January 2007

See you in Memphis later today -- and Headlines will be publishing
all through the conference. See http://www.freepress.net/conference/

CONGRESSIONAL AGENDA
Advocate Urges Senate to Update Privacy Laws to Protect Citizens
From Government Data Mining
John Kerry Introduces Wireless Innovation Act to Spur New Broadband
Connections
Analysis of Internet Freedom Preservation Act

FCC AGENDA
FCC Meeting Agenda 1/17
No Set-Top Waiver, Says Martin
FCC to weigh cellphone plans' cancellation fees

TELEVISION
Newspaper-TV Marriage Shows Signs of Strain
Is There Too Much Blood in Primetime?

QUICKLY -- Too Casual To Sit on Press Row?; Next digital step leads
to content near you; Grants offered to help shape Internet; Task
force calls for rural broadband initiative in TN; Give a child a
video game -- and maybe a job; No cellphone? No BlackBerry? No
e-mail?; Amazon Recommendations Understand Woman Better Than Husband

CONGRESSIONAL AGENDA

ADVOCATE URGES SENATE TO UPDATE LAWS TO PROTECT CITIZENS FROM
GOVERNMENT DATA MINING
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Michael Sniffen]
The government's ability to use computers to gather personal
information about citizens and act on it has far outstripped the
federal laws designed to protect them from secret federal dossiers, a
privacy advocate told Congress on Wednesday. Leslie Harris, executive
director of the Center for Democracy and Technology, asked the Senate
Judiciary Committee to update the Privacy Act and other laws to keep
pace with the Digital Age. She was among a handful of think-tank
scholars and privacy advocates who testified Wednesday about
government data-mining -- the computerized searching of large banks
of information for clues to the identity of terrorists or criminals.
Their broadest area of agreement was that Congress needs to know much
more about what the government is doing in data-mining.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/D/DATA_MINING?SITE=TXMID&SECTION=HO...
* Daylight Sought For Data Mining
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/10/AR200701...

JOHN KERRY INTRODUCES WIRELESS INNOVATION ACT TO SPUR NEW BROADBAND CONNECTIONS
[SOURCE: The Democratic Daily]
Sen John Kerry (D-MA) introduced the Wireless Innovation Act of 2007
which will make broadband available to unconnected communities by
exploiting the unused frequencies in the broadcast spectrum known as
"white spaces." Sen Kerry introduced the same bill in the 109th
Congress, however it was not acted on by the full Senate. The bill
directs the Federal Communications Commission to move quickly to free
up valuable but unused broadcast airwaves -- known as "white spaces"
-- which could then be used for unlicensed, wireless broadband. In
many markets, more than half of the available broadcast channels have
not been licensed to television stations. Free Press Policy Director
Ben Scott said: "Free Press... urges the Senate to move quickly to
pass the Wireless Innovation Act of 2007. This bill holds the
potential to create universal, affordable broadband access across the
United States. Greater access to unlicensed spectrum in the
low-frequency bands would improve local emergency communications
networks, nurture the growth of small business and entrepreneurship,
generate competition in the broadband market, and ensure that
underserved areas are not left behind as technology advances in the
21st century. The expansion of unlicensed spectrum in particular will
create a boom in innovative technologies and expand the opportunities
for citizens to communicate. The unlicensed spectrum currently
available - just 2 percent of the total spectrum that is commercially
available - already has spurred entrepreneurship and technological
innovation, generating billions of dollars in new business for
manufacturers, retailers and providers. This is a critical issue
whose time has come."
http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=5088
* Free Press Applauds Wireless Innovation Act of 2007
http://www.freepress.net/press/release.php?id=200
* Kerry Reintroduces Wireless Innovation Act of 2007
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6406639.html?display=Breaking...
* Kerry drops another good bill
http://www.wetmachine.com//item/698

ANALYSIS OF INTERNET FREEDOM PRESERVATION ACT
[SOURCE: Tales from the Sausage Factory, AUTHOR: Harold Feld]
See what public interest telecom lawyer Feld thinks of the Network
Neutrality bill offered by Sen Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME).
http://www.wetmachine.com/item/697
* For additional information on the bill see
http://www.benton.org/index.php?q=node/4456

FCC AGENDA

FCC MEETING AGENDA
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
The Federal Communications Commission will hold an Open Meeting on
the subjects listed below on Wednesday, January 17, 2007, which is
scheduled to commence at 9:30 a.m. in Room TW-C305, at 445 12th
Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. The Meeting will focus on
presentations by senior agency officials regarding implementations of
the agency's strategic plan and a comprehensive review of FCC
policies and procedures. Presentations will be made in four panels:
Panel One will feature the Managing Director and the Chief of the
Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau. Panel Two will feature the
Chiefs of the Enforcement Bureau and Public Safety and Homeland
Security Bureau. Panel Three will feature the Chiefs of the Wireless
Telecommunications Bureau, Office of Engineering and Technology, and
the International Bureau. Panel Four will feature the Chiefs of the
Media Bureau, and Wireline Competition Bureau.
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-269442A1.doc

NO SET-TOP WAIVER, SAYS MARTIN
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Glen Dickson]
At the Consumer Electronics Sow, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said that
Comcast isn't likely to get a waiver of the FCC's July 2007 deadline
for requiring cable companies to separate the security and channel
surfing functions of their digital cable boxes: "there are a series
of waivers in front of us. We shouldn't just provide a blanket waiver
to the whole industry, at this point, to a rule that was adopted in
1998. Comcast is asking for further delay without giving a timetable
on downloadable security." Asked about the status of the transition
to DTV, which is scheduled to be completed by February 2009, Chairman
Martin said, "We'll do everything we can to help them [broadcasters].
Missing the date is not an option."
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6406635?title=Article&spacede...
* FCC Rejects Comcast In Bid for More Time For Set-Top Box Change
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116848608851573441.html?mod=todays_us_pa...
* No Set-Top Waiver for Comcast
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6406655.html?display=Breaking+News

FCC TO WEIGH CELLPHONE PLANS' CANCELLATION FEES
[SOURCE: Bloomberg News]
The Federal Communications Commission will decide this year whether
to limit fees that mobile-phone carriers charge customers who cancel
service before their contracts expire, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said.
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-briefs11.2jan11,1,678...
(requires registration)

TELEVISION

NEWSPAPER-TV MARRIAGE SHOWS SIGNS OF STRAIN
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Frank Ahrens]
Television once was a coveted partner of newspapers. Executives
talked of synergy between the two media, with newspaper reporters
broadcasting their expertise on television, and TV stations providing
a wider reach for the print brand. The high profit earned by TV
stations, as much as 40 percent during years when the stations are
fattened by political advertising, was seen as crucial to the bottom
lines of newspaper companies. But even though TV stations still are
profitable, they no longer enjoy the dominance they did in days
before cable and the Internet. And in many places, the newspaper and
television cultures never meshed. Television has not provided the
hoped-for advertising relationships, either. Increasingly, newspapers
are turning instead to the Web to help them land national
advertisers. What happened to spoil the newspaper-television
marriage? Mostly, the YouTube and MySpace interlopers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/10/AR200701...
(requires registration)

IS THERE TOO MUCH BLOOD IN PRIMETIME?
[SOURCE: tvnewsday, AUTHOR: Kim McAvoy]
Broadcasters, already weary of defending themselves against
indecency, may soon find themselves fighting on a second front in the
content wars -- TV violence. The Parents Television Council released
a new study on television violence, Dying to Entertain, which found
that violence on prime time broadcast television has increased 75%
since 1998. The television season that began in the fall of 2005 was
also one of the most violent ever recorded by the PTC. Meanwhile, the
FCC may soon release a report to Congress critical of broadcast TV
violence. And regulating TV violence could gain traction on Capitol
Hill. It has long been a favorite issue of Democrats, who are now
back in control of Congress. The FCC report is currently circulating
among the commissioners and the word is that it will not be good news
for broadcasters. According to one source, it may conclude that the
V-chip is not working and that some type of regulatory intervention is needed.
http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/01/10/daily.2/
* PTC Finds Dramatic Increase of Violence on TV
http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/publications/release/2007/0110.asp
* ABC Defends Shows From PTC Violence Assault
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
ABC, which the Parents Television Council said on Wednesday was the
network that had shown the biggest increase in primetime violence
since 1998, stands by its programming choices.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6406577?title=Article&spacede...
* TV violence is surging, group says
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-violence11jan11,1,254...

QUICKLY

TOO CASUAL TO SIT ON PRESS ROW?
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Alan Sipress]
Start ironing your pajamas... When the trial of Vice President
Cheney's former chief of staff on charges of perjury and obstruction
of justice opens next week, scores of journalists are expected to
throng the federal courtroom in Washington, far too many for the 100
seats set aside for the media. But for the first time in a federal
court, two of these seats will be reserved for bloggers. After two
years of negotiations with judicial officials across the country, the
Media Bloggers Association, a nonpartisan group with about 1,000
members working to extend the powers of the press to bloggers, has
won credentials to rotate among his members. The trial of I. Lewis
"Scooter" Libby, the highest-ranking Bush administration official to
face criminal charges, could "catalyze" the association's efforts to
win respect and access for bloggers in federal and state courthouses,
said Robert Cox, the association's president.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/10/AR200701...
(requires registration)

NEXT DIGITAL STEPS LEADS TO CONTENT NEAR YOU
[SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter, AUTHOR: Diane Mermigas]
[Commentary] This year, localization will emerge a powerful catalyst
for transforming old media into new, forging unique online revenue
streams, and generating indispensable content, all as close as
consumers' own backyards. The creative mining of the local
businesses, services, resources and interests so ingrained in our
everyday lives can take the personalization of digital broadband
interactivity, as well as the profits of participating companies, to
the next level and remind struggling newspapers, radio and TV
stations of how they can more ingeniously tap what was once their
exclusive domain.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/features/columns/mer...

GRANTS OFFERED TO HELP SHAPE INTERNET
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Anick Jesdanun]
To encourage greater participation in standard-setting from
developing countries, where Internet usage is growing, the nonprofit
Internet Society is offering grants for up to five people to attend
each Internet Engineering Task Force meeting. Covered expenses
include meeting registration, airfare and hotels. Each recipient will
also be paired with an IETF veteran to serve as a mentor.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/T/TECHBIT_TECHNICAL_GRANTS?SITE=MSJ...

TASK FORCE CALLS FOR RURAL BROADBAND INITIATIVE IN TN
[SOURCE: ZDNet Government]
In Tennessee, a state ranked 37th in broadband access, a broadband
task force called on state leaders to act aggressively towards
building out broadband for the rural parts of the state.
http://government.zdnet.com/?p=2831

GIVE A CHILD A VIDEO GAME -- AND MAYBE A JOB
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Lisa Baertlein]
Mathematics, science and video games? A U.S. university professor is
urging schools to consider using video games as tools to better
prepare children for the work force. For although many educators
scoff at the idea of video games in schools, the U.S. military has
titles that train soldiers, teenagers with cancer use a game to
battle their illness virtually and physically and some surgeons use
video games to keep their hands nimble.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID...

NE CELLPHONE? NO BLACKBERRY? NO E-MAIL? NO WAY? (IT'S TRUE.)
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Janet Kornblum]
There are some, a dwindling -- some might say occasionally oppressed
-- minority who are resisting the worldwide movement to be constantly
connected. They're just saying no to the very technologies that
increasingly are captivating most everybody else. Some tech-no's shun
e-mail. Others don't use the Web or don't even have a computer. Many
avoid cellphones. In a few rare cases, people say no to just about
all of it. Even tech-loving teens and twentysomethings are starting
to think twice. They might use the Internet (93% of American teens
ages 12 to 17 do, according to the Pew Internet & American Life
Project), but a few are turning away from the same social networking
sites with which their peers are obsessed. (But wait a minute... how,
then, do you read headlines?)
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070111/1a_tech-noxx.art.htm

AMAZON RECOMMENDATIONS UNDERSTAND WOMAN BETTER THAN HUSBAND
[SOURCE: The Onion]
Pamela Meyers was delighted to receive yet another thoughtful CD
recommendation from Amazon.com Friday, confirming that the online
retail giant has a more thorough, individualized, and nuanced
understanding of Meyers' taste than the man who occasionally claims
to love her, husband Dean Meyers. "To come home from a long day at
work and see the message about the new Norah Jones album waiting for
me, it just made my week," said Meyers, 36, who claimed she was
touched that the company paid such attention to her. "It feels nice
to be noticed once in a while, you know?" Amazon, which has been
tracking Meyers' purchases since she first used the site to order
Football For Dummies in preparation for attending the 2004 Citrus
Bowl as part of her husband's 10th wedding anniversary plans, has
shown impressive accuracy at recommending books, movies, music, and
even clothing that perfectly match Meyers' tastes. While the powerful
algorithms that power Amazon's recommendations generator do not have
the advantage of being able to observe Meyers' body language, verbal
intonation, or current personal possessions, they have nonetheless
proven more effective than Dean, who bases his gift-giving choices
primarily on what is needed around the house, what he would like to
own, and, most notably, what objects are nearby.
http://www.theonion.com/content/news/amazon_recommendations_understand
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...and we're outta here -- but looking forward to seeing you in Memphis.
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Communications-related Headlines is a free online news summary
service provided by the Benton Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted
Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important
industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events.
While the summaries are factually accurate, their often informal tone
does not always represent the tone of the original articles.
Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang headlines( at )benton.org -- we
welcome your comments.
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