. =93But=20
of course, you need to fight for that principle.=94
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/technology/15link.html
(requires registration)

BLOGGERS TAKE ON TALK RADIO HOSTS
[SOURCE: New York Times 1/15, AUTHOR: Noam Cohen]
A San Francisco talk radio station pre-empted=20
three hours of programming on Friday in response=20
to a campaign by bloggers who have recorded=20
extreme comments by several hosts and passed on=20
digital copies to advertisers. The lead blogger,=20
who uses the name Spocko, said that he and other=20
bloggers had contacted more than 30 advertisers=20
on KSFO-AM to inform them of comments made on the=20
air and to ask them to pull their ads. The=20
comments were also posted on Spocko=92s Web site,=20
spockosbrain.com. In response, ABC Radio=20
Networks, which owns KSFO and which in turn is=20
owned by the Walt Disney Company, sent letters to=20
the site=92s service provider, demanding the clips=20
be taken down from its servers. The provider=20
complied, raising the issue of what constitutes=20
fair use of copyrighted material by a critic.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/technology/15radio.html
(requires registration)

SOMALIA'S TRANSITIONAL GOVERNMENT SHUTS DOWN 3 RADIO STATIONS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Jeffery Gettleman]
Somalia=92s transitional government shut three of=20
the country=92s biggest radio stations on Monday,=20
accusing them of broadcasting incendiary=20
propaganda. Executives of the radio stations,=20
however, said that was no excuse to force them=20
off the air. =93All we have done is voice different=20
opinions,=94 said Mohammed Amiin, deputy chairman=20
of Shabelle Media Network. =93We never expected=20
this to happen.=94 Abdirahman Dinari, spokesman for=20
the transitional government, accused Shabelle,=20
along with the other stations, of making false=20
reports to stir up the people against the=20
government. =93They said our soldiers were looting=20
the markets and harassing people, which was=20
totally untrue,=94 he said. =93They are using the=20
media to undermine the government. They have been=20
doing this for months.=94 Security officials have=20
summoned station owners to a meeting on Tuesday,=20
and Mr. Dinari said there was a possibility that=20
the stations would soon be back on the air, after they were given a warning.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/16/world/africa/16somalia.html
(requires registration)

TELECOM

AT&T TO OFFER $20 'NAKED' DSL SERVICE
[SOURCE: USAToday 1/12, AUTHOR: Leslie Cauley]
Cheaper high-speed Internet service is coming.=20
Within a few months, AT&T is expected to start=20
charging $19.95 a month for "naked" DSL, meaning=20
you don't have to buy any other AT&T (T) service,=20
including phone, to get that rate. It currently=20
charges $45 for a stand-alone broadband=20
subscription. AT&T also is developing $10 DSL for=20
new subscribers who also buy AT&T-branded phone=20
service. AT&T plans to offer both services for at=20
least 30 months. The clock starts as soon as the=20
media giant starts selling them in any of the 22=20
states where it is the incumbent local phone=20
company, including California, Florida, Illinois=20
and Texas. Why so cheap? Three words: Federal=20
Communications Commission. The FCC, which has=20
broad regulatory control over the U.S.=20
telecommunications industry, recently approved=20
AT&T's acquisition of BellSouth. To get needed=20
votes from the FCC's two Democratic members, AT&T=20
agreed, reluctantly, to offer these DSL bargains.=20
AT&T is required to roll out the $19.95 offer=20
within one year and the $10 rate within six=20
months. Gene Kimmelman, public policy director of=20
Consumers Union, says he expects AT&T to move=20
faster. Under the terms of the FCC agreement,=20
AT&T is required to offer naked DSL for $19.95 in=20
markets that are at least 80% upgraded for=20
broadband. That describes many of AT&T's biggest=20
markets, says Kimmelman, who helped negotiate the=20
settlement. Under the deal, AT&T's cheap DSL=20
products will clock in at 768 kilobits per=20
second. While that's slower than the 1.5 to 3=20
megabits popular with many U.S. consumers, "it's=20
more than good enough" for Internet telephony,=20
Kimmelman says. As such, he thinks the twin=20
offers could help spur sales of Internet=20
telephony across the USA. "This opens the door=20
for consumers" to pick other local and=20
long-distance providers," Kimmelman says.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/technology/2007-01-15-naked-dsl...
at_x.htm

CELL PHONE SUBSIDIES ENRICH TELECOMS
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Bob Porterfield]
Cellular subscribers are paying hundreds of=20
millions of dollars each year to subsidize=20
landline telephone service, enriching big=20
telecommunications companies while providing=20
little or no benefit to cell phone users. The=20
subsidies are intended to reimburse the companies=20
for providing traditional phone service in rough=20
terrain and rural areas where stringing lines can=20
be costly. But rampant development has=20
transformed some of these backwaters into booming=20
subdivisions, with no real adjustment to the=20
distribution formula; others, like the oceanfront=20
celebrity playground of Malibu, are receiving=20
subsidies simply because of their difficult=20
topography. Outdated formulas for tabulating the=20
surcharges - coupled with feeble government=20
oversight - have meant a windfall for phone=20
companies, which are fighting to preserve them.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CELLULAR_SURCHARGES?SITE=3DRIWOO&...
TION=3DHOME&TEMPLATE=3DDEFAULT

PRIVACY/SECRECY

ENJOYING TECHNOLOGY'S CONVENIENCES BUT NOT ESCAPING ITS WATCHFUL EYES
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Ellen Nakashima]
Many Americans use modern gadgets to make life=20
easier and along the way create a data trail that=20
others can access and preserve, sometimes=20
permanently. Every Internet search resides on a=20
computer somewhere. Comings and goings are=20
monitored by security cameras. Phone calls are=20
logged by telecommunications companies. This=20
explosion in data collection has been embraced by=20
many Americans as a trade-off for convenience and=20
discounts. But it also has raised questions about=20
personal privacy at a time when the government is=20
increasingly tapping into these reservoirs of=20
telling details to fight crime and terrorism. The=20
new Congress has begun to examine the uses and=20
abuses of data gathering for security and=20
commerce. A look at one person's activity one=20
recent day helps to illustrate what they're=20
likely to find: that ordinary Americans leave a=20
trail of digital data that is being gathered,=20
stored and analyzed, and that these people seldom realize it.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1304.html
(requires registration)
* E-mail
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1442.html
* Cellphones
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1440.html
* GPS Tracking
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1443.html
* Security Cameras
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1441.html
* The Legal Tangles Of Data Collection
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1301.html

HOW TO BURY A SECRET: TURN IT INTO PAPERWORK
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Lynne Duke]
At the stroke of midnight on Dec. 31, something=20
profound happened in the government secrecy=20
system. With little fanfare, the paradigm of=20
secrecy shifted. The days when secrets would be=20
secret forever officially ended that night. Some=20
700 million pages of secret documents became=20
unsecret. No longer were they classified. They=20
became . . . public. Imagine it: Some 400 million=20
formerly classified pages at the National=20
Archives, another 270 million at the FBI, 30=20
million elsewhere, all emerging into the sunshine=20
of open government, squinting and pale, like=20
naked mole rats. This would seem a victory for=20
freedom of information, just as President Bill=20
Clinton envisioned when he signed Executive Order=20
12958 in 1995 (affirmed by President Bush in=20
2003), which mandated that 25-year-old documents=20
be automatically declassified unless exempted for=20
national security or other reasons. But it is not=20
so simple. There is a dirty little secret about=20
these secrets: They remain secreted away. You=20
still can't rush down to the National Archives to=20
check them out. In fact, it could be years before=20
these public documents can be viewed by the=20
public. Fifty archivists can process 40 million=20
pages in a year, but now they are facing 400=20
million. The backlog, inside the National=20
Archives II facility in College Park, measures=20
160,000 cubic feet inside a massive classified=20
vault with special lighting and climate controls=20
to preserve old paper. Row upon row of=20
electronically operated steel shelves, all a pale=20
gray, hold hundreds of thousands of document=20
boxes buffered to fight destructive acidity. The=20
place feels like the set of a science fiction=20
movie, all pristine and orderly and hushed.=20
Inside the boxes are documents that have to be=20
scrutinized and processed according to the=20
classification instructions written on them by=20
staffers in any one of several agencies, which=20
leaves archivists with a task not unlike deciphering a 25-year-old crime sc=
ene.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/15/AR200701...
1216.html
(requires registration)

QUICKLY

'24' HITTING THE SHELVES IN HALF THAT
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Meg James]
In one of the quickest turnarounds ever for a=20
television show to appear on DVD, Twentieth=20
Century Fox Television today is expected to=20
release the season premiere episodes of "24" less=20
than 12 hours after the popular drama finishes=20
airing. The sixth season of the show starring=20
Kiefer Sutherland as federal agent and terrorist=20
fighter Jack Bauer was launched Sunday and Monday=20
on Fox Broadcasting Network. By this morning,=20
DVDs of the shows will be on retail shelves.=20
Usually, studios release a television DVD months,=20
if not years, after the network run and package=20
them as a boxed set with an entire season's worth=20
of discs. "This is an interesting approach to=20
marrying the DVD format with the broadcast=20
network," said Amy Jo Smith, executive director=20
of Digital Entertainment Group, a trade=20
organization that tracks the home entertainment=20
business. "The entire industry has been=20
discussing convergence =97 but this is an actual=20
illustration of it." Fox's release of the "24"=20
premiere on DVD is as much a promotional device=20
as it is an experiment in collapsing the windows=20
that traditionally separate a show's network run=20
from its appearance in other formats. The latest=20
"24" DVD will contain the first four hours of the=20
new season plus 12 minutes of the episode that is=20
scheduled to air Monday. But Fox's gambit also=20
illustrates the speed at which studios=20
increasingly must operate to keep up with a world=20
where consumers prefer to watch shows on their=20
own time schedule =97 not the networks'. Several=20
networks, including ABC and CBS, have offered=20
Internet downloads of an episode a few hours=20
after the show airs. "The trend of the network=20
business is to try to tap into the value of shows=20
earlier in their life span instead of waiting=20
four or five years like we used to," said Gary=20
Newman, president of Twentieth Century Fox=20
Television, which produces "24." "Shows today=20
have a relatively short life span. We've got to=20
make money while there's heat on a show."
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-twentyfour16jan16,1,3...
288.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)

ANYWHERE THE EYE CAN SEE, IT'S LIKELY TO SEE AN AD
[SOURCE: New York Times 1/15, AUTHOR: Louise Story]
Add this to the endangered list: blank spaces.=20
Advertisers seem determined to fill every last=20
one of them. Supermarket eggs have been stamped=20
with the names of CBS television shows. Subway=20
turnstiles bear messages from Geico auto=20
insurance. Chinese food cartons promote=20
Continental Airways. US Airways is selling ads on=20
motion sickness bags. And the trays used in=20
airport security lines have been hawking=20
Rolodexes. Marketers used to try their hardest to=20
reach people at home, when they were watching TV=20
or reading newspapers or magazines. But=20
consumers=92 viewing and reading habits are so=20
scattershot now that many advertisers say the=20
best way to reach time-pressed consumers is to=20
try to catch their eye at literally every turn.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/business/media/15everywhere.html
(requires registration)

BOYS AND GIRLS USE SOCIAL SITES DIFFERENTLY
[SOURCE: New York Times 1/15, AUTHOR: Alex Mindlin]
Older teenage girls are far more likely than=20
younger girls, or boys of any age, to use=20
social-networking sites like MySpace or Facebook,=20
according to a recent study by the Pew Internet &=20
American Life Project. The study found that,=20
while older girls use such sites the most, older=20
boys are more likely to meet new people through=20
them. Sixty percent of older boys, for example,=20
say they use the sites to make new friends, while=20
only 46 percent of older girls do. And older boys=20
are more than twice as likely to say they use the sites to flirt.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/15/business/15drill.html
(requires registration)
* See Pew study at http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/198/report_display.asp

MUSICAL CHAIRS: DEMS TAKE OVER
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
A look at who's in and who's out of key=20
chairmanships in Congress now that Democrats are in control.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6407361.html?display=3DSearch...
sults&text=3Dmarkey

HILL QUARTET PUSHES RETRANS HEARINGS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The American Cable Association, which represents=20
small and medium-sized cable operators, says four=20
legislators have asked the leadership of the=20
House Commerce Committee to hold hearing on=20
retransmission consent. The call comes amid a=20
high-profile battle between Sinclair and Mediacom=20
over carriage of the former's TV stations and=20
CBS's long-standing pledge to get money for its=20
stations. It also follows a request from the Iowa=20
congressional delegation to the heads of Sinclair=20
and Mediacom, to submit to the binding=20
arbitration at the FCC, as the Commission=20
suggested. The letter came from Republican Reps=20
Nathan Deal and Charlie Norwood, both Georgia;=20
Sue Myrick (NC); and Lee Terry (Neb.).
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6407500.html

MORE STATES USE 511 FOR 411 ON TRAFFIC
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Larry Copeland]
Commuters, truckers and leisure drivers eager to=20
elude bumper-to-bumper traffic increasingly have=20
a new weapon: dialing =97 or clicking on =97 5-1-1.=20
Technology that delivers instantaneous=20
information on traffic gridlock via cellphones=20
and the Internet is spreading across the nation.=20
The 511 systems are part of a wave of=20
techno-tools emerging to help drivers avoid traffic jams.
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070116/a_511_16.art.htm
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Communications-related Headlines is a free online=20
news summary service provided by the Benton=20
Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday=20
through Friday, this service provides updates on=20
important industry developments, policy issues,=20
and other related news events. While the=20
summaries are factually accurate, their often=20
informal tone does not always represent the tone=20
of the original articles. Headlines are compiled=20
by Kevin Taglang headlines( at )benton.org -- we welcome your comments.
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