Feb 16, 2010 (A New Civil Rights Mandate)
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY FEBRUARY 16, 2010
A busy communications week starts with discussions about the future of journalism http://bit.ly/9Kzcmc
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
White House revamps communications strategy
China leads the world in hacked computers, McAfee study says
New media can help fight repression: watchdog group
MEDIA & ELECTIONS
Politicians as News Analysts Raise Questions on Their Goal
Two Democrats' remedy for the high court's campaign finance ruling | New FEC rules could impact effect of Court's campaign-finance decision
INTERNET/BROADBAND
A New Civil Rights Mandate: Champion Open Networks to Close the Digital Divide
Google prepares for a high-speed battle
Google's broadband venture | Behind Google's Broadband Strategy
WIRELESS
Different tones at mobile telecoms showcase
To Vie in Smartphones, Tech Giants Start Anew
Televisa, Nextel Mexico in Deal
LABOR
Blacks, Latinos and women lose ground at Silicon Valley tech companies
US must do better at enabling federal employees to telework
CONTENT
Book publishers embrace -- and detest -- Kindle
E-books need a common language
Facebook directs more online users than Google
What Newspapers Can Learn From Craigslist
Breaking through the noise of social media
Student Suspended for Facebook Page Can Sue
BROADCASTING/CABLE
Court Orders Spanish Broadcasting System to Restore Arbitron Encoding
Media conglomerates seeing revenue boosts
Networks Criticized For Airing Luge Video
Local TV for Devices on the Move
ADVERTISING
What Did Apple Really Say About Location-based Ads?
A Fine Line When Ads and Children Mix
Media Ready to Back Childhood Obesity Plan
PRIVACY
Google alters Buzz settings
MORE ONLINE
Do Smart Phones Thwart Public Records Laws? | Rey Ramsey uses business savvy to help the disadvantaged
Recent Comments on:
FCC Releases Census Tract-level Broadband Data
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
WHITE HOUSE REVAMPS COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Michael Shear]
White House officials are retooling the administration's communications strategy to produce faster responses to political adversaries, a more disciplined focus on President Obama's call for "change" in Washington and an increasingly selective use of the president's time. The messaging adjustments are the result of an end-of-the-year analysis in which White House advisers said the president's communications team had not taken the initiative often enough and had allowed drawn-out debates in Congress, and relentless criticism by Republicans, to drown out his message. "It was clear that too often we didn't have the ball -- Congress had the ball in terms of driving the message," communications director Dan Pfeiffer said. "In 2010, the president will constantly be doing high-profile things to be the person driving the narrative." Senior White House aides described the changes as an aggressive response, aimed at producing fresh momentum for the president's faltering agenda and regaining the advantage ahead of the congressional midterm elections in November.
benton.org/node/32279 | Washington Post
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CHINA LEADS THE WORLD IN HACKED COMPUTERS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Ellen Nakashima]
More private computers were commandeered by hackers for malicious purposes in China in the last quarter of 2009 than in any other country, including the United States, according to a new study by an Internet security company. These "zombie" computers are often grouped into "botnets," or armies of infected computers that can be used to send spam e-mail or attack Web sites, according to McAfee, a Silicon Valley security firm. The company, which said it collects information about Internet-based threats that target more than 100 million computers in 120 countries, said that in the last three months of 2009, about 1,095,000 computers in China and 1,057,000 in the United States were infected. Those numbers are in addition to 10 million or so previously infected computers in each country, McAfee said. The prevalence of botnets is a sign of how vulnerable computer networks are to infiltration, a subject of increasing international debate as companies and governments seek to defend their computer systems from intruders.
benton.org/node/32278 | Washington Post
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NEW MEDIA CAN HELP FIGHT REPRESSION
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Chisa Fujioka]
An increase in online journalists and freelancers has made the press more vulnerable to repression, but new media are also helping raise awareness about such attacks, a watchdog group said on Tuesday. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said in its annual report, released at a Tokyo news conference, that freelancers and local reporters faced more risk of attack from dictators, repressive governments and militant groups because they did not have media organizations to back them. But blogs, social networking sites and other new forms of media have also helped fight censorship, although there were exceptions such as in China.
benton.org/node/32287 | Reuters | CPJ
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MEDIA & ELECTIONS
POLITICIANS AS NEWS ANALYSTS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Brian Stelter]
Television and politics have always been intertwined, but never to this degree, TV executives and journalism professionals say. It would seem that the so-called revolving door for political operatives has been extended to the politicians themselves, at a time when cable news is more politically charged than ever. To viewers, it seems to be an endless televised political campaign, with former, and possibly future, politicians biding their time giving sound-bite versions of stump speeches. The benefit for the part-time, but highly paid, pundits is clear: it increases their visibility. "It makes sense for candidates to seek out positions in niche cable, because it is a direct pipeline to voters," said Jonathan Wald, a former senior vice president at CNBC and an adjunct professor at Columbia's journalism school. "It's an automatic affinity group." The benefit to the viewers is less clear. Some experts say the arrangements can cloud the objectivity of the news organizations. [more at the URL below]
benton.org/node/32277 | New York Times
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REMEDY FOR CAMPAIGN FINANCE?
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] The is no simple legislative fix to the Supreme Court's unfortunate recent decision allowing corporations to spend money directly advocating the election or defeat of federal candidates. The court's 5-4 decision was grounded in the First Amendment; consequently, the congressional response is inevitably limited. Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) unveiled an important proposal last week designed to address the most fixable aspects of the ruling in time for the 2010 election. The most dangerous aspect of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission is that it would let corporations spend money anonymously, by funneling donations through trade associations or other groups that do not have to disclose their donors. This gap in reporting requirements existed before the Supreme Court ruling. But the decision made the loophole more problematic by allowing corporations to spend directly on political campaigns, and not only through so-called issue ads that stop short of endorsing or opposing particular candidates. The Schumer-Van Hollen proposal would address this problem by requiring groups running ads that support or oppose a candidate to report their donors to the Federal Election Commission and list the top five donors in the advertising itself. In addition, the corporation would have to disclose political expenditures to its shareholders, posting the spending within 24 hours on the company Web site. If corporations are going to get directly involved in political campaigns, such transparency about their spending is imperative.
benton.org/node/32286 | Washington Post
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NEW FEC DECISION COULD IMPACT CAMPAIGN FIANCE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Susan Crabtree]
A long-awaited Federal Election Commission ruling could dramatically impact how the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision affects the power of candidates to control campaign messages. The FEC will set new rules this year to govern the coordination of communication between outside entities and candidates and parties. The proposed rulemaking was already in the works before the Citizens United decision, but this week the agency set a public hearing for March 2 and 3 and extended its public comment period on the issue to elicit comments addressing the impact of the high court's decision.
benton.org/node/32276 | Hill, The
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INTERNET/BROADBAND
A NEW CIVIL RIGHTS MANDATE
[SOURCE: The Huffington Post, AUTHOR: Malkia Cyril]
[Commentary] As the Federal Communications Commission moves to quickly finalize a National Broadband Plan that many hope will ensure Internet access for all and create opportunity for innovation and economic security, community groups from around the country are hosting delegation visits, direct actions, and community events to ask the same question I am. Namely, why are Telecom companies and their beltway allies asking poor communities and communities of color to choose between fair representation and access to high speed Internet networks? Why can't we have both? Unfortunately, if the FCC and Congress don't act decisively to protect broadband networks with strong Open Internet rules, the National Broadband Plan may be insufficient to secure the connection, communication, and cultural representation that is the Internet's greatest potential. Let's face it, a broadband plan without open Internet protections is like the constitution without the bill of rights- it's insufficient. It's time for a new generation of civil right leaders to be heard on this issue. We know that digital inclusion and closing the digital divide is only possible with affordable, accessible, and open high speed networks. True representation of people of color and the poor demands that the civil rights community fight for this as vigorously as we fight for equal access in our schools, services, and in the broader society.
benton.org/node/32275 | Huffington Post, The
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GOOGLE PREPARES FOR HIGH-SPEED BATTLE
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Stephanie Kirchgaessner, Richard Waters]
Google is gearing up for a bloody fight in Washington. For its rivals, AT&T, Comcast and other Internet service providers, the battle is being fought over nothing less than who will control the Internet and the cables that deliver it into millions of homes across America. The opening salvo in that fight was heard loud and clear last week when Google announced it was prepared to build its own ultra-high-speed Internet network. It was, in the words of one person close to the Google camp, "a hot poker in the eye" of the telecoms and cable companies: a way of pointing out to regulators that Google was prepared to build the networks, even if the old guard was not. If it was a ploy, it worked. The move was praised by Julius Genachowski, Federal Communications Commission chairman, even as the US cable industry poured cold water over what they called Google's "experiment". Next month the FCC will unveil a national broadband strategy that analysts say comes at a useful time for Google, putting telecommunications and cable companies on the defensive about their own slow progress. For Google, the move was yet another public relations win in a town where it already enjoys a close relationship with the Obama administration and where it has won accolades from Nancy Pelosi, House speaker, and others for its stand against Internet censorship in China.
benton.org/node/32289 | Financial Times
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GOOGLE'S BROADBAND VENTURE
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] Google's plan to build an ultra-fast broadband service is so appealing, it defies credulity. The speed -- 1 gigabit per second -- is about 200 times faster than the fastest connections available in the U.S. today. Alas, for the vast majority of Internet users, Google's gambit is too good to be true. The new fiber-optic lines will be deployed in only a handful of communities, reaching no more than half a million people. But the point for Google isn't to go head to head with the broadband services already offered by AT&T, Comcast and other phone and cable TV companies. It's to apply not-so-subtle pressure on them to do more. It's no accident that Google unveiled its fiber-optic vision while the Federal Communications Commission is developing a National Broadband Plan, which will set goals for Internet access services in the United States -- including the amount of bandwidth they should provide. A major impediment to improving this country's comparatively pokey broadband networks is the cost of deploying more fiber optics, but Google's engineers evidently believe they can build a network at significantly less expense than the current state of the art. If so, the Google demonstration project would provide a blueprint for Internet providers to follow. Google's gigabit test bed enables innovators to show the public what the next leap in bandwidth could bring to education, medicine and who knows what other segments of the economy. Internet providers often grumble about Google freeloading on the investments they've made -- its YouTube subsidiary and its Web-based mail and productivity services all reach their customers through other companies' broadband pipes. So Google's latest project is by no means altruistic. On the other hand, if Google sparks a race to the top among broadband providers, it will hardly be the only one to benefit.
benton.org/node/32274 | Los Angeles Times | LATimes - impact on Hollywood | BroadbandBreakfast.com
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BEHIND GOOGLE'S BROADBAND STRATEGY
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Todd Spangler, John Eggerton]
As part of an expensive lobbying move, Google last week unveiled plans to fund fiber-to-the-home broadband networks in the U.S. that would deliver unprecedented speeds of 1 Gigabit per second. Google's stated aim is to push the Federal Communications Commission to require higher speeds and open networks as part of the agency's broadband plan, due to Congress on March 17. Cable's response? The National Cable & Telecommunications Association emphasized that the cable industry has invested $161 billion over the past 13 years to build a broadband infrastructure that is available to 92% of U.S. homes. "We look forward to learning more about Google's broadband experiment in the handful of trial locations they are planning," NCTA vice president of communications Brian Dietz said. Cable operators, Dietz continued, will "continue to invest billions more to continually improve the speed and performance of our networks and provide tens of millions of consumers with the best possible broadband experience." Privately, many cable operators say they see the move as a ploy to gain regulatory favor. Others pointed to Google's track record for making broad statements and not fulfilling them, such as its 2006 plan to build a municipal Wi-Fi network in San Francisco and other cities. Still, some MSOs are not taking the notion of Google broadband lightly. One midsized operator who asked not to be named said that although the cost of building a fiber network appears onerous, Google could get around those costs by building in high-density areas with the bulk of infrastructure already in place.
benton.org/node/32273 | Multichannel News
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WIRELESS
DIFFERENT TONES AT MOBILE TELECOMS SHOWCASE
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Andrew Parker, Paul Taylor]
Mobile phone handset makers and network equipment manufacturers are gathering in Barcelona this week with contrasting stories to tell about revenues for the year ahead. At the Mobile World Congress, the industry's main trade fair, the handset makers say they are looking forward to revenue growth in 2010, on the back of rising handset unit sales. Last year, the total number of handsets sold fell compared with 2008, as consumers bought fewer phones amid the recession. The network equipment makers, however, are braced for a second successive year of sales declines and say 2010 is likely to be worse than 2009. This is because many operators did not start to cut their capital spending until the second half of last year leaving some to make further reductions this year. But while the handset makers are hoping improved consumer confidence will translate into improving sales, many are still grappling with major technology changes that are shaking up the established order.
benton.org/node/32267 | Financial Times
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TO VIE IN SMARTPHONES, TECH GIANTS START ANEW
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Ashlee Vance]
The frenetic pace of the mobile phone industry has forced some of the technology world's largest players to make a break with the past. Microsoft, Intel and Nokia — all leaders in their respective markets — have struggled to capitalize on the rise of a new class of smartphones that can tap into a vast pool of software. Those companies have come to the world's largest mobile technology conference here with a message: they are willing to abandon tradition if it means getting another shot at the fast-growing mobile device market and blunting the advance of companies like Apple and Google. [more at the URL below]
benton.org/node/32288 | New York Times | LATimes | FT | Bloomberg | Reuters | Reuters
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TELEVISA, NEXTEL MEXICO IN DEAL
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Jeffrey McCracken]
Mexican media giant Grupo Televisa has acquired a 30% stake in Nextel Mexico for $1.44 billion, a move that allows Televisa to partner with a wireless carrier to bid for new wireless spectrum up for auction later this year. Under terms of the all-cash deal, which has been discussed in the Mexican media for weeks, Televisa will be granted an option to acquire another 7.5% of Nextel Mexico in the third or fourth year after this deal closes. Televisa is the largest media company in the Spanish-speaking world. It is dominant in Mexico in areas such as cable, satellite and television, but has little to no wireless-phone presence. Nextel Mexico is a subsidiary of NII Holdings, the international arm spun out from Nextel before its Sprint merger. NII is based in Virginia and has wireless operations in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Peru. Competition in Mexico's telecom industry, dominated by tycoon Carlos Slim's America Movil, is heating up as the government auctions wireless spectrum after years of delays. Movil controls about 70% of the country's wireless market.
benton.org/node/32283 | Wall Street Journal | LATimes | Bloomberg
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LABOR
BLACKS, LATINOS AND WOMEN LOSE GROUND IN SILICON VALLEY
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Mike Swift]
The unique diversity of Silicon Valley is not reflected in the region's tech workplaces — and the disparity is only growing worse. Hispanics and blacks made up a smaller share of the valley's computer workers in 2008 than they did in 2000, a Mercury News review of federal data shows, even as their share grew across the nation. Women in computer-related occupations saw declines around the country, but they are an even smaller proportion of the work force here. The trend is striking in a region where Hispanics are nearly one-quarter of the working-age population — five times their percentage of the computer work force — and when dual-career couples and female MBAs are increasingly the norm. It is also evident in the work forces of the region's major companies. An analysis by the Mercury News of the combined work force of 10 of the valley's largest companies — including Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Cisco Systems, eBay and AMD — shows that while the collective work force of those 10 companies grew by 16 percent between 1999 and 2005, an already small population of black workers dropped by 16 percent, while the number of Hispanic workers declined by 11 percent. By 2005, only about 2,200 of the 30,000 Silicon Valley-based workers at those 10 companies were black or Hispanic. The share of women at those 10 companies declined to 33 percent in 2005, from 37 percent in 1999. There was also a decline in the share of management-level jobs held by women.
benton.org/node/32266 | San Jose Mercury News
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TELEWORK POLICY
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] Empty downtown buildings should not create a government standstill. And it should not take a natural disaster or terrorist attack to highlight the importance of having federal employees plugged in and ready to do the government's work from home. The vast majority of homes in the Washington area are equipped with computers and Internet service, not to mention land-lines and cellphones. Federal employees should be encouraged to use these tools to remain productive when they are unable to come into the office. Reps. John Sarbanes (D-MD), Frank R. Wolf (R-VA) and Gerald E. Connolly (D-VA) have proposed legislation that would help nudge the government toward the goal of increasing the government's telework capabilities by 50 percent by the end of 2011 while recognizing that each agency must choose an approach that makes sense for its particular mission and cybersecurity needs.
benton.org/node/32285 | Washington Post
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CONTENT
BOOK PUBLISHERS AND KINDLE
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR:]
Since Amazon debuted its first Kindle e-book reader late in 2007, the reaction within the book industry has been a mix of welcome and scorn. Welcome because of the potential to tap an entirely new market -- before a wave of digital piracy similar to the one that decimated the music business. Scorn because of fears that the online retail giant, which already has a commanding share of the market for printed books, might use its leverage to seize control of the new market and push down prices even further. Publishers have been fighting back and seemed to score an important victory recently, with Amazon reportedly agreeing to a model that would let publishers set higher prices for e-books sold for the Kindle. Analysts say a truce is likely but won't do much harm to Amazon even if the company raises the prices of e-books from $9.99, which has helped make the Kindle a major hit. The Seattle company discloses little data about its Kindle business, but it is widely estimated that Amazon loses money on most e-books that it sells for that price. Higher prices would mean a better margin for the business even if the sales volume takes a small hit, experts say. But concerns persist about whether publishers will give any ground on e-book prices. In theory, the companies should still make good profits on e-books at lower prices, because they are saving on printing, binding and distribution, costs that make up an estimated 10% to 12% of a hardcover book's price. Ironically, the company that has thrown the biggest wrench into Amazon's plans is the very company that Amazon was trying to emulate -- Apple.
benton.org/node/32284 | Los Angeles Times | FT
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E-BOOKS NEED A COMMON LANGUAGE
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Troy Wolverton]
[Commentary] I never need to worry about whether I can read a book. As long as a book's a book, that is — printed on paper, in English. I know I can pick it up and read it no matter how long it sits on my shelf after I bought it. But as we move into the era of e-books, that assumption no longer holds. In certain cases, you can't read the electronic book you buy from one store on a device supported by a competing store. Similarly, you can't read e-books you borrow from your library if you don't have the right kind of device. And there's a chance you won't be able to read the e-books you buy today on the e-book reader you own several years from now. Does anyone in the books business realize how dumb this is? Seems not. Because just when the situation seemed to be getting better, it suddenly got worse.
benton.org/node/32265 | San Jose Mercury News
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FACEBOOK DIRECTS MORE ONLINE USERS THAN GOOGLE
[SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle, AUTHOR: Benny Evangelista]
A big part of the Facebook experience is how friends and family share Web links to interesting news stories, photos, videos and Internet sites. This "friend-casting" of information has helped propel Facebook into a major force in directing traffic around the Web. According to Web measurement firm Compete Inc., Facebook has passed search-engine giant Google to become the top source for traffic to major portals like Yahoo and MSN, and is among the leaders for other types of sites. This trend is shifting the way Web site operators approach online marketing, even as Google takes steps to move into the social-media world. Some experts say social media could become the Internet's next search engine.
benton.org/node/32264 | San Francisco Chronicle
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BROADCASTING/CABLE
COURT ORDERS ARBITRON ENCODING
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
A court has ordered Spanish Broadcasting System to reinstate, at least temporarily, the coding of its radio broadcasts for measurement by Arbitron. The Supreme Court of New York has issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the Spanish Broadcasting System and scheduled a hearing Feb. 16 to determine whether to make it permanent. That came in response to Arbitron's request that the court force SBS to start encoding its radio broadcasts under a June 2007 agreement. The encoding allows Arbitron's Portable People Meters (PPMs) to record audience information, a system that relies on encoding. According to Arbitron, it sought the TRO after SBS stopped encoding the broadcasts at stations in New York, Miami, Chicago, L.A. and San Francisco on Feb. 4.
benton.org/node/32282 | Broadcasting&Cable
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MEDIA CONGLOMERATES SEEING REVENUE BOOSTS
[SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter, AUTHOR: Georg Szalai]
Media conglomerates hadn't seen revenue growth for at least a year, relying on cost cuts to boost their bottom lines. But the current quarterly earnings season has brought a return to at least slight growth at several sector biggies. NBC Universal and Viacom are the exceptions so far with 4% and 3% revenue declines, respectively, and Disney already had returned to revenue growth in the third calendar quarter of 2009 and eked out another slight uptick in the fourth. Most have cited better ad momentum in fourth-quarter 2009 as a key reason for the revenue gains, and Time Warner even predicted it would record revenue gains for full-year 2010. But News Corp. chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch was the most vocal about touting his conglomerate's quarterly revenue boost that at 10% outperformed the gains of its peers.
benton.org/node/32281 | Hollywood Reporter, The
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NETWORKS CRITICIZED FOR AIRING LUGE VIDEO
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: David Bauder]
NBC and other networks were criticized Saturday for broadcasting the disturbing video of a Georgian luger who died after flying off the track and slamming into a steel beam during an Olympic training run. NBC said callers complained and Twitter was aflame with disgust. Much of the criticism centered on the network showing the footage at the beginning of its coverage of Friday's opening ceremony for the Vancouver Games, even though video of Nodar Kumaritashvili's death aired on the ABC, CBS and NBC evening news programs. News organizations frequently weigh the imperative of depicting the reality of the world they cover with concerns about whether images would be too disturbing for the public. In this case, the networks warned viewers and used the video. NBC, in a departure from its usual policy of holding onto video because it is the U.S. Olympics rightsholder, let other networks use it.
benton.org/node/32263 | Associated Press
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LOCAL TV FOR DEVICES ON THE MOVE
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Eric Taub]
Who has time to sit on the couch and watch TV anymore? In the last 10 years, broadcasters have lost 25 percent of their audience. So to win back some viewers, the industry has a plan to grab their attention while they are on the move. Beginning in April, eight television stations in Washington (DC) will broadcast a signal for a new class of devices that can show programming, even in a car at high speed. In all, 30 stations in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle and Washington have installed the necessary equipment, at a cost of $75,000 to $150,000. "Younger generations want programming on the go," said Dennis Wharton, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters. "To access TV on a cellphone, on a laptop or in the car is a game changer for local broadcasters. It will provide a renaissance for over-the-air broadcast TV." If enough people watch using the mobile TV technology, known, for lack of a more marketable name, as "ATSC Mobile DTV Standard," local stations will be able to charge more for commercials and increase their revenue.
benton.org/node/32260 | New York Times
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ADVERTISING
WHAT DID APPLE REALLY SAY ABOUT LOCATION-BASED ADS?
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Rahul Sonnad]
[Commentary] A couple of weeks back Apple released a "tip" for developers on how to enhance its apps using its "Core Location" framework, which it touted as being able to imbue apps with location-based info on the weather, nearby restaurants and more. But while some said it signaled the death of the location-based ad industry on the iPhone, that seems more than a little premature. It's worth noting that the Core Location API features (which I imagine are based on technology being developed by Placebase, which Apple bought last summer) touted in Apple's tip don't seem to have been released yet, and that the last material change to location features seem came back in May 2009, in conjunction with an iPhone OS update. But what should we take the developer tip to mean? 1) Maybe Apple is merely trying to help users by stopping massive LBS ad spam and potential problems with location-based tracking issues. 2) Perhaps location-based advertising on the iPhone isn't dead, rather it's going to become a walled garden or a short-fenced one, with, presumably, Apple/Quattro taking a significant cut of the revenues. 3) Let's face it: Apple is about as likely to kill location-based advertising on the iPhone as Microsoft is to start giving Windows away for free.
benton.org/node/32262 | GigaOm
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A FINE LINE WHEN ADS AND CHILDREN MIX
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Stephanie Clifford]
Marketers began paying closer attention to how they advertised to children in the 1970s, when consumer advocates complained about the ways commercialism permeated society. In 1974, the industry created the Children's Advertising Review Unit. Today, that unit has about seven reviewers who contact companies when they judge ads are misleading or inappropriate. More recently, regulators pressured the industry to limit food advertising in response to concerns about childhood obesity. In 2006, major food marketers began joining the Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative, another program from the Council of Better Business Bureaus. The debate over what is appropriate for children continues, with the Federal Communications Commission seeking opinions about online marketing to children, and the Federal Trade Commission holding a hearing in December on food marketing to children. All the scrutiny has put children's magazines under pressure. While almost all magazines suffered in 2009, magazines for children posted some of the lowest overall ad-page numbers. Nickelodeon magazine ceased publication with its December 2009/January 2010 issue. In response, some magazines are taking a more expansive view of how advertisers can reach children.
benton.org/node/32272 | New York Times
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MEDIA READY TO BACK OBESITY PLAN
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Food marketing is likely to get renewed attention in Washington over the coming weeks as government agencies try to figure out a battle plan against childhood obesity. Ad agency lobbyists say they support the initiative, especially if it means more emphasis on exercise and physical education in schools, and not on restrictions on advertising as some kind of magic cure for the obesity problem. President Barack Obama last week signed an executive order mandating the creation of a childhood obesity task force. He also gave the task force 90 days to come up with an action plan, and urged "a generation" to solve the problem through a "coordinated federal response." The group will be chaired by Lawrence Summers, assistant to the president for economic policy. While there was no mention of involvement by the Federal Communications Commission or the Federal Trade Commission, the task force will include the chiefs of whatever agencies Summers chooses. Also involved will be the secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture, Health and Human Services, and Education departments; the director of the Office of Management and Budget; and heads of other groups. The issue also has the attention of Michelle Obama, who has made it a priority through a "Let's Move" campaign.
benton.org/node/32271 | Broadcasting&Cable
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PRIVACY
GOOGLE ALTERS BUZZ SETTINGS
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Byron Acohido]
Google on Saturday again revised privacy settings of Buzz, the new social network it has piggybacked onto tens of millions of existing Gmail accounts. It was the second major revision in 72 hours. The search giant scrambled all week to quell backlash from Gmail users upset about how Google has introduced the service and how Buzz taps into their contacts list. Jeff Chester, director of the Center for Digital Democracy, said that Google's Buzz service represented a worrying new trend in marketing, given the extent of the information it already holds about its users. "Buzz is the latest example of a global digital data collection 'arms race' where the latest trend is for marketers to grab hold and monetise a user's social graph," he said.
benton.org/node/32268 | USAToday | FT | Los Angeles Times
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