May 2007

For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/?q=3Devent

DIGITAL DIVIDE
Extend Internet's full reach to black communities
Free-Internet plan gets S.F. controller's office OK

MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Consolidation threatens America's newsrooms
Google sees mergers big and small
Music Radio on the Internet Faces Thorny Royalty Issues
RM + WSJ: Let's Do The Math
Reuters trust said to back sale

BROADCASTING/PAY-FOR SERVICES
Savage accused Rep. Hinchey of being "in cahoots with Al Qaeda"
TV Violence Hearing Postponed
Networks Need a New Tune
XM reaches X-rated limit
EchoStar eyes broadcast assets

ED TECH
Web opens world for young Chinese, but erodes respect

DIGITAL DIVIDE

EXTEND INTERNET'S FULL REACH TO BLACK COMMUNITIES
[SOURCE: Asbury Park Press, AUTHOR: Greg Moore, National NAACP Voter Fund]
[Commentary] We should recognize that, for many=20
black Americans, a seat at the table in the=20
information age is still largely illusory. It's=20
the time-worn story of the digital divide. While=20
investment from cable and phone companies has=20
extended high-speed broadband Internet lines to=20
95 percent of all homes in America, only 14=20
percent of black Americans subscribe to broadband=20
at home. Many experts suggest that price is the=20
cause of this troubling digital divide, which has=20
far-reaching consequences for our political=20
community. In an era when the two Democratic=20
front runners for the presidency =97 one of whom is=20
black =97 announced their campaigns via Web video,=20
it is a tragic irony that thousands of black=20
voters across America couldn't see them. During=20
the 2004 elections, President Bush courageously=20
called for universal broadband by the year 2007,=20
but no plan ever materialized. Now, presidential=20
candidates once again promise to expand=20
affordable access to broadband. But talk is=20
cheap. Candidates who expect the black vote=20
should be prepared to offer real policy solutions=20
to solve real problems. Moore argues 1) for=20
funding community technology centers, 2) against=20
Network Neutrality, and 3) in support of continuing E-rate funding.
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=3D/20070511/OPINION/7051103...
1030
* NAACP Inconsistent on Broadband
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/83745

FREE-INTERNET PLAN GETS SF CONTROLLER'S OFFICE OK
[SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle, AUTHOR: Ryan Kim]
The San Francisco controller's office issued a=20
favorable review Friday on a proposal by=20
EarthLink and Google to provide the city with=20
free wireless Internet access. The report=20
estimates residents could save $9 million to $18=20
million in Internet bills annually by having the=20
option of choosing the EarthLink service, which=20
will offer free access as well as a paid service=20
that is cheaper than other broadband options like=20
DSL and cable. The report said the service will=20
help the city bridge the digital divide,=20
providing many residents with Internet service=20
for the first time. It also noted it would be a=20
boon to EarthLink, giving it a foothold in the San Francisco broadband mark=
et.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/c/a/2007/05/12/BUG6FPP...
1.DTL&type=3Dtech

MEDIA OWNERSHIP

CONSOLIDATION THREATENS AMERICA'S NEWSROOMS
[SOURCE: Seattle Times, AUTHOR: Ryan Blethen]
[Commentary] Rupert Murdoch's unsolicited offer=20
to buy Dow Jones & Co. for $5 billion is not=20
encouraging for American journalism. The=20
dot-com-like offer puts Dow Jones' jewel, The=20
Wall Street Journal, into Murdoch's overflowing=20
media trough called News Corporation. The=20
prospect of a News Corporation/Dow Jones marriage=20
would be such a media dreadnought it should be=20
enough to raise the government's limp regulatory=20
hackles. The Federal Communications Commission=20
probably has no role in the deal, but should try=20
to make noise, considering News Corporation=20
already owns a New York paper, the New York Post,=20
and a television station in the same market. The=20
Federal Trade Commission should be extremely=20
worried that News Corporation could own Fox News=20
Channel, with its dominance of cable TV, a new=20
financial cable channel, and The Wall Street=20
Journal, with its national circulation of 2.06=20
million and nearly another million people who pay=20
for its online edition. The agencies and elected=20
officials that are supposed to protect our=20
democracy have instead given away one of the=20
democracy's crucial supports: the press. The=20
once-robust and diverse press has been=20
transformed into mere properties lumped in with=20
other disparate industries in a bookkeeper's=20
ledger. This has all happened with the help of=20
the FCC, which the media biggies are again=20
pushing to relax rules that ban one company from=20
owning a newspaper and radio and television=20
stations in the same market. The Wall Street=20
Journal will not be the last newspaper to fall if=20
Congress, and the nation's regulatory agencies,=20
do not get serious about this very real threat to=20
democracy, and create laws that foster an independent press.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2003701896_ryan11.html

GOOGLE SEES MERGERS BIG AND SMALL
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Eric Auchard]
Google Inc. has become more comfortable doing big=20
acquisitions but still sees small technology=20
deals as its primary thrust for buying=20
businesses, its chief executive said on Thursday.=20
Chief Executive Eric Schmidt told reporters at a=20
briefing at Google headquarters that the Web=20
search leader remained open to buying larger=20
companies, as it has done twice in recent months,=20
but that these were meant to plug holes in=20
businesses. He also ruled out taking part in the=20
wave of consolidation sweeping the news media=20
business. Google paid $1.65 billion to acquire=20
video-sharing site YouTube in November, it's=20
biggest deal at that time. Then, a month ago, it=20
announced a $3.1 billion deal to buy DoubleClick,=20
which offers advertising delivery technology and=20
services. Schmidt said that the company continues=20
to view small technology acquisitions as the=20
bread-and-butter of its merger strategy, mainly=20
as a way to obtain new technology and talented engineers.
http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSN1041317420070511

MUSIC RADIO ON THE INTERNET FACES THORNY ROYALTY ISSUES
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Doreen Carvajal]
Internet radio sites are global by nature,=20
streaming musical programs digitally to users all=20
over the world. But there is no one-stop global=20
shopping for royalty collections, which means=20
that sites have had to negotiate separate=20
agreements with institutions from each territory=20
or directly with music labels. Global demand,=20
though, respects no boundaries. The American=20
Internet radio audience climbed to 34.5 million=20
in March, and the share of listeners in Europe is=20
even higher at 49.5 million, according to=20
comScore, a marketing research company that=20
tracks Internet traffic. The expanding market has=20
overwhelmed the existing royalty structure. But=20
the International Federation of the Phonographic=20
Industry in London has just completed an=20
international agreement to develop a more=20
manageable way to stream across competing territories and collect royalties.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/14/technology/14radio.html
(requires registration)

RM + WSJ: LET'S DO THE MATH
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Howard Kurtz]
[Commentary] Could Rupert Murdoch keep his thumb=20
off the journalistic scale if he buys the Wall=20
Street Journal? Is he smart enough to realize=20
that meddling would ruin the very asset he thinks=20
is worth $5 billion? The record is not=20
encouraging, and not because Murdoch is a=20
committed conservative; rather, he is a man of=20
shifting political alliances whose media outlets=20
tend to follow his lead. He is a throwback to the=20
William Randolph Hearst era, when publishers were=20
openly partisan, made backroom deals and even ran=20
for office. And Murdoch makes no secret of his=20
views. At a conference last month, he praised=20
President Bush as "persuasive, strong and=20
articulate" and told Journal Editorial Page=20
Editor Paul Gigot: "Apart from your newspaper and=20
mine, there's a sort of monolithic attack on him=20
every day of the year." This is an owner who=20
thought nothing of donating $1 million to the=20
California Republican Party in 1996 or, more=20
recently, hosting a fundraiser for Hillary=20
Clinton. Anyone who thinks that didn't result in=20
more respectful coverage of the senator in the=20
New York Post hasn't been reading that paper very=20
carefully. Given this track record, could Murdoch=20
be a reasonable steward of the Journal? In any=20
other field, a mogul buys a company and issues=20
marching orders as he sees fit. Only with a news=20
organization is a wealthy owner supposed to spend=20
big bucks and then keep his hands off the core=20
product, even allowing his employees to scrutinize him and his friends.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/13/AR200705...
1181.html
(requires registration)

REUTERS TRUST SAID TO BACK SALE
[SOURCE: Reuters]
The trust that acts as guardian to the editorial=20
independence of Reuters Group is reportedly set=20
to back a proposed takeover of the media group by Canada's Thomson Corp.
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-reuters14may14,1,5096...
.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)

BROADCASTING/PAY-FOR SERVICES

SAVAGE ACCUSES REP HINCHEY OF "BEING IN CAHOOTS WITH A QAEDA"
[SOURCE: Media Matters for America]
On the May 9 edition of his nationally syndicated=20
radio show, while reading from a May 9 National=20
Review article on the six Muslim men arrested for=20
plotting an attack on the Fort Dix military base,=20
Michael Savage called Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY)=20
a "rotten, stinking, verminous congressman."=20
Then, purporting to address Hinchey, Savage said:=20
"By the time I get through with you, if you=20
should call me to Congress, I'll have you in=20
prison, because you're in cahoots with Al Qaeda.=20
You are enabling Al Qaeda," adding, "You are a=20
threat to our national security, as are all the=20
other left-wingers who have signed that edict=20
against -- that fatwa against Michael Savage, and=20
[conservative radio host] Rush Limbaugh, and the=20
others who want to disseminate the=20
truth." Savage attacked Hinchey and other=20
sponsors of the Media Ownership Reform Act (MORA)=20
for seeking "the final solution for conservatives=20
on talk radio." He also asserted that MORA "would=20
declare Michael Savage, [Fox News host] Sean=20
Hannity, Rush Limbaugh and [Fox News host] Bill=20
O'Reilly 'Threats to National Security,' and=20
remove us from the radio," adding that this "is=20
the exact rhetoric that Hitler used in his march=20
to take over Germany." In fact, MORA would merely=20
require the Federal Communications Commission=20
(FCC) to once again enforce its "fairness=20
doctrine," which the commission stopped enforcing=20
in 1987. As paraphrased by the Supreme Court when=20
it upheld the doctrine in 1969, it "require[d]=20
that discussion of public issues be presented on=20
broadcast stations, and that each side of those=20
issues must be given fair coverage." The 2005=20
version of Hinchey's MORA -- H.R. 3302 (109th=20
Congress) -- would mandate that the FCC reinstate=20
that rule as it existed before its 1987 demise.
http://mediamatters.org/items/200705110010

TV VIOLENCE HEARING POSTPONED
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Senate Commerce Committee has postponed a=20
planned May 17 hearing on TV violence, according=20
to a committee source, with a bill giving the FCC=20
the power to regulate such violence is unlikely=20
to be introduced next week as initially planned.=20
Apparently, the committee was having trouble=20
lining up witnesses for the hearing (what? no=20
one's seen this alleged violence?), which is now=20
planned for June (June 26 is one date that has=20
been mentioned). If they were looking for=20
television network executives to testify, the=20
conflict could have concerned schedule=20
announcements, with all the network brass=20
unveiling their fall lineups, including Fox and CW on May 17.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6441449.html?rssid=3D193

NETWORKS NEED A NEW TUNE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] With viewer patterns changing,=20
programmers can be forgiven for feeling that they=20
have to retrain themselves on the fly. But=20
despite all the inducements for viewers to create=20
their own television experience, tens of millions=20
of viewers -- most of us, in fact -- watch=20
programs at the time they air, just the way we=20
always have. Not that there's anything wrong with=20
that. Indeed, it's the mass audience that made=20
television so powerful in the first place.=20
Eventually, as television blends with the=20
Internet, words like =93network=94 and =93TV schedules=94=20
will be antiquated concepts. Watching television=20
on your laptop won't seem exotic at all. The=20
seemingly insatiable appetite for content is=20
encouraging and will eventually provide new=20
revenue streams. As the networks plan for the=20
fall season, they are going to have to fortify=20
broadcast enterprises that still attract billions=20
of ad dollars, all the while figuring out how to=20
make them relevant in a world where the viewer,=20
not the network, determines the day and date.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6441521.html
* Lessons for the Fall Season
1) The Jury's Still Out on Streaming Episodes 2)=20
Break Time Can Be Disastrous for Serialized=20
Dramas 3) A Lack of Half-Hour Comedies Is a=20
Serious Problem 4) Networks See the Light About=20
Dark Dramas 5) Keep an Eye on Violence (Whatever=20
That Means) 5) It's Upfront Week: Write Your Grids in Pencil
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6441342.html
* Sitcoms Are Dead! Long Live Sitcoms!
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/14/opinion/14blum.html
* Exit laughing: NBC retreats from comedy
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/television/news/e3i4...
64a82119378da4a25281f21177a1

XM REACHES X-RATED LIMIT
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune, AUTHOR: Eric Benderoff]
Apparently, you can go too far on satellite=20
radio. But whether crude comments about the=20
secretary of state will get two radio hosts fired=20
remains to be seen. In a situation that led to an=20
on-air apology Friday morning, shock jocks Opie &=20
Anthony were scolded by their employer, XM=20
Satellite Radio, which called the offending=20
sketch deplorable. That kind of defensive move by=20
XM wasn't supposed to be required in the=20
satellite programming business, because it=20
operates beyond the purview of the Federal=20
Communications Commission. Indeed, a good part of=20
the original lure of XM and its rival, Sirius=20
Satellite Radio, was the way hosts like Howard=20
Stern could finally say whatever they wanted.=20
Turns out, for a variety of reasons, that isn't=20
necessarily so. This is a sensitive time for XM=20
because federal regulators are considering=20
whether to allow it to merge with Sirius.=20
Further, the radio industry is still stinging=20
from the outcry and firing of legendary radio=20
host Don Imus for his racial comments.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0705111794may12,0,7008631.sto...
track=3Drss
* XM shock jocks Opie and Anthony apologize for crude sexual comments
http://www.brandonsun.com/story.php?story_id=3D53643

ECHOSTAR EYES BROADCAST ASSETS
[SOURCE: Hollywood Reporter, AUTHOR: Georg Szalai]
Satellite TV provider EchoStar Communications=20
finds broadcast assets attractive as potential=20
acquisition targets and could well start doing=20
day-and-date film release trials with movie=20
studios -- as cable operators have done -- as=20
part of its expansion of VOD offerings. The=20
company also expects to keep increasing the=20
number of movie titles it offers on-demand via=20
its hard drives, whose capacity it keeps expanding.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/business/news/e3i972...
249304ed566fd961cb5563f9f7

ED TECH

WEB OPENS WORLD FOR YOUNG CHINESE, BUT ERODES RESPECT
[SOURCE: The Christian Science Monitor, AUTHOR: Peter Ford]
Excited and emboldened by the wealth of=20
information they find on the Internet, Chinese=20
teens are breaking centuries of tradition to=20
challenge their teachers and express their own=20
opinions in class. Wearing jerseys emblazoned=20
with the names of European soccer stars,=20
downloading weekly episodes of "Prison Break,"=20
listening to 50 Cent, and reading Japanese comic=20
books, China's current high school generation is=20
plugging itself directly into international=20
culture. And it's giving the kids ideas. Ideas=20
that could one day transform the way this country=20
is governed. "The Internet has given Chinese=20
children wings," says Sun Yun Xiao, vice=20
president of the China Youth and Children=20
Research Center. Many are using those wings to=20
fly in the face of received wisdom about how and=20
what they should learn, and about how much respect they owe to authority.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0514/p01s04-woap.html
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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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