August 2007

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

OWNERSHIP
Dow Jones deal prompts call to broaden cross-ownership ban
FCC Chair Says He Approves Of Sirius, XM Merger

NEW RESEARCH
More time spent on Web than newspapers: study

CONTENT
FCC Rejects Miami License Challenges
PTC Blasts FOX Over MNT 'Damages' Episodes
Sharpton urges divestment to clean up rap lyrics
Prime-time TV not gay enough

SPECTRUM/WIRELESS
A Left-Right Divide Exists Even on Issues As Wonky as Spectrum
FCC Clarifies Roaming Rules

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
Reason and Wiretaps

QUICKLY -- Cities' Wi-Fi Push Hits Snags; Calling=20
for a Larger Stay-at-Home Workforce

OWNERSHIP

DOW JONES DEAL PROMPTS CALL TO BROADEN CROSS-OWNERSHIP BAN
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Jim Puzzanghera and Joseph Menn]
Federal rules try to limit media power by=20
prohibiting a company from owning a newspaper and=20
a TV station in the same city. Billionaire Rupert=20
Murdoch's News Corp. faces no such hurdle in its=20
pending deal to acquire Dow Jones and with it the=20
country's second-largest paper, the Wall Street=20
Journal, even though it owns a broadcast TV=20
network and a cable news channel that blanket the=20
country. Some Democrats say such national=20
combinations should be scrutinized as well.=20
Already not particularly fond of Murdoch's News=20
Corp. because of the perceived Republican tilt of=20
Fox News Channel, they are urging the Federal=20
Communications Commission to review the deal.=20
"The proposed merger between News Corp. and Dow=20
Jones raises the serious question of whether a=20
single company's concentration on a national=20
scale should continue to be unfettered and=20
unchecked," Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) wrote to FCC=20
Chairman Kevin J. Martin last week. "The FCC=20
should consider studying whether the public=20
interest would be served if media cross-ownership=20
rules existed at the national level." News Corp.=20
declined to comment. Near term, a national ban is considered a long shot.
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-dowjones8aug08,1,5742...
.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)

FCC CHAIR SAYS HE APPROVES OF SIRIUS, XM MERGER
[SOURCE: Associated Press]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin=20
Martin said he was pleased with the two=20
satellite-radio companies' proposal to let=20
customers pick and choose channels if the=20
companies are allowed to merge. While admitting=20
that he hadn't read the details of the plan put=20
forth by Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. and XM=20
Satellite Radio Holdings Inc., Martin said he was=20
"pleased any time companies come forward with=20
proposals that would give consumers more control over what they pay for."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/08/07/fcc-chair-says-he-approve_n_594...
html
* NAB on Sirius-XM a la Carte Proposal: Thumbs Down
The NAB analyzed the a la carte proposal of=20
Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio and found it wanting.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6466426.html?rssid=3D193

NEW RESEARCH

MORE TIME SPENT ON WEB THAN NEWSPAPERS: STUDY
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Paul Thomasch]
U.S. consumers this year will spend more of their=20
day surfing the Internet than reading newspapers=20
or going to the movies or listening to recorded=20
music, a new report from private equity firm=20
Veronis Suhler Stevenson. Advertisers are paying=20
close attention to the shift in consumer behavior=20
and putting more money into areas like digital=20
marketing. Last year, the top two advertising=20
mediums were newspapers, at $55.7 billion, and=20
broadcast television, at $48.7 billion, according=20
to VSS. But it estimates that by 2011, overall=20
Internet advertising will become the largest=20
advertising medium, at nearly $63 billion,=20
describing the shift as "a watershed moment" in=20
the media business. VSS pointed to a potentially=20
worrisome development for the media industry --=20
the overall time spent with media declined=20
slightly last year, a spillover effect of the=20
consumer shift away from newspapers and other=20
traditional sources of news and entertainment.=20
For the first time in a decade, the study found,=20
consumers spent less time with media in 2006 than=20
they did in the previous year. Usage per person=20
dropped 0.5 percent to 3,530 hours annually,=20
according to the study, which said digital media=20
typically requires less time than traditional media.
http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN0721570920070807
* Media Usage Down for First Time in Decade
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6466136.html?rssid=3D193
* Consumers Spending Less Time With Media, According to New VSS Study
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_con...
t_id=3D1003622446

CONTENT

FCC REJECTS MIAMI LICENSE CHALLENGES
[SOURCE: tvnewsday]
The FCC dismissed the United Church of Christ=92s=20
2004 petitions to deny the license renewals of=20
the CBS and NBC O&Os in Miami -- WFOR and WTVJ,=20
respectively -- because the CBS and NBC networks=20
refused to air a UCC anti-discrimination spot. In=20
dismissing the petition, the FCC said it cannot=20
deny the license renewal of a station for=20
decisions made by its network or by other=20
stations. WFOR and WTVJ may have decided to air=20
the spot if it had the opportunity, the FCC said.=20
In any event, =93Congress=85has expressly limited the=20
scope of the license renewal inquiry to matters=20
occurring at the particular station for which=20
license renewal is sought,=94 the FCC said.
http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/08/07/daily.5/
* FCC Denies United Church of Christ License Challenges
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6466404.html?rssid=3D193

PTC BLASTS FOX OVER MNT 'DAMAGES' EPISODES
[SOURCE: tvnewsday]
The Parents Television Council denounced News=20
Corp. and its My Network TV, for airing an=20
adult-targeted, MA-rated, cable program on=20
broadcast television at the start of the=20
so-called =93Family Hour.=94 On Aug. 1, the first=20
two episodes of the new FX drama Damages aired=20
nationally on My Network TV at 8 p.m. and 9 p.m.=20
in place of a previously scheduled concert. PTC=20
said that neither the sexual content nor the=20
violent content was edited from the MA-rated=20
cable version of these programs when they=20
re-aired on broadcast, though a few profanities=20
were deleted. The first episode of Damages=20
originally aired on the FX cable network on=20
Tuesday, July 24, at 10 p.m. and was rated TV-MA=20
with content descriptors for sex and language,=20
PTC said. The second episode originally aired on=20
FX on Tuesday, July 31, and was rated TV-MA with=20
language, sex, and violence descriptors. The=20
group said that when aired on MNT, both episodes=20
were rated TV-14, with the language, sex, and violence descriptors.
http://www.tvnewsday.com/articles/2007/08/07/daily.3/

SHARPTON URGES DIVESTMENT TO CLEAN UP RAP LYRICS
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Eric Olson]
Activist Rev. Al Sharpton organized rallies=20
across the United States on Tuesday urging public=20
divestment from the music industry until rap=20
lyricists stop employing the "n-word" and terms degrading to women.
http://today.reuters.com/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=3DmusicNews&storyID=...
007-08-07T210154Z_01_N07229772_RTRIDST_0_MUSIC-PROTESTS-NWORD-DC.XML

PRIME-TIME TV NOT GAY ENOUGH: STUDY
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Steve Gorman]
The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation=20
(GLAAD) has given the Walt Disney Co.-owned=20
network the highest marks of any of the five=20
major broadcast networks in the group's=20
first-ever report rating depictions of gay,=20
lesbian and transgender characters and issues on=20
prime-time TV. The study assigned grades of=20
"excellent," "good," "fair" or "failing" based on=20
the number of "impressions," or occurrences, of=20
gay characters, discussions or themes. No network=20
was rated as excellent. But ABC received a grade=20
of "good" with 171 hours of gay-inclusive TV last=20
season, accounting for 15 percent of its prime-time programming.
http://today.reuters.com/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=3DtelevisionNews&sto...
D=3D2007-08-08T013138Z_01_N07272203_RTRIDST_0_TELEVISION-GAYS-DC.XML

SPECTRUM/WIRELESS

A LEFT-RIGHT DIVIDE EXISTS EVEN ON ISSUES AS WONKY AS SPECTRUM
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Lee Gomes]
[Commentary] But how can there be left-right=20
divides on wonky tech issues like radio-frequency=20
spectrum auctions? Quite easily, judging from the=20
recent controversy over what the FCC should do=20
with the airwaves soon to be emptied by TV=20
broadcasters as they shift from analog to digital=20
transmissions. The battle raised ideological=20
issues: How well do markets work all by=20
themselves? How much does government help or hurt=20
when it tries to nudge the economy in a=20
particular direction? And should property rights=20
be curbed for the public good and, if so, how? In=20
the end, the FCC split the difference, giving the=20
consumer groups two of the four restrictions they=20
wanted. Whoever wins the auction will have to=20
allow different uses of the spectrum and won't be=20
able to prevent other companies' devices from=20
connecting to the networks. The spectrum-auction=20
controversy isn't the last time an ostensibly=20
technological disagreement will be the proxy for=20
a bigger political debate. Next year, the FCC=20
will have to decide what to do with even more=20
spectrum being cleared out by broadcasters. Many=20
of the same consumer groups involved in the=20
recent debate want the FCC to leave the spectrum=20
unlicensed, allowing anyone to do anything they=20
want with it as long as the devices they use meet=20
certain technical specifications. That's the case=20
with the spectrum now used for Wi-Fi computing, a=20
market most of Silicon Valley would consider a=20
great success. But the nation's broadcasters, who=20
own this spectrum, are expected to oppose leaving=20
it unlicensed. So will many conservatives, who=20
say that if no one licenses the spectrum, no one=20
will have an incentive to spend the money needed=20
to develop it properly. Industries like=20
broadcasters and mobile-phone providers have=20
historically been big political contributors in=20
Washington. In recent years, tech companies have=20
learned to catch up. Now that the money from the=20
two sides is canceling each other out, perhaps the better ideas will win.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118653180092091105.html?mod=3Dtodays_us_...
ketplace
(requires subscription)
* FCC Auction May Expand Cellphone Options, Services
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118653747800791296.html?mod=3Dtodays_us_...
sonal_journal

FCC CLARIFIES THAT ROAMING RULES
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
The Federal Communications Commission clarified=20
the roaming obligations of Commercial Mobile=20
Radio Services (CMRS) providers, stating that=20
automatic roaming is a common carrier obligation=20
for CMRS carriers. Automatic roaming allows=20
roaming mobile telephone customers to place calls=20
as they do in their home coverage area, by simply=20
entering a phone number and pressing "send." The=20
FCC required CMRS carriers to provide roaming=20
services to other carriers upon reasonable=20
request and on a just, reasonable, and=20
non-discriminatory basis. When a reasonable=20
request is made by a technologically compatible=20
CMRS carrier, a host CMRS carrier must provide=20
automatic roaming to the requesting carrier=20
outside of the requesting carrier's home=20
market. The FCC also decided to maintain its=20
existing manual roaming requirement, which=20
requires CMRS providers to permit customers of=20
other carriers to roam manually on their=20
networks, for example by supplying a credit card=20
number, provided that the roamers' handsets are=20
technically capable of accessing the roamed-on=20
network. The common carrier obligation to=20
provide roaming extends to real-time, two-way=20
switched voice or data services that are=20
interconnected with the public switched network=20
and utilize an in-network switching facility that=20
enables the provider to reuse frequencies and=20
accomplish seamless hand-offs of subscriber=20
calls. The FCC also extended the automatic=20
roaming obligation to "Push-to-Talk" and text=20
messaging services, and sought comment on whether=20
the roaming obligation should be extended to=20
services that are classified as information=20
services or to services that are not CMRS.
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-275797A1.doc
* FCC requires mobile carriers to allow roaming
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/08/07/FCC-requires-mobile-carriers-t...
llow-roaming_1.html

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

REASON AND WIRETAPS
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] The good news is that the new=20
warrantless wiretapping law passed by Congress=20
this weekend will at least allow the National=20
Security Agency to monitor terrorist=20
communications again. That ability has been=20
severely limited since January, when President=20
Bush agreed to put the wiretap program under the=20
supervision of a special court created by the=20
1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act=20
(FISA). The new law provides a six-month fix to=20
the outdated FISA provision that had defined even=20
foreign-to-foreign calls as subject to a U.S.=20
judicial warrant. Opposition from the Democratic=20
left to this intelligence program isn't merely=20
part of the partisan blood feud against a weak=20
President near the end of his term. It is part of=20
a far larger ideological campaign to erode=20
Presidential war powers. Goaded by the ACLU and=20
much of the press corps, many Democrats want to=20
use the courts and lawsuits to restrict Mr. Bush=20
and future Presidents in their ability to gather=20
intelligence in the war on terror.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118653676253891266.html?mod=3Dtodays_us_...
nion
(requires subscription)
* A Spy Chief=92s Political Education
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/08/washington/08intel.html?hp

QUICKLY

CITIES' WI-FI PUSH HITS SNAG
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Roger Cheng roger.cheng( at )dowjones.com]
Hundreds of cities around the U.S. have deployed=20
or plan to deploy Wi-Fi networks in hopes that it=20
will generate revenue and provide Internet=20
service to residents and government workers in=20
the field. Cities initially took it upon=20
themselves to build their own networks, but have=20
reached out to third parties to shoulder the=20
financial burden by building and operating the=20
networks. Both the cities and the companies=20
building the networks have encountered a number=20
of problems that have complicated the buildouts.=20
And some critics believe there are unrealistic=20
expectations about their potential return on investment.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118653750583991297.html?mod=3Dtodays_us_...
ketplace
(requires subscription)

CALLING FOR A LARGER STAY-AT-HOME WORKFORCE
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Stephen Barr]
The House has taken a big step toward expanding=20
the number of federal employees who could become=20
telecommuters and work from home at least one day=20
a week. During debate on an energy-efficiency=20
bill, Rep. John Sarbanes (D-MD) offered an=20
amendment to require every federal agency to=20
establish a telework policy. The measure would=20
ensure that employees may telecommute "to the=20
maximum extent possible without diminishing=20
employee performance or agency operations." The=20
Sarbanes amendment also would require the=20
Government Accountability Office to examine and=20
rate the telework policies of each agency and=20
publish a report showing how many employees were=20
telecommuting at each agency. Rep Sarbanes said=20
the amendment would help promote "a new=20
carbon-neutral federal government" and "ensure=20
that we in government do our part to reduce automobile emissions."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/07/AR200708...
1675.html
(requires registration)
--------------------------------------------------------------
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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