April 2012

BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2012

Today, the Broadband Communities Summit concludes; the FTC talks Mobile Payments; Politico discusses privacy and security; and there’s a Silicon Valley Privacy Conference http://benton.org/calendar/2012-04-26/

INTERNET/BROADBAND
   FCC Launches Connect America Fund - press release
   NCTA: Things Have to Change With RUS Implementation of Broadband Programs
   Advertisers Seek Answers To Glitch For New Internet Name System
   Alabama governor gets behind online sales-tax push [links to web]
   Want to see how close TV and broadband are? Check out this chart. [links to web]
   City of Danville Selects EXA Powered Calix E7-2 for Municipal Fiber Network - press release [links to web]
   City of Opelika, Alabama to offer residents superfast broadband [links to web]
   States Up the Online Ante on Online Lottery [links to web]

CYBERSECURITY
   White House issues veto threat against CISPA
   War over CISPA
   Beefing up cybersecurity - editorial
   House weighs changes to cybersecurity bill after veto threat
   Speaker Boehner: CISPA Will Help Economy, Protect Jobs [links to web]
   ACLU pans privacy amendments to House cybersecurity bill [links to web]
   Why the U.S. should worry about cybersecurity [links to web]
   Cyberattacks on government up 680 percent

SPECTRUM/WIRELESS
   Transfer of Spectrum from AT&T to T-Mobile Approved by FCC - press release
   Reps Walden, Eshoo Appoint Members of Bipartisan Federal Spectrum Working Group - press release
   Cable Operators: No Reason to Stop Clock On Spectrum Deal
   AT&T eyes smaller spectrum acquisitions
   Consumers Have Limit To Unlimited Plan Price
   Smartphone Patent Wars — The Coming Sequel

TELEVISION/RADIO
   FCC wants to put political ad data online; broadcasters balk
   GOP Lawmakers criticize FCC rule requiring broadcasters to put files online
   Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake Pitches Cash Infusions for Struggling Stations
   FCC Pulls Noncom Fundraising From Meeting Agenda
   Public broadcasting cut from Virginia budget [links to web]
   Merlin Media picks up 3rd Chicago radio outlets [links to web]

CONTENT
   Amazon e-book prices: Good news ... for now
   Netflix Streaming Traffic Grew 30% In Last Six Months: Study [links to web]
   Facebook Sued For Selling Virtual Currency To Kids [links to web]
   Music Film Is Delayed by Fees for Songs [links to web]
   ‘What Were You Thinking?’ For Couples, New Source of Online Friction [links to web]

PRIVACY
   Few Know What They're Paying Google, Facebook

OWNERSHIP
   Apple = Sony - editorial
   Smartphone Patent Wars — The Coming Sequel
   Music Film Is Delayed by Fees for Songs [links to web]

HEALTH
   Meaningful use still a challenge despite strides, say hospitals
   EHR adoption still lags for small, rural practices: researchers

JOURNALISM
   Pulitzer winners donate their prize to their peers
   Has Chicago's moment to shine dimmed a bit more?
   Are robots and content farms the future of the news? - analysis [links to web]
   Should the NY Times charge for early access to the news? - analysis [links to web]

POLICYMAKERS
   Sen Grassley hints FCC holds could be lifted

GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
   Responding to GSA, House easily approves bill to track spending [links to web]
   States Aim to Launch More Mobile Apps [links to web]
   Twitter Chat Experiment Under Way in the Silicon Valley [links to web]
   Social Media Directors are Finding a Place in Government [links to web]

STORIES FROM ABROAD
   Rupert Murdoch testifies, says phone hacking is 'lazy' journalism
   What politicians lost to Murdoch - editorial
   Hunt insists he acted fairly over BSkyB
   In Canada, phones poised to challenge credit cards [links to web]
   Brits score white space first with city-wide network [links to web]
   Intel to challenge antitrust fine in EU court [links to web]

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INTERNET/BROADBAND

FCC LAUNCHES CONNECT AMERICA FUND
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Federal Communications Commission officially launched the new ‘Connect America Fund’ (CAF), which was recently created as part of once-in-a-generation reform of the Universal Service Fund (USF). This is the first phase of funding from the CAF (CAF Phase 1). Carriers have 90 days to accept the funding, as well as the aggressive buildout requirements that must begin in the coming months. The Commission expects that carriers will likely supplement the CAF funding with private investment. While carriers are not required to participate, hundreds of thousands of Americans will gain access to broadband even if carriers only accept a portion of the money. In addition, the FCC today implemented additional reforms that will make more effective use of existing funding to increase support for broadband for over 2 million rural lines across the country. As with CAF Phase 1 this funding was made available through reforms that improve fiscal responsibility and accountability, and target funding more accurately and effectively.
benton.org/node/121401 | Federal Communications Commission | Chairman Genachowski | The Hill | B&C | National Journal
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NCTA ON RUS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
It is no secret that the National Cable & Telecommunications Association is not a big fan of how the Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service has handed out its broadband loans and grants. Speaking for NCTA's Rural and Small Operators Committee, Suddenlink executive VP Dave Rozzelle makes that crystal clear to Congress according to the prepared testimony for a hearing in the House Agriculture Rural Development Subcommittee. Rozzelle and NCTA both support rural broadband funding, they say. What they don't support, and what they say RUS has been doing both with farm bill and broadband stimulus money, is not focusing on unserved areas and funding overbuilding of providers who are operating on risk capital rather than a government subsidy. NCTA asks that if the broadband loan program in the farm bill is to be reauthorized, four things should happen:
Loan guarantees or grants should be limited to areas where at least 75% of residential households lack access to broadband at the FCC high-speed definition of 4 Mbps downstream and 1 Mbps upstream.
Existing providers should be able to supply evidence of service overlaps in areas proposed to be served by RUS applicants.
Give priority to loans, loan guarantees and grants to areas with the greatest proportion of households without broadband with that baseline speed.
Require grantees to report quarterly on their use of the funds, with that info published on the RUS website.
benton.org/node/121336 | Broadcasting&Cable
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UCANN GLITCH
[SOURCE: AdWeek, AUTHOR: Katy Bachman]
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the organization responsible for managing the address system on the Internet, has run into a glitch, confirming advertisers' worst fears -- that adding hundreds of new top-level domains to the Internet too quickly is foolhardy. ICANN was forced April 12 to pull offline its system for accepting applications from companies for new TLDs (dot-apple, dot-coke, dot-bank) after the system leaked to some applicants the file names and user names of other applicants. As a result, ICANN also had to postpone a planned April 30 announcement of which companies have applied for new TLDs. That's about all anyone knows about the application process that opened Jan. 12 under protest from the advertising community, worried about defensive registrations to protect their brands on the Internet. Seeking answers, advertisers called on ICANN's president and CEO Rod Beckstrom to hire a neutral, third-party expert to investigate.
benton.org/node/121333 | AdWeek
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CYBERSECURITY

CISPA VETO THREAT
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Tony Romm]
The White House issued a veto threat against the current version of the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) as House Republicans prepared to take it to the floor. Just as the House Rules Committee convened to weigh amendments to the measure, spearheaded by Reps. Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), the administration released a formal policy statement that raised the stakes: It said President Barack Obama’s advisers would recommend that the President veto the bill unless there are significant changes to boost privacy protections, add new protections on users' personal information and alter its liability protection language. "The administration looks forward to continuing to engage with the Congress in a bipartisan, bicameral fashion to enact cybersecurity legislation to address these critical issues," it continued. "However, for the reasons stated herein, if H.R. 3523 were presented to the president, his senior advisers would recommend that he veto the bill."
benton.org/node/121398 | Politico | Reuters | The Hill | B&C | Washington Post
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WAR OVER CISPA
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Jonathan Allen, Jennifer Martinez]
The debate over the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) amounts to a high-stakes battle over national security and rising online threats that could easily spill into congressional elections and the race for the White House. Aides to Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney did not respond to requests for comment on where he stands on the issue, but House Republicans are confident they can win the spin war and some Democrats worry that they're right. But Republicans believe they have an ace in the hole in Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD). The top Intelligence Committee member in the president's own party is working to whip up support on his side of the aisle. Ruppersberger gave a private presentation on the bill to fellow House Democrats, and he and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-MI) put out a statement to counter the White House veto threat. Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) raised the specter of government entrance into the largely unregulated world of Internet communications. “The president wants the government to set the standards and to write the law for what cybersecurity’s going to look like,” Speaker Boehner said. “You want to get the American people a little exercised, put the government in charge of the Internet.” Many tech industry players prefer the House’s approach rather than a Senate bill, which would impose new requirements on private companies and utilities.
benton.org/node/121418 | Politico | WSJ
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BEEFING UP CYBERSECURITY
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] The engineers who designed the Internet focused on connection and communication, not safety and security. That's one reason hackers have been able to take surreptitious control of Internet-connected devices, cripple websites and steal valuable data. Now, lawmakers are considering whether to vastly expand the government's role in protecting Internet services and corporate computer networks against cyber attack. But while the online security threats are serious, encouraging private industry to funnel information to the government poses its own set of problems. A better approach would be to address directly the software vulnerabilities of the Internet and the devices that connect to it. Having companies do a better job minimizing their exposure to hackers and keeping their software up to date is at least as important as having them monitor their networks. And if companies want to share what they learn about cyber attacks — some may not because they believe that information gives them a competitive advantage — they should do so without including personally identifiable information, and without handing the data to federal enforcement agencies that might be tempted to look for something other than hackers.
benton.org/node/121416 | Los Angeles Times
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HOUSE WEIGHS CHANGES
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
The House Rules Committee is expected to decide which amendments the full House will vote on when it takes up the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) later this week. The Rules Committee will consider a host of possible changes, including three amendments from Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), the ranking member on the Homeland Security Committee, that would bulk up the bill's privacy protections and aim to protect critical infrastructure systems, such as electrical grids and chemical plants, from cyberattacks. The Rules Committee is expected to move amendments backed by the bill's sponsors, Reps. Mike Rogers (R-MI) and Dutch Ruppersberger (D-MD), that would tweak the bill's privacy protections. Their amendments would narrow the bill's definition of "cyber threat information" and would tighten limitations on how the government could use the information it collects. The Rules Committee will likely only approve a few of the amendments for consideration by the full House.
benton.org/node/121414 | Hill, The
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CYBERATTACKS ON GOVERNMENT
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Brendan Sasso]
Cyberattacks on the federal government soared 680 percent in five years, an official from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) testified. Gregory Wilshusen, director of information issues for the GAO, said federal agencies reported 42,887 cybersecurity "incidents" in 2011, compared with just 5,503 in 2006. The incidents included malicious code, denial of service attacks and unauthorized access to systems. He said foreign nations, terrorists, criminal groups and political activists were behind many of the attacks. "These agencies and organizations have experienced a wide range of incidents involving data loss or theft, computer intrusions and privacy breaches, underscoring the need for improved security practices computer intrusions, and privacy breaches," Wilshusen testified at a hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee's subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations and Management. He said securing critical infrastructure systems, such as electrical grids or chemical plants, should be a "national priority."
benton.org/node/121342 | Hill, The | GAO testimony
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SPECTRUM/WIRELESS

FCC APPROVES SPECTRUM TRANSFER
[SOURCE: T-Mobile, AUTHOR: Press release]
The Federal Communications Commission approved the transfer of AWS spectrum licenses from AT&T to T-Mobile USA, agreed to as part of the breakup of the proposed merger between the two companies. This transfer provides T-Mobile with a large package of valuable AWS mobile spectrum in 128 Cellular Market Areas (CMAs), including 12 of the top 20 markets. “We applaud the FCC for acting swiftly to approve the transfer of these spectrum licenses,” said Neville Ray, chief technology officer, T-Mobile USA. “Securing this additional spectrum was a key catalyst for our plans to launch LTE in 2013 and is therefore good news for our customers.” T-Mobile recently announced its 4G evolution strategy. The company will invest $4 billion on network modernization to improve existing voice and data coverage, and broadly deploy LTE in 2013. T-Mobile continues to need more AWS spectrum to support its 4G evolution efforts and the continued growth in mobile data services.
benton.org/node/121313 | T-Mobile
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FEDERAL SPECTRUM WORKING GROUP
[SOURCE: House of Representatives Commerce Committee]
House Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Greg Walden (R-OR) and Ranking Member Anna Eshoo (D-CA) launched a bipartisan Federal Spectrum Working Group to examine how the federal government can use the nation's airwaves more efficiently. The working group will build on the momentum to improve commercial spectrum allocations through incentive auctions as well as the reforms to the Commercial Spectrum Enhancement Act made in the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012. Representatives Brett Guthrie (R-KY) and Doris Matsui (D-CA) will co-chair the group. Rounding out the panel will be Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL), Rep. Mike Rogers (R-MI), Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA), Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO), Rep. John Barrow (D-GA), and Rep. Donna Christensen (D-VI). Subcommittee Chairman Walden and Ranking Member Eshoo will serve as ex-officio members. “This working group will take a comprehensive, thoughtful, and responsible look at how to improve federal spectrum use as part of our ongoing effort to make the most efficient and effective use of the public's airwaves,” said Chairman Walden. Ranking Member Eshoo said, “The working group will be tasked with examining ways in which we use spectrum and how we can use it more efficiently.”
benton.org/node/121331 | House of Representatives Commerce Committee | The Hill | National Journal | B&C
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RESPONSE TO CWA
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Cable operators looking to sell their advanced wireless spectrum to Verizon for just south of $4 billion have told the Federal Communications Commission that there is no reason to stop the clock on its vetting of the deal. The Communications Workers of America, supported by various deal critics, had sought that break from the action, saying they had trouble with the formats of some documents supplied by the operators and Verizon or did not get documents in a timely fashion. In a response filed April 24, Bright House Networks, Verizon Wireless, Comcast, Cox TMI Wireless, and Time Warner Cable said that CWA's claims were meritless. For one thing, say the companies, the files CWA could not open were in formats -- shapefiles and tables -- specifically requested by the FCC and for which there were free viewers available for CWA to use.
benton.org/node/121384 | Broadcasting&Cable
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AT&T EYES SPECTRUM DEALS
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Roger Cheng]
Don't expect AT&T to strike any big deals in the near future. AT&T's wireless chief, Ralph de la Vega, said the company will continue to seek out smaller deals, as it looks to shore up its spectrum position. "We're looking for small acquisitions and will continue to look for more, since we don't see data growth slowing," de la Vega said. AT&T likely became reluctant to pursue another big deal, after regulators threw up roadblock after roadblock in front of its planned acquisition of T-Mobile. AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson noted that 10 smaller deals closed in the first quarter, while four more are still going through approvals with the FCC.
benton.org/node/121329 | C-Net|News.com
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CONSUMERS’ LIMITS
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Aaron Baar]
There is a limit to what people will pay for unlimited data plans. Despite finding that nearly half of consumers don’t know how much mobile data they use every month, two-thirds of them are unwilling to pay more than $50 a month for their service plans, according to new research from Parks Associates. Even at that level, unlimited data could become an expensive proposition, says Harry Wang, director of mobile research at the firm. “Consumers’ budgets have a limit, and carriers cannot expect people to pay more for the data,” Wang tells Marketing Daily. “A lot of the current solution – throttling – isn’t doing well with consumers. They hate that kind of experience. At a certain point, they will ask for a certain remedy from the carriers.” It’s time, Wang says, for the wireless carriers to “shift consumers’ perception away from raw data to the experience created by their data services.”
benton.org/node/121377 | MediaPost
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PATENT WARS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Steve Lohr]
Billions of dollars are being spent to amass patent arsenals, and lawsuits are flying worldwide. Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and Motorola Mobility (or Google, after that patent-inspired acquisition is complete) are the heavyweights in the fray, seeking an edge in the fast-growing smartphone market, using intellectual property as a weapon. Today’s high-stakes patent tussles center on the current generation of smartphone technology, so-called 3G. But the next generation, 4G, is just coming into the marketplace and is expected to become the mainstream smartphone technology over the next three to five years. The march to 4G also opens the door to new vistas of patent litigation and licensing, according to iRunway, a patent research and advisory firm. The firm’s analysis points to a shift in the smartphone intellectual-property marketplace, with Samsung’s hand strengthening. Known as a handset and memory chip maker, Samsung has invested heavily in 4G technologies, especially those that enable the efficient use of high-speed bandwidth, power management and reliability, said Animesh Kumar, a co-founder of iRunway. Samsung , according to iRunway, is by far the largest holder of 4G patents. Apple, by contrast, does not make the top 10 in patent count.
benton.org/node/121413 | New York Times
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TELEVISION/RADIO

POLITICAL AD DATA UPDATE
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Joe Flint]
This month, just before the Pennsylvania primary, Mitt Romney's campaign bought a 30-second commercial on CBS-owned KYW-TV Philadelphia that ran during the station's late local news. The ad cost $1,800. That's hardly confidential information. The details of such political advertising purchases are available to anybody willing to schlep to their local television station and ask to see the public files. But now the Federal Communications Commission wants to take that same material, which is required by law to be made available to the public, out of a dusty filing cabinet and onto the Internet. On April 27, the FCC will vote on whether to make that a new rule. Broadcasters are crying foul. Even though that information is already technically public, they fear putting that level of detail on the Web will undermine their own businesses. "One poker player would, in effect, have had at least a partial glance at the other's hand," broadcast networks CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox and Univision wrote in comments. By law, in the weeks leading up to a primary or general election, broadcasters are required to sell candidates ad time at the lowest rate paid by a commercial business in that same show or time of day. (Commercial rates fluctuate on a weekly and sometimes daily basis.) The concern among TV station owners is that commercial advertisers will use the detailed information about rates as leverage in their own negotiations. There is also fear that one station could learn what another is charging and then undercut its rates with advertisers.
benton.org/node/121394 | Los Angeles Times
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LAWMAKERS CRITICIZE FCC ON POLITICAL ADS
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Andrew Feinberg]
In a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski, Reps. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), Brian Bilbray (R-CA) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) ask the chairman to explain the reasoning behind a proposed order that would require broadcasters to put their public inspection files, including information on political advertisements, online for anyone to view. They said the FCC “has not adequately assessed the costs or burdens associated with this proposal, nor articulated the need.” The lawmakers also question the need to place the information online in the first place, citing a statement by FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell that there is little evidence that public files aren't already available to anyone who wants to see them. “The commission must explain the need for this proposal before implementing such a costly endeavor,” they wrote.
benton.org/node/121339 | Hill, The
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INCENTIVE AUCTIONS FOR STRUGGLING STATIONS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Federal Communications Commission Media Bureau Chief Bill Lake pitched incentive auctions to an audience of broadcast and cable executives and attorneys, saying the FCC had heard from broadcasters and brokers interested in the auctions, which will compensate broadcasters for giving up spectrum for auction, presumably for wireless carriers who claim to be facing a spectrum shortage now and a crisis soon. At a Media Institute luncheon, Lake said that while TV stations are doing better than they were in the depths of the downturn three years ago, not all are sharing in that "relative" recovery. Lake said that broadcasters in Las Vegas for the National Association of Broadcasters convention "hammered home" to FCC staffers in conversations that even among the major broadcast groups, economic conditions varied widely. He suggested that some of those groups include smaller, struggling stations, as well as strong ones. Then there were smaller independent stations that faced a "harsher reality" than others. In both cases, he suggested, there was an opportunity to cash in on their spectrum through auctions. "It is exactly this disparity in economic prospects among stations that convinces us that the incentive auctions that Congress has authorized present a real opportunity for some stations," he said.
benton.org/node/121388 | Broadcasting&Cable
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FCC AGENDA CHANGE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Federal Communications Commission has removed a noncommercial fundraising item from its April 27 public meeting agenda, which more than likely means it will be voted and approved before the meeting. The item seeks comment on whether noncommercial broadcast stations should be allowed to conduct on-air fundraising for third-party nonprofits. They can already interrupt programming to raise money for themselves, but not for others, though there have been exceptions.
benton.org/node/121338 | Broadcasting&Cable | FCC Agenda Change
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CONTENT

E-BOOK PRICES
[SOURCE: CNNMoney, AUTHOR: Julianne Pepitone]
When the Justice Department filed suit against Apple and five major book publishers alleging e-book price fixing, the government hawked it as a triumph for consumers. The other champ, of course, was Amazon -- which called the legal action "a big win for Kindle owners." The book giant also said it looked forward to lowering prices on more Kindle titles, as a result of settlement deals that two book publishers cut with the DOJ. If Amazon is able to dial back its e-book pricing to $9.99 across the board, rivals who can't afford to forgo profit will have a tough time competing. And while that may sound like great news for Kindle readers, some worry that Amazon will become a de facto monopoly that could eventually have enough power to raise prices as it sees fit -- or play hardball with publishers who are left with no other options.
benton.org/node/121310 | CNNMoney
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PRIVACY

PRIVACY POLICIES
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Aaron Baar]
It’s official: Facebook and Google’s privacy policies are more confusing than government and financial services documents. According to a survey released by branding firm Siegel + Gale, consumers -- after reviewing the privacy policies of both Google and Facebook -- could only correctly answer questions about the policy 36% of the time. When it came to Facebook, only 39% could provide correct answers. In similar studies, 70% of consumers correctly answered questions regarding government notices and 68% had the right answers to credit card agreements.
benton.org/node/121321 | MediaPost
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OWNERSHIP

APPLE = SONY
[SOURCE: Forrester, AUTHOR: George Colony]
[Commentary] Apple will decline in the post Steve Jobs era. Here's why. When Steve Jobs departed, he took three things with him: 1) singular charismatic leadership that bound the company together and elicited extraordinary performance from its people; 2) the ability to take big risks, and 3) an unparalleled ability to envision and design products. Apple's momentum will carry it for 24-48 months. But without the arrival of a new charismatic leader it will move from being a great company to being a good company, with a commensurate step down in revenue growth and product innovation. Like Sony (post Morita), Polaroid (post Land), Apple circa 1985 (post Jobs), and Disney (in the 20 years post Walt Disney), Apple will coast, and then decelerate.
benton.org/node/121373 | Forrester
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HEALTH

MEANINGFUL USE SURVEY
[SOURCE: HealthcareITNews, AUTHOR: Mike Miliard]
Most hospitals and health systems report being well along in completing electronic health record implementation, but many still have doubts about their ability to meet new EHR standards, according to a new poll from KPMG. Forty-eight percent of hospital and health system business leaders who participated in the survey said they were confident in their organization’s level of readiness to meet Stage 1 meaningful use requirements, say KPMG officials. Thirty-nine percent said they were somewhat confident, 3 percent said they were not confident at all, and 10 percent didn’t know what their level of readiness was. The poll also found that nearly three-quarters (71 percent) of hospital and health system leaders said they are more than 50 percent of the way to completing EHR system adoption.
benton.org/node/121317 | HealthcareITNews
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HER ADOPTION LAGS
[SOURCE: ModernHealthcare.com, AUTHOR: Joseph Conn]
Adoption of electronic health-record systems remains higher among large physician groups and hospitals than among smaller ones, according to two studies published in the journal Health Affairs. In the first study, government researchers, using funding from HHS' Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, examined data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey from 2002 through 2011. The survey for five years asked whether providers used "any EHR" but in 2007 began asking questions about specific EHR functions to determine whether providers were using a so-called basic EHR. By 2011, 24.2% of physicians in solo or two-physician practices had adopted a basic EHR, compared with 37.1% of groups of three to nine physicians and 60% of physicians in groups of 10 or more. Rural physicians trailed their urban counterparts in EHR adoption as well, with 34.2% of physicians outside of metropolitan statistical areas having basic EHRs in 2011, while 39.4% in metropolitan areas did. Also, specialists lagged behind primary-care physicians in EHR adoption, and the gap for adoption of a basic EHR widened since 2007. Specialists, according to the researchers, had basic EHR adoption rates of 12.4% in 2007 and 30.9% by 2011. Primary-care physicians, meanwhile, had basic EHR adoption rates of 17.1% in 2007 and 40.2% in 2011.
benton.org/node/121375 | ModernHealthcare.com
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JOURNALISM

SEATTLE TIMES PRIZE WINNERS
[SOURCE: Columbia Journalism Review, AUTHOR: Olivia Smith]
Instead of keeping the $10,000 that accompanied their recent Pulitzer for investigative reporting, Ken Armstrong and Michael Berens decided to donate it so that other journalists could learn their prize-winning skills. “So much public information is now maintained exclusively in a digital format,” said Berens. “Yet, so many reporters don’t know how to access and analyze it. Training is the key to unlocking stories.” The prize money will go to The Seattle Times, Berens and Armstrong’s home paper, which in turn will use it to offer more reporters training by Investigative Reporters and Editors, a University of Missouri-based nonprofit dedicated to the improvement of investigative reporting nationwide, mainly through resources and regional training opportunities.
benton.org/node/121306 | Columbia Journalism Review
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FEWER JOURNALISTS FOR NATO
[SOURCE: Crain’s Chicago Business, AUTHOR: Paul Merrion]
One of the big payoffs for hosting the NATO summit in Chicago — a chance for the city to star on the international stage — won't be quite as stellar as once hoped. More than 2,100 journalists applied for credentials by the April 13 deadline, according to a NATO spokesman. That's at the low end of expectations that between 2,000 and 2,500 journalists would show up. It's not about filling hotels and restaurants during the summit — it's about filling airtime and column inches with stories about the city's appeal as a business center and tourism destination.
benton.org/node/121314 | Crain’s Chicago Business
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POLICYMAKERS

GRASSLEY HINTS
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Andrew Feinberg]
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) suggested he could soon lift holds on two nominees to the Federal Communications Commission. Sen Grassley wants the FCC to provide documents related to its review of LightSquared’s proposal to build a 4G wireless network. The FCC dumped 13,000 documents earlier this week to Grassley, and the senator said he could release the holds if more documents were forthcoming. "[I]t looks a little bit different today," he said of the situation. "We'll get another [document dump] very shortly, and if it continues to be helpful, maybe by the following week we'll be able to move." But Sen Grassley stopped short of guaranteeing a release, adding "I can't make that judgment now."
benton.org/node/121391 | Hill, The | National Journal
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STORIES FROM ABROAD

MURDOCH TESTIFIES
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Henry Chu]
Media baron Rupert Murdoch scoffed at suggestions that he wields undue political influence in Britain, called critics of tabloids "elitist" and dismissed phone hacking as "a lazy way" for reporters to do their jobs. In a London courtroom, the 81-year-old tycoon insisted that he tried "very hard to set an example of ethical behavior," despite the fact that dozens of journalists at his British newspapers have been arrested in wide-ranging investigations into illegal news-gathering practices, including bribing police. Murdoch spoke under oath at a judicial inquiry into media ethics that was set up because of the phone-hacking scandal that has engulfed his giant News Corp. and shaken the British political establishment. Even as he sat in the witness box, testimony from his son James was causing a political ruckus. A special advisor to the government minister in charge of the arts and media resigned because of revelations that he had passed sensitive information to James Murdoch's lobbyist on News Corp.'s controversial bid to take over British Sky Broadcasting.
benton.org/node/121349 | Los Angeles Times
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WHAT POLITICIANS LOST TO MURDOCH
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: John Gapper]
[Commentary] It is now obvious, despite Rupert Murdoch’s modesty, that News Corp has exercised an unholy grip over British politicians, who helped it to avoid antitrust barriers as it bought The Times and The Sunday Times in 1981, and British Sky Broadcasting in 1990. Those politicians were so in awe of Murdoch that they leapt to accommodate him without him needing to ask out loud. It is also clear that cabinet ministers can be trusted to adjudicate impartially on media mergers about as much as they could be trusted before 1997 to set interest rates for the good of the economy, as opposed to their parties. The long-term question is how to prevent another baron from pulling off the trick again.
benton.org/node/121407 | Financial Times | NYTimes
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HUNT’S DEFENSE
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Hannah Kuchler]
Jeremy Hunt, UK culture secretary, has defended his role overseeing News Corp’s bid to take full control of British Sky Broadcasting, telling Members of Parliament he conducted himself with “scrupulous fairness.” Hunt appeared before parliament shortly after Adam Smith, his special adviser, resigned. Smith admitted that his communication with News Corp during the bid process went “too far.” The minister listed four decisions that went against the wishes of News Corp: saying he was “minded” to refer the bid to the competition commission, asking Ofcom, the regulator to review the assurances undertaken by News Corp as part of the bid, extending the period of consultation and asking Ofcom to review whether the phone hacking affair had any impact on the bid.
benton.org/node/121405 | Financial Times | NYTimes
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