May 7, 2012 (Murdoch Scandal Follows Classic Script)
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for MONDAY, MAY 7, 2012
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
Verizon is selling its spectrum, but is anyone buying? - op-ed
AT&T Chief Regrets Offering Unlimited Data for iPhone
Wireless Carriers Chip Away at Phone Subsidies
Verizon moves toward 911 texting
Study: iPad Accounts for Nearly 95 Percent of Tablet Web Traffic [links to web]
Fears of spying hinder U.S. license for China Mobile
Will 4G Catalyze Rural Telemedicine?
Can France’s Free keep its wireless revolution going? [links to web]
Many Competing Paths on the Road to the Phone Wallet [links to web]
Radio silence ahead
INTERNET/BROADBAND
What Cable Monopoly? - analysis
Senate Dems modifying cybersecurity bill to pick up GOP votes [links to web]
The UN Wants to Run the Internet - editorial
ICANN: Sorry for domain name snafu
OWNERSHIP
Murdoch Scandal Follows Classic Script - analysis
The Cozy Compliance of the News Corp. Board - analysis
Greenwood, MS: One Man, Four Network Affiliates
Don’t Be Shocked by More Big Acquisitions, Facebook Says
Facebook's power play
Oracle v. Google judge asks for comment on EU court ruling
Google makes plans to move Motorola Mobility to Chicago [links to web]
Comcast to Sell Part of Stake in A&E [links to web]
PRIVACY
State attorneys general: Google privacy changes appear to harm consumers
Google Said to Face Fine by US Over Apple Safari Breach
Rep Barrow wants answers from Google on Wi-Fi snooping case [links to web]
Facebook IPO: How could privacy concerns affect revenue?
Mobile experts disagree on who should protect privacy
The secret life of your cellphone - editorial
Passing the buck on location tracking
Apple Must Face Lawsuit Over IPhone Data Collection Claims [links to web]
CONTENT
From Fiddlers To Franklin: The Showbiz Dilemma - analysis
Does the 1st Amendment cover clicking 'like' on Facebook?
Why are kids’ e-book sales surging? Partly because adults are reading them [links to web]
ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
New rules on political ads: how to mine them - op-ed
Facebook’s PAC donations tilt towards GOP, Judiciary committee members [links to web]
TELEVISION
Nielsen: 1.5M U.S. households cut the cord in 2011 [links to web]
Comcast to Sell Part of Stake in A&E [links to web]
KIDS AND MEDIA
New Study Follows Kids On Social Media
STORIES FROM ABROAD
EU Digital Agenda Commissioner Admits ACTA Is Probably Dead
Arab Spring Spurs Palestinian Journalists to Test Free Speech Limits [links to web]
Evernote App Has Eye on China [links to web]
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
IS ANYONE BUYING VERIZON SPECTRUM?
[SOURCE: GigaOm, AUTHOR: Tim Farrar]
[Commentary] On April 19, Verizon Wireless surprised many people by announcing that it would sell its 700MHz A-and B-block holdings if the Federal Communications Commission approves its proposed $3.9 billion purchase of SpectrumCo and Cox Communications’ Advanced Wireless Spectrum (AWS) holdings (as well as a smaller spectrum swap with Leap Wireless). This comes despite Verizon’s recent well-publicized assertions that it will start running out of LTE capacity by 2013 if it doesn’t get approval for the SpectrumCo deal. That’s led some of us to wonder whether Verizon is really as short on spectrum as it claims. However, what’s more intriguing is whether Verizon can actually pull off this sale and meet Verizon CFO Fran Shammo’s claims on its Q1 2012 results call that Verizon will be able to get a “return” on its original investment. As Public Knowledge’s Harold Feld points out, Verizon is making as an incredibly smart move to wrong-foot both its competitors and the FCC. In as single stroke it can get its SpectrumCo transaction approved without allowing smaller competitors to close the “spectrum gap” between themselves and AT&T and Verizon. Moreover, if the FCC allows Verizon to set a reserve price on its 700 MHz licenses based on its apparent intention to make a profit over what was paid in 2008, it is possible that Verizon may be able to get its AWS while keeping many of the A-and B-block licenses it claims to be sacrificing. Verizon paid relatively high prices for those licenses in 2008, and it is far from clear whether smaller competitors are in a position to pay more for these licenses today than they were prepared to bid back in 2008.
benton.org/node/122373 | GigaOm
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STEPHENSON REGRETS UNLIMITED DATA
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Brian Chen]
When Randall Stephenson, AT&T’s chief executive, spoke about the state of the wireless industry at a conference this week, he shared some surprisingly frank comments about the iPhone. In particular, he said that he wished the company had never offered an unlimited data plan for the device and that he loses sleep over free texting services like Apple’s iMessage. If AT&T hadn’t offered unlimited data, it would have been able to get people who used more data to pay up for it, as opposed to having the light data users subsidize the heavy ones, he said. “My only regret was how we introduced pricing in the beginning, because how did we introduce pricing? Thirty dollars and you get all you can eat,” he said in the on-stage interview at the Milken Institute’s Global Conference. “And it’s a variable cost model. Every additional megabyte you use in this network, I have to invest capital.”
benton.org/node/122394 | New York Times
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PHONE SUBSIDIES
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Anton Troianovski]
Wireless carriers are taking their first steps to change the terms of smartphone deals that have mostly benefited phone makers like Apple in a push that could leave consumers paying more for devices like the iPhone. Carriers in the US have been raising monthly rates and charging higher fees when customers upgrade to new phones. In Europe, embattled carriers are taking more aggressive measures: Spain's two leading wireless companies are refusing to subsidize devices for new customers. In the global wireless market, where device manufacturers such as Apple and Samsung Electronics Co. and software makers like Google continue to hold considerable sway, carriers still typically pay full price for their phones, then sell them at deep discounts to customers who sign two-year contracts. But the carriers' latest signs of resistance are drawing applause from investors and analysts. They say the carriers could benefit more from the smartphone boom if they succeed in raising prices for service plans and slowing the rate at which customers buy new phones.
benton.org/node/122420 | Wall Street Journal
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911 TEXTING
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Andrew Feinberg]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski praised Verizon Wireless for selecting a vendor to help deploy its first-in-the-nation implementation of its "text-to-911" service. The service will allow wireless phone users to contact Public Safety Answering Points, or 911 call centers, using text messages. It could be of particular use to deaf and hard of hearing consumers, who have been shown to be rapid adopters of smartphones for their text-messaging capabilities. “Verizon is at the forefront of 911 public-safety innovations, and today’s announcement is another step in making SMS-to-911 service available to those who cannot make a voice call to 911,” said Marjorie Hsu, Verizon Wireless vice president of technology. FCC spokesperson Tammy Sun said Chairman Genachowski "commended the company for offering consumers another way to reach 911 that is consistent with how millions of consumers already use mobile devices in their daily lives."
benton.org/node/122385 | Hill, The
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SPYING FEARS AND CHINA MOBILE
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Ken Dilanian]
Concerned about possible cyber spying, US national security officials are debating whether to take the unprecedented step of recommending that a Chinese government-owned mobile phone giant be denied a license to offer international service to American customers. China Mobile, the world's largest mobile provider, applied in October for a license from the Federal Communications Commission to provide service between China and the United States and to build facilities on American soil. Officials from the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the Justice Department's national security division are concerned that the move would give the company access to physical infrastructure and Internet traffic that might allow China to spy more easily on the US government and steal intellectual property from American companies, according to people familiar with the process who declined to be identified because the deliberations are secret. Those officials, known collectively as "Team Telecom," review FCC applications by foreign-owned companies. They could advise the FCC not to issue the license, but may instead demand a signed agreement designed to satisfy security concerns, the people said. The review is being led by the Justice Department, which declined to comment, as did the FBI and DHS. A move to block the license could provoke a lawsuit by China Mobile, officials said. But lately, the U.S. government's focus on cyber espionage has sharpened considerably.
benton.org/node/122389 | Los Angeles Times
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WILL 4G CATALYZE RURAL TELEMEDICINE?
[SOURCE: nextgov, AUTHOR: John Pulley]
Wireless 4G networks might be the best way to deliver telemedicine in rural areas, even better than wired broadband, a rural practitioner said at the American Telemedicine Association’s annual meeting. But neither is available in much of rural America. Outside of the country's metropolitan areas, broadband access is spotty, despite federal efforts to expand networks. Wireless 4G coverage is rapidly expanding, yet it too is available primarily in cities, writes SearchHealthIT’s Don Fluckinger. It’s an important issue, since areas that are least accessible to high-speed Internet access are the ones that most need telemedicine to connect patients with specialists in bigger cities.
benton.org/node/122366 | nextgov
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RADIO SILENCE AHEAD
[SOURCE: Crain’s Chicago Business, AUTHOR: Paul Merrion]
President Barack Obama could end up costing his hometown a pretty penny in the name of deficit reduction. Thanks to a last-minute move by Washington to take away the city's best radio frequencies and sell them to the highest bidder, Chicago will have to scrap its long-term plan to improve emergency communications for police, fire and other public safety personnel. A new $23 million digital radio network for the Chicago Fire Department that was expected to last at least 20 years will have to be junked in a decade. If all of Chicago's transmitters and mobile equipment have to be replaced—as now appears likely—”the cost will skyrocket to the $200 million range,” the city says. Auction proceeds are supposed to cover the price of new equipment for government use, but they won't go toward equipment that will become prematurely obsolete. Making matters worse, Chicago and other big cities have no Plan B to improve their radio systems and enable first responders from different agencies to communicate with each other, a critical goal since the 2001 terrorist attacks.
benton.org/node/122409 | Crain’s Chicago Business
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INTERNET/BROADBAND
WHAT CABLE MONOPOLY?
[SOURCE: Technology Policy Institute, AUTHOR: Scott Wallsten]
[Commentary] What a difference a few years makes! As late as 2009 Susan Crawford was arguing that cable broadband was becoming obsolete and Harvard’s Berkman Center believed the only long-term answer to increasing broadband demand was fiber. Today, Crawford is warning of a looming cable monopoly. To be sure, DOCSIS 3.0 technology has given cable a relatively low-cost upgrade path while traditional telcos generally have to invest far more in fiber to achieve similar performance. So, what is really happening in the market? Data on fixed broadband subscriptions contradict the claims of monopoly. The data show that cable has always held the majority of connections, peaking around 2003 when it held close to 60 percent of the fixed broadband market. The share of cable connections is trending upwards, but, at least as of last year, did not appear to be significantly different from the past. None of this evidence means that Crawford’s warnings are necessarily wrong, of course. Whether cable’s cost advantage will ultimately translate into a monopoly or any increased market power, however, will depend not just on technological differences but also on changes in demand. Policymakers should, without a doubt, keep a close eye on market conditions and work to ensure an environment conducive to competition. But if this fast-changing market teaches us anything, it’s that we should think twice before we conclude we know the endgame.
benton.org/node/122359 | Technology Policy Institute
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UN AND THE INTERNET
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: L Gordon Crovitz]
[Commentary] Here's a wake-up call for the world's two billion Web users, who take for granted the light regulation of the Internet: A group of 193 countries will meet in December to reregulate the Internet. Every country, including China, Russia and Iran, gets a vote. Can a majority of countries be trusted to keep their hands off the Web? The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a low-profile United Nations organization, is overseeing this yearlong review of the Web. Its process is so secretive that proposals by member countries are confidential. The Obama administration has yet to nominate a negotiator for the U.S. side, even though Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said last year that his goal was "international control over the Internet." The ITU has long regulated long-distance fixed telephone calls and helps keep satellites in assigned orbits. But unlike phones and satellites, which need an international regulator to maintain order, the Web does not have fixed locations. Still, the ITU is the regulator of choice for countries aiming to control the Web. The Internet shows how creativity can flourish when government governs least. The Web allows permissionless innovation, where no one needs an operating license or other authorization. This doesn't leave much of a role for multinational groups like the U.N., even if some governments are plotting otherwise.
benton.org/node/122422 | Wall Street Journal
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DOMAIN NAME SNAFU
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Michelle Quinn]
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has apologized to domain name applicants for problems arising from a computer glitch that has kept the application process closed for three weeks, according to its chief executive. Rod Beckstrom hopes the organization will reveal the domain applicants as well as potential new domains by the time he leaves the agency on July 1. Previously, ICANN had planned to unveil the potential new domains on April 30. “We apologized to all applicants for the delay,” Beckstrom said. “It’s not a comfortable situation for them.”
benton.org/node/122411 | Politico
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OWNERSHIP
CLASSIC SCRIPT
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Raphael Satter]
If the phone hacking scandal gripping Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. (NWSA) empire has a familiar ring, it might be because you've heard the story before. Scrappy outsider turns modest newspaper business into international media conglomerate. Ambition turns to hubris. Mogul dramatically falls from grace. From William Randolph Hearst to Rupert Murdoch, many media barons' stories follow a familiar arc.
benton.org/node/122426 | Associated Press
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COZY COMPLIANCE
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: David Carr]
[Commentary] If you sat on the board of a company that was raked over the coals by a British parliamentary committee in a 121-page document, accused of a pattern of corporate misconduct that included widespread phone hacking and an ensuing cover-up by senior officials, you might want to pause for a moment and consider all the implications. But there was little reflection last week by the board of News Corporation, which met quickly the day after the committee’s report and announced “its full confidence in Rupert Murdoch’s fitness and support for his continuing to lead News Corporation into the future as its chairman and C.E.O.” before the ink was even dry on the report. (While the board expressed unanimous support for Mr. Murdoch, it’s worth noting there were no such words for his son James.) There are many reasons Rupert Murdoch has avoided any serious consequences from the scandal despite hundreds of British citizens having had their phones hacked, dozens or more being bribed in law enforcement and several dozen more of his employees having been arrested. But the primary reason Mr. Murdoch has not been held to account is that the board of News Corporation has no independence, little influence and no stomach for confronting its chairman.
benton.org/node/122424 | New York Times
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GREENWOOD, MS
[SOURCE: TVNewsCheck, AUTHOR: Harry Jessell]
Ranking No. 187 on the list of Nielsen DMAs, Greenwood-Greenville (MS) is not a large TV market, but for Charles Harker it's huge. He may soon control all four major network affiliates there. Through Commonwealth Broadcasting Group, Harker already owns ABC affiliate WABG and NBC affiliate WNBD-LD and airs Fox programming on a WABG subchannel. Now, he has guaranteed a loan enabling his three adult children --Christopher, Jamie and Timothy -- to purchase the CBS affiliate, WXVT, from Saga Communications for $3 million. And, if the Federal Communications Commission approves the transfer, he intends to run the station under contract with his children.
benton.org/node/122415 | TVNewsCheck
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FACEBOOK ACQUISITIONS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Somini Sengupta]
If you thought the $1 billion Instagram buy was big, don’t be surprised by more big buys: Facebook will continue to invest in things that rev up its presence on mobile phones. That’s one crucial message that Facebook executives are conveying to would-be investors in the company’s roadshow video. “Expect us to invest heavily in our mobile presence, even if mobile monetization is uncertain and will take time,” David Ebersman, the company’s chief financial officer, says toward the end of the 32-minute video. Ebersman said the company was in a heavy investment stage, adding that it had to spend significantly already on building the infrastructure required to accommodate high volumes of data.
benton.org/node/122395 | New York Times
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FACEBOOK’S POWER PLAY
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Michelle Quinn]
Facebook’s business is built on fun and games and the childhood belief that sharing is caring, but there’s nothing cute about its lobbying operation: Its DC shop has been built for battle. Founded in 2004, Facebook has put in place a sophisticated policy and political support network to wage war on potential privacy regulations — one of the greatest risks to the company’s post-IPO future. “They are responsive, engaged and big thinkers when it comes to Internet policy,” said Rep. Mary Bono Mack (R-CA), chairwoman of a key House privacy panel. “Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg … clearly understand how important it is on Capitol Hill to be politically savvy, not just tech-savvy.”
benton.org/node/122413 | Politico
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ORACLE VS GOOGLE
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: Timothy Lee]
The copyright phase of the Oracle v. Google trial is winding down. While the world waits for a jury verdict on the facts, the judge overseeing the case is wrestling with the complexities of the law. Oracle has argued that the "structure, sequence and organization" of the Java API is eligible for copyright protection, while Google disagrees. Judge William Alsup asked each party to submit a 20-page brief answering a series of 13 in-depth questions about the Java API and the relevant precedents. Among other things, he asked the parties to weigh in on the implications of this week's EU court decision that allowing functional characteristics of programming languages to be copyrighted would "monopolize" ideas. Some of Judge Alsup's comments in the courtroom in recent days suggested that he is skeptical of Oracle's position.
benton.org/node/122377 | Ars Technica
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PRIVACY
STATE ATTORNEYS GENERAL AND GOOGLE PRIVACY
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Cecilia Kang]
Dozens of state attorneys general wrote Google’s chief executive to express “strong concerns” that the company’s new privacy policies starting next week will violate consumer privacy. In a letter to CEO Larry Page, the state attorneys general said the plan to begin sharing consumer data across Google’s services on March 1 “forces these consumers to allow information across all of these products to be shared, without giving them the proper ability to opt out.” The law enforcement officials said users may want to keep their Web searching history separate from information they get from Gmail or YouTube. But for users signed on to those services, that data will be blended by the search giant to serve up ads better tailored to users preferences. Google has defended its plans, which have raised concerns among European regulators and privacy groups.
benton.org/node/122390 | Washington Post
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GOOGLE FINE
[SOURCE: Bloomberg, AUTHOR: Sara Forden]
Google is negotiating with the Federal Trade Commission over how big a fine it will have to pay for its breach of Apple’s Safari Internet browser, a person familiar with the matter said. The fine could amount to more than $10 million dollars, said the person, who declined to be identified because the talks are confidential. The fine would be the first by the FTC for a violation of Internet privacy as the agency steps up enforcement of consumers’ online rights. The FTC is preparing to allege that Google deceived consumers and violated terms of a consent decree signed with the commission last year when it planted so-called cookies on Safari, bypassing Apple software’s privacy settings, the person said.
benton.org/node/122379 | Bloomberg
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PRIVACY AND FACEBOOK IPO
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Hayley Tsukayama]
Now that Facebook has set its share prices, valuing the company between $77 billion and $96 billion, the question is whether it will be able to convince investors that it’s got a sustainable business model, can keep growing and find new ways to generate revenue. And because advertising revenue is such a big part of Facebook’s business model, user privacy will have to be a major consideration for potential investors. “If you use Facebook, you’re the product, not the customer,” said Bill Kerrigan, chief executive of the privacy company Abine. “The company’s financial success requires it to collect more personal information and make available to advertisers.” Facebook itself is clearly aware of how important it is to keep up a good reputation on privacy, especially after settling with the Federal Trade Commission over complaints that it was making data public without user permission. In the list of risk factors that the company has put in its S-1 filing, the company has listed that “changes in user sentiment” about the network’s “privacy and sharing, safety security or other factors” could have a bad effect on the company and its revenue.
benton.org/node/122391 | Washington Post
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WHO SHOULD PROTECT PRIVACY?
[SOURCE: IDG News Service, AUTHOR: Grant Gross]
Users of mobile apps need more information about the ways those apps use their personal information, a group of experts agreed, but they didn't agree on who is most responsible for protecting user privacy. Apple and Google can better police their app marketplaces, although both companies have several good privacy protections, said Todd Moore, founder of app vendor TMSoft, during a discussion on mobile app privacy at the State of the Mobile Net conference. The operators of the iPhone and Android app marketplaces are in the best position to enforce privacy controls and set rules limiting the amount of information apps can collect, he said.
benton.org/node/122360 | IDG News Service
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SECRET LIFE OF YOUR CELLPHONE
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Editorial staff]
[Commentary] Concerned that mobile phone networks are becoming surveillance tools, the American Civil Liberties Union recently asked hundreds of local law enforcement agencies whether they've tracked people's movements through their cellphones. Most of those that responded said they had, usually obtaining the information from mobile phone companies without a warrant. The practice has become so routine, the ACLU found, that phone companies are sending out catalogs of monitoring services with detailed price lists to police agencies. The alarming findings should persuade Congress to clarify that the government can't follow someone electronically without showing probable cause and obtaining a warrant.
benton.org/node/122417 | Los Angeles Times
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LOCATION TRACKING
[SOURCE: Politico, AUTHOR: Keith Perine]
When it comes to police access to cellphone location data of suspects, Congress has left the courts holding the bag. The high-stakes privacy debate over law enforcement tracking citizens using geolocational data is one Congress — despite a few bills and a hearing on the horizon — isn’t likely to resolve anytime soon. Lawmakers have left it to the courts, while the Supreme Court seemed to toss it back to the Hill recently. “It couldn’t be more up in the air than it is right now,” Susan Freiwald, a University of San Francisco law professor, said about the state of the law on smartphone tracking. “Practices just vary magistrate judge by magistrate judge and law enforcement agency by law enforcement agency.” These days, the same technology that ensures smartphone users can’t get lost on their way to a new restaurant allows the police to track their movements. If it sounds slightly Orwellian, that’s because it is.
benton.org/node/122410 | Politico
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CONTENT
THE SHOWBIZ DILEMMA
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Art Brodsky]
[Commentary] The entertainment industry today is caught in a kind of purgatory, somewhere between Zero Mostel and Franklin Roosevelt. It's an odd place to be, and not sustainable to be there for much longer. From Mostel, comes the line, "Without our traditions, our lives would be as shaky as... as... as a fiddler on the roof!" from the play, "Fiddler on the Roof." The industry respects, and clings to, its traditions. It is simply trying to scratch out a simple living without breaking its neck, and because of its traditions, the industry has more or less kept its balance for many years. Even so, the industry's lives are becoming increasingly shaky and the balancing act more precarious. In the face of ever-changing audiences and environments, the industry has maintained the never-faltering tradition of steadfast opposition to any technological change whatsoever that would disrupt their business -- even if it eventually profits from those changes. Rather than see technology as an opportunity, the industry always sees it as a threat. Bloomberg BusinessWeek broke the story of the latest chapter in a long saga, as the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) admitted it feared the arrival of Google’s high-speed network in Kansas City. The entertainment industry should no longer fear technological change. It should no longer cling to a precarious balance on the roof of an industrial structure constructed long ago. It's time to look on technology as an opportunity, and to conquer its fear of the unknown.
benton.org/node/122362 | Public Knowledge
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FACEBOOK AND THE FIRST AMENDMENT
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Michelle Maltais]
Before you click that "like" button in Facebook, you should know that a judge in federal court asserted that this is not protected under the 1st Amendment. In what boils down to a wrongful termination case (Bland vs. Roberts) brought before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, four former employees of a sheriff up for reelection claimed that they were fired after, among other things, he discovered that they "liked" his opponent's campaign page on Facebook. "According to the Plaintiffs, after learning of their support of their opponent, the Sheriff called a meeting in which he informed his employees that they should get on the 'long train' with him rather than riding the 'short train' with his opponent," according to court documents. In citing other cases of protected speech on Facebook in his decision, the judge notes that, unlike the simple act of clicking "like," actual statements were made. "The key question is, is the act of 'liking' something of Facebook, does that express an opinion or thought," said Aden Fine, senior staff attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union in an interview with The Times. "It certainly does. The mere fact that you're pressing a button to express that view or opinion instead of saying those words doesn't make a difference."
benton.org/node/122387 | Los Angeles Times
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ELECTIONS AND MEDIA
NEW POLITICAL AD RULES
[SOURCE: Columbia Journalism Review, AUTHOR: Steven Waldman]
[Commentary] A gold mine of data will soon be available to help make our political system more transparent, thanks to the Federal Communication Commission. But this gold will be useless unless it’s extracted, shaped, and polished. Television stations could help their own reporters do their jobs better, prove to the community (and policymakers) that they zealously try to better inform the public by moving to the forefront of improving rather than resisting transparency. For instance, broadcasters in the smaller markets could voluntarily put their files online right away. Why doesn’t the National Association of Broadcasters call on its members to voluntarily put this information online? Why doesn’t the Radio and TV Digital News Directors—which, inexplicably, opposed the FCC’s political transparency rule—take the lead in requesting, or demanding, that their own stations take this important step? Local TV newsrooms forever complain when they’re not taken as seriously as newspaper reporters. In many cases the irritation is justified but in the first round of this fight, it was notable that the TV news directors sided with TV station owners, not with other journalists, and not or in the interests of their viewers. Here’s a chance for them to show that they genuinely care about viewers being better informed. The FCC rule is a hugely important step. But its ultimate significance will depend greatly on how reporters, citizens, and the industry follow up.
benton.org/node/122356 | Columbia Journalism Review
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KIDS AND MEDIA
KIDS ON SOCIAL
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Karl Greenberg]
You're 18 years old. What can social media do for you? What can it do to you? Social media benefits adolescents by creating connection, academic opportunities, and access to health information. On the other hand, it has created cyberbullying, sexting, and Facebook depression. But how true is any of this, and just what are adolescents doing on social media every day? A new phase of a multi-year study -- kind of a digital version of the famous "7-Up" documentary series -- will attempt an answer. The research, led by Marion K. Underwood, a professor at the University of Texas, Dallas, actually began in 2003. Underwood, UT’s Ashbel Smith Professor, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, and her research group started a study on social aggression with a group of 175 nine-year-olds (third graders). Five years later, and before the students began ninth grade, they received BlackBerry devices from Underwood and her team. With lots of confidentiality and firewall arrangements, Underwood was able to embark on a new phase of the longitudinal study by recording each text message, photo, email, and IM.
benton.org/node/122371 | MediaPost
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STORIES FROM ABROAD
IS ACTA DEAD?
[SOURCE: IDG News Service, AUTHOR: Jennifer Baker]
A European Commissioner for the first time said openly that the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is more or less dead in the water. "We are now likely to be in a world without SOPA [Stop Online Piracy Act] and without ACTA," Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes said in a speech to bloggers and Web entrepreneurs in Berlin. ACTA is an international anti-piracy agreement that was signed by the European Union, the U.S. and nine other countries in January. It will enter into force after ratification by six of the signatory states, but so far none have done so. In the E.U., the deal must be approved by the European Parliament before it can become law.
benton.org/node/122407 | IDG News Service
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