April 2013

Edward de Grazia, Lawyer Who Fought Censorship of Books, Is Dead at 86

Edward de Grazia, a lawyer and teacher who in the 1950s and ’60s broadened the scope of what Americans would be allowed to read by helping to defeat government bans on sexually explicit books, died on April 11 in Potomac (MD). He was 86. A fierce civil libertarian who taught for 30 years at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University in New York, Mr. de Grazia defined his life’s work as defending “morally defiant artists” against “reactionary politicians and judges.”

Conservatives want humble FCC chief

A coalition of conservative groups is urging President Barack Obama to pick a new Federal Communications Commission chairman who will take a light touch with new regulations.

"We need regulators who can resist the frequent urge to 'do something' about problems that are rapidly mooted by technological change anyway. Often, government’s best response is to do nothing," the conservative groups wrote in the letter to President Obama and Senate leaders. The letter, which was signed by TechFreedom, Heritage Action, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Americans for Tax Reform and others, counters the pleas from liberal groups for an aggressive regulator to lead the FCC. The conservatives argued that regulators should intervene only to protect consumers from real harms and with "economically sound rules that are flexible enough (and occasionally even encourage) technological progress."

What would the Koch brothers do to the Los Angeles Times?

[Commentary] On May 21, Los Angeles voters will go to the polls to select a new mayor. Who will govern Los Angeles, however, is only the second-most important local question in the city today. The most important, by far, is who will buy the Los Angeles Times.

The Times is one of the eight daily newspapers now owned by the creditors who took control of the Tribune Co. after real estate wheeler-dealer Sam Zell drove it into bankruptcy. Others include the Chicago Tribune, the Baltimore Sun, the Orlando Sentinel and the Hartford Courant. The Tribune board members whom the creditors selected want to unload the papers in favor of more money-making ventures. Fans of newspapers are a jumpy lot these days. And in the past couple of weeks, their apprehension has gone through the roof with word that right-wing billionaires Charles and David Koch are looking to buy all eight papers. The Koch boys, whose oil-and-gas-based fortune places them just behind Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and Larry Ellison as the wealthiest Americans, have been among the chief donors to the tea party wing of the Republican Party. Their political funding vehicle, Americans for Prosperity, ranked with casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson among the largest funders of right-wing causes and candidates in 2012. Their purchase offer won’t be buttressed by a record of involvement in or commitment to journalism on their part. But it will come complete with a commitment to journalism as a branch of right-wing ideology. The bankers’ men on the Tribune board likely view the sale of the papers as a financial transaction, pure and simple. But Times readers (and the Koch brothers themselves) would view a sale to the Kochs as a political transaction first and foremost, turning L.A.’s metropolitan daily into a right-wing mouthpiece whose commitment to empirical journalism would be unproven at best.

A newspaper isn’t just a business; it’s also a civic trust. The money men who have been plunked down on the Tribune board should remember that as they sell off the civic chronicles of some of America’s great cities.

New Campaign Finance Reform Bill Introduced

Sens Ron Wyden (R-OR) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) have introduced a campaign finance reform bill that could take a bite out of media buys by boosting disclosures and thus potentially discouraging buyers. The Follow the Money Act of 2013 would apply the same "I stand by this ad" disclosures to independent expenditures that they do for federal candidate ads as well as take other steps to standardize disclosures. If the bill passes, it would not take effect until the 2015-2016 election cycle.

Democrats' bill would subsidize Internet service

A group of House Democrats introduced legislation that would subsidize broadband Internet service for the poor. The Broadband Adoption Act, authored by Rep. Dorris Matsui (D-CA), would expand the Federal Communications Commission's Lifeline program, which currently pays for landline or cellphone service.

The bill is co-sponsored by House Commerce Committee ranking member Henry Waxman (D-CA), communications subcommittee ranking member Anna Eshoo (D-CA) and five other Democrats. Subscribers would have to choose whether they wanted to use the federal funds to cover landline service, cellphone service or Internet service. In an effort to reform the program, the FCC last year toughened its eligibility standards and created a database to ensure that multiple companies were not receiving subsidies to provide service to the same customer. The FCC claims the reforms saved $200 million last year and are on track to save $400 million this year. The Broadband Adoption Act would require the FCC to expand those efforts. Rep Matsui introduced similar legislation last Congress, but the Commerce Committee never took it up.

Internet tax supporters promise to allow amendments

The sponsors of Internet sales tax legislation promised to allow floor votes on all relevant amendments.

"We want those members who have germane and relevant amendments to come forward," Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) said at a press conference on Capitol Hill. "We want to have an opportunity to debate and vote on it." But he emphasized that because the legislation only affects state tax revenue, he would seek to block any amendments related to federal revenue. Sen Durbin said the sponsors "bent over backwards" to address concerns about small online businesses and said that fewer than 1,000 online retailers would likely be covered by the bill because of the current exemption. The sponsors also rejected the suggestion that states should be able to opt-out of having their retailers collect online sales taxes. Bill co-sponsor Sen Mike Enzi (D-WY) warned that such an amendment would encourage all online retailers to re-locate, at least legally, to states without sales taxes. "It's not a compromise," Sen Enzi said.

Bringing the bill directly to the Senate floor skipped over Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT), whose panel has jurisdiction over tax issues. On April 22, Chairman Baucus offered to hold a hearing and committee vote on the bill in the next Senate work period. But the sponsors said they have no plans to pull their bill now.

The Senate moves to close the Internet sales tax loophole

[Commentary] If you ever used eBay, you probably received a scary e-mail this week. The Senate is threatening small businesses, it warned. Complain to your legislators, it pleaded. Actually, it isn’t, and you shouldn’t.

Senators appear ready to deflect the pressure. They advanced a bill that would allow states to collect sales tax from out-of-state online vendors. This will level the playing field for stores that have a physical presence, which are already charging tax on all local purchases. That is fair for retailers, good for state budgets and even beneficial for consumers who would rather shop in person. The Senate should follow through and pass the bill,

FirstNet Names GM

FirstNet, which is overseeing the creation of an interoperable broadband emergency network for first responders, has named Bill D'Agostino Jr. as general manager of the herculean project. D'Agostino was most recently executive director for Verizon Wireless in Southern California. “[D]eploying this nationwide network will require an unprecedented level of public-private partnership, collaboration and shared commitment that leverages existing infrastructure for the well-being of all Americans. I look forward to working with you all, and taking on this historical task,” said D'Agostino.

The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) Board also adopted a resolution authorizing FirstNet Board member Sue Swenson to begin negotiations with the state of Texas to enter into a spectrum lease agreement for its public safety broadband project. The state of Texas has used grant funds administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop a project to install next-generation public safety broadband networks in Harris County. This project has been using the spectrum licensed to FirstNet under a Special Temporary Authorization granted by the Federal Communications Commission. Under the process approved by the FirstNet Board, Swenson will enter into a 90-day period for negotiations to seek an agreement with the state of Texas. If the negotiation concludes successfully within that 90-day window, and the Board approves the agreement, FirstNet then would execute a spectrum lease with the grantee.

Groups Want FCC Commissioners Focused on Boosting Minority Ownership

Fifty organizations, most representing minority constituencies, have asked the White House to nominate two new Federal Communications Commission commissioners - including a replacement chairman - who will make minority and female participation in media a priority. They did not suggest any candidate by name.

In a letter to President Barack Obama, the Minority Media & Telecommunications Council, the NAACP, the Benton Foundation and a veritable host of others put in a plug for a laundry list of proposals, some pending for more than a decade. "In the next three years, FCC will be called upon to modernize our telephone systems, rationalize our spectrum policy, and achieve your administration's goals of universal broadband access, adoption and informed use," they wrote. "As part of the unprecedented transformation of our economy from the industrial to the digital age, it is imperative that the FCC has leaders firmly committed to delivering first class digital citizenship to all Americans, including historically marginalized populations."

The Check Is in the Mail, From Apple

Over the next few days, some customers who purchased an iPhone 4 in 2010 will receive a check for $15 in the mail. The checks are part of a class action settled by Apple last year after mobile customers complained about call reception on the iPhone 4. The problem turned out to be with the phone’s antenna reception, and quickly became an Internet obsession in 2010. At the time, Steven P. Jobs, Apple’s chief executive, famously told one customer: “Just avoid holding it that way.” Before long, the problem was labeled The Death Grip and Antennagate. Apple eventually admitted a problem with the phone’s hardware, and an Apple hardware executive left the company. Jobs apologized publicly, one of the few times he did so at Apple. “We are human and we make mistakes sometimes,” he said. Apple last year agreed to a settlement of $53 million.

Benton

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