November 2015

BROADBAND/INTERNET

7 COLORADO COMMUNITIES JUST SECURED THE RIGHT TO BUILD THEIR OWN BROADBAND
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Nancy Scola]
Voters in seven cities and counties in Colorado voted to free their local governments to offer Internet service. The votes marked a defeat for big, traditional Internet service providers such as Comcast that have successfully maneuvered to inject limits on municipal broadband into state regulations over the last decade. Now cities are figuring out ways to push back, including wiggling out from under laws the industry helped put in place. Nearly two dozen states have laws limiting the ability of local governments or their partners to offer their own broadband services, often passed with the encouragement of big commercial broadband providers who complain about unfair competition. But Colorado's version of the law is unique in that it offers an escape hatch. The 2005 state law allows municipalities to provide high-speed broadband Internet if "an election shall be called" and a majority of voters signs off on the idea. And that's what these Colorado municipalities did Nov 3. In Boulder (CO), locals voted on whether the city should be "authorized to provide high-speed Internet services (advanced services), telecommunications services, and/or cable television services to residents, businesses, schools, libraries, nonprofit entities and other users of such services." As of late on the night of Nov 3, the city of 100,000 people, which already owns miles of unused fiber, had approved the measure with 84 percent of the vote.
benton.org/headlines/7-colorado-communities-just-secured-right-build-their-own-broadband | Washington Post
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FREE PRESS TO FCC: COMCAST MUST ANSWER FOR UNNECESSARY DATA CAPS
[SOURCE: Free Press, AUTHOR: Press release]
Cable Internet provider Comcast continues to dramatically expand its practice of imposing broadband-usage caps and overage fees on Comcast users in cities across the nation. The Federal Communications Commission has yet to investigate whether the use of data caps unfairly and unreasonably penalizes customers -- though advocacy groups like Free Press and Public Knowledge have called for such investigations for the past four years. Free Press Policy Director Matt Wood made the following statement, “Data caps have a very real impact on Internet users’ wallets and online behavior. These kinds of limits dampen the use of broadband by discouraging use of the applications that drive economic growth and innovation from Internet content creators. Access providers including Comcast try to justify caps by suggesting that they mitigate broadband-traffic congestion. Yet there’s absolutely no real-world evidence of congestion on wired networks across the board. Internet access providers that also provide multichannel video services love using these arbitrary caps and limits. Monopoly-minded providers like Comcast have a built-in incentive to protect their legacy businesses. And they’ve captured market share to such an outrageous extent that they can harm their customers at will. It’s long past time for lawmakers and public interest regulators to get answers about Comcast’s justification for its data caps, and the impact these caps have on the affordability and openness of high-speed networks.”
benton.org/headlines/free-press-fcc-comcast-must-answer-unnecessary-data-caps | Free Press
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CHAIRMAN THUNE: NETWORK NEUTRALITY BUDGET RIDERS UNLIKELY
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Mario Trujillo]
A network neutrality policy rider to limit the new regulations is unlikely to make it into a omnibus spending bill to fund the government, according to Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune (R-SD). When asked if the likelihood was slim, Chairman Thune said, "I would think so, just because it would be so controversial." Chairman Thune said, "We have a lot of our members that would love to do that. I would certainly number myself among those. But, you know, there will be I think in terms of the big bill, some policy riders." Chairman Thune's comments come after House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) suggested a number of riders could make it into the funding bill that must pass by Dec 11. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) also said policy riders will be included. "I can think of a handful of them that have a higher likelihood of actually emerging from and surviving the process that our members care deeply about as well that would be ahead of that," Chairman Thune said of any net neutrality provisions. "But there is a lot of emotion, a lot of interest, a lot of intensity about that issue among our members."
benton.org/headlines/chairman-thune-network-neutrality-budget-riders-unlikely | Hill, The
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ELECTIONS AND MEDIA

DONALD TRUMP IS GOING ON SNL. WILL HIS RIVALS DEMAND 'EQUAL TIME'?
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Brain Fung]
When Donald Trump takes the stage on "Saturday Night Live" Nov 7, federal regulators may be watching closely, too. A little-known TV rule at the Federal Communications Commission could be used to guarantee "equal time" on TV for Trump's rivals in the Republican presidential primary, due to a clause that aims to ensure "equal opportunities" for qualified candidates seeking the same office. Although candidates can't take advantage of the equal time regulation when their competitors are mentioned on news segments or appear in news interviews, they can use it when it comes to other broadcast shows, which SNL happens to be. Politicians haven't made a habit of invoking the rule, but the issue has come up in this campaign season. After Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton appeared on SNL last month, NBC -- which broadcasts the show -- sent a memo to its network affiliates warning them that they could be asked to provide equal time.
benton.org/headlines/donald-trump-going-snl-will-his-rivals-demand-equal-time | Washington Post | Benton Foundation
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EQUAL TIME ISN’T NEEDED
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Babette Boliek, Derek Miller]
[Commentary] Presidential hopeful Donald Trump this weekend is poised to do for the Republicans what Hillary Clinton has done for the Democrats: trigger the “equal time” doctrine with an appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” The Radio Act of 1927 created the equal-time doctrine when airtime was a scarce commodity, so important for electoral success that federal regulation was deemed the only way to protect the public interest. Lawmakers’ intention was to foster debate. But in practice the doctrine often has the opposite effect. Now the biggest issue may be technological. Thanks to new content-distribution methods—cable, satellite and the Internet—the once “scarce” resource of broadcast airtime has given way to an endless array of opportunities. Holding a small number of broadcast stations and cable and satellite operators to a century-old standard makes little sense. Given the few situations that now trigger the equal-time doctrine, the explosion in available media outlets, and the government’s strained interpretations of the rule, it is hard to imagine how the doctrine yields more speech than it chills.
[Boliek, a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and Muller are associate professors of law at Pepperdine University]
benton.org/headlines/donald-snl-equal-time-isnt-needed | Wall Street Journal | Andrew Jay Schwartzman
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REPUBLICAN SUPER PACS ARE OUTSPENDING 2016 CANDIDATES ON TV BY 20-TO-1
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Philip Bump]
Analyzing television ad spending data from SMG Delta, NBC's Mark Murray writes that Republican super PACs have spent $20 on television ads for every dollar spent by a Republican presidential candidate's campaign. For the Democrats, the ratio is flipped. Democrats have spent about $19 of their own for every dollar spent by super PACs supporting them. But then, if you think about it, that makes sense. Jeb Bush's super PAC is way outspending his campaign -- just as his super PAC way outraised it. For Clinton, the opposite is true -- just as the opposite is true on ad spending by each party. Republican super PACs have still spent money on TV ads at a much higher ratio than the ratio of how much more they've raised. Part of that, as Murray notes, is that super PACs generally pay higher ad rates than campaigns, due to a law that allows political campaigns to pay lower rates.
benton.org/headlines/republican-super-pacs-are-outspending-2016-candidates-tv-20-1 | Washington Post
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WHY JON STEWART'S RETURN TO THE AIRWAVES MATTERS TO THE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL RACE
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Callum Borchers]
[Commentary] Looks like we’ve got a late entry in the presidential race after all. Comedian Jon Stewart isn’t, technically, running for office. But the former “Daily Show” host is poised to resume his quadrennial campaign to be satirizer-in-chief, now that he’s inked a deal with HBO. Stewart’s reemergence (he’s been working on an animal rescue farm that he started with his wife, Tracey, since leaving Comedy Central in August) could be significant. But according to smart people who study this sort of thing, Stewart wields measurable influence in presidential elections, though the beneficiaries might not be as obvious as you think. A 2008 Pew Research Center study found that “Stewart’s humor targeted Republicans more than three times as often as Democrats” in a four-month sample, quantifying what had long seemed obvious to many viewers. A separate study of Stewart’s wisecracks during the 2004 party conventions, conducted by political scientists at East Carolina University, concluded that “the ridicule of Republicans focused much more on policy and character flaws. Humor pointed toward Democrats, on the other hand, tended to focus more on innocuous physical attributes.” In other words, Stewart’s jokes about Republicans are not only more voluminous but also more pointed. None of this would matter if Stewart’s comedy had no impact on viewers’ opinions. But it does.
benton.org/headlines/why-jon-stewarts-return-airwaves-matters-2016-presidential-race | Washington Post
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WHY AREN'T PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES TALKING ABOUT CYBERSECURITY?
[SOURCE: NBC, AUTHOR: Keith Wagstaff]
Cybersecurity isn't the sexiest topic on the campaign trail right now. But controversial legislation, massive security breaches, and thorny relations with China could eventually push the issue into the media spotlight. For now, most of the presidential hopefuls are staying mum on the issue, even as hackers keep making headlines. "It's a complex topic," said Steve Morgan, founder and CEO of Cybersecurity Ventures. "It's like quicksand: Once they step into it, they're going to sink. They just aren't equipped to talk about it." None of the websites for the four potential candidates leading the polls -- Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders for the Democrats, Donald Trump and Ben Carson for the Republicans -- lists their positions on cybersecurity issues. For voters who care about cybersecurity, it can be tough to figure out where the candidates stand. Some of them, however, have left clues in comments to the media and their voting records.
benton.org/headlines/why-arent-presidential-candidates-talking-about-cybersecurity | NBC
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KIDS AND MEDIA

ACTIVELY HELPING KIDS LEARN TO NAVIGATE THE DIGITAL WORLD IS BETTER THAN SHIELDING THEM FROM IT
[SOURCE: The Atlantic, AUTHOR: Alexandra Samuel]
[Commentary] Tune into the conversation about kids and screen time, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that before the invention of the iPhone, parents spent every waking moment engaging their kids in deep conversation, undertaking creatively expressive arts-and-crafts projects, or growing their own vegetables in the backyard garden. There’s a tendency to portray time spent away from screens as idyllic, and time spent in front of them as something to panic about. But research shows that vilifying the devices’ place in family life may be misguided. I’ve spent the past two years conducting a series of surveys on how families manage technology, gathering data from more than 10,000 North American parents. And it turns out that the most successful strategy, far from exiling technology, actually embraces it. We can’t prepare our kids for the world they will inhabit as adults by dragging them back to the world we lived in as kids. It’s not our job as parents to put away the phones. It’s our job to take out the phones, and teach our kids how to use them.
[Alexandra Samuel is the director of the Social + Interactive Media Centre at Emily Carr University in Vancouver, Canada]
benton.org/headlines/actively-helping-kids-learn-navigate-digital-world-better-shielding-them-it | Atlantic, The
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DIVERSITY

SMALL CROWD FOR PROTEST
[SOURCE: The Wrap, AUTHOR: Linda Ge]
The rally to protest Donald Trump hosting “Saturday Night Live” was mostly a bust. The crowd outside Rockefeller Center in New York is estimated to have been between 40 and more than 100 people. The NHMC reported the crowd to be more than 100 strong. In a statement to reporters, NHMC president and CEO Alex Nogales said, “‘Saturday Night Live’ is not a news entity, it is a pop culture giant, and should not be in the business of giving acceptance and legitimacy to the views of a racist extremist by having him host a program. To do so is insensitive and will contribute to the wave of bigotry he is creating.”
benton.org/headlines/donald-trump-snl-protest-bust-draws-tiny-crowd | Wrap, The
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DEFINING DIVERSITY
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Paul Sullivan]
No one seems to disagree that the long-term health of a company depends on having a work force that reflects the marketplace in which companies do business. But solving the challenge of hiring a diverse work force is not as easy as it might seem. Foremost is the question of how diversity is defined. Is a work force diverse if many ethnicities are represented but everyone is male and under 35? Or if it’s a mix of men and women but a majority hold degrees from Stanford or Harvard? What are companies to do if certain fields, as is often said about engineering, are predominantly male? If it sounds confusing, it is. Diversity often varies by industry. And although the composition of Silicon Valley’s work force has come under scrutiny lately, it is at least trying to change its image.
benton.org/headlines/defining-diversity-silicon-valley-and-wall-street | New York Times
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2016 PREDICTIONS

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION GOING MAINSTREAM IN 2016, IDC PREDICTS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Steve Lohr]
It is the time of year when the big technology research shops gaze into the near future to identify trends that will have the most impact on corporate America and the tech industry over the next few years. International Data Corporation's (IDC’s) outlook is being published on Nov 4. It is a 20-page document, chock-full of details, and its authors are not afraid of making numerical guesses about the future. By 2020, for example, IDC says that more than 30 percent of today’s tech suppliers will “not exist as we know them today,” having been acquired or failed. Going beyond the detail in the IDC forecast, and reading reports published in Oct by Gartner and Forrester Research, the overall theme is that the pace of digital innovation is accelerating and broadening. The digital technologies that are changing the economics and practices of traditional business -- cloud computing, mobile devices, advanced data analysis and artificial intelligence -- are better, cheaper and more widely available. “Mainstream companies in every industry are realizing they’ll be disrupted if they don’t get moving now,” said Frank Gens, IDC’s chief analyst and the report’s principal author. Many of these companies, according to IDC, are not moving fast enough. It predicts that a third of the top 20 companies in every industry will be “disrupted” over the next three years, meaning their revenue, profits and market position will deteriorate -- not that they will go out of business.
benton.org/headlines/digital-transformation-going-mainstream-2016-idc-predicts | New York Times
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GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS

PENTAGON PAID FOR PATRIOTIC EVENTS
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Emmarie Huetteman]
Over the past four years, the Army National Guard and other branches have signed agreements worth $6.8 million with teams from the National Football League, Major League Baseball and other sports leagues that included “paid-for patriotism,” said Sens Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and John McCain (R-AZ). It is unclear exactly how much of that marketing money paid for ceremonies with names like “Salute to Service” and other recognition of the armed forces. And the report conceded that $6.8 million was just a sliver of the $53 million the military spent on advertising with sports teams during that time. But standing beside a poster of an old-time football player in a “McCain Flake” jersey sacking Uncle Sam, the senators said that neither the military nor the teams came out looking good — especially when fans are led to believe that the presentations are purely motivated by patriotism, as many are.
benton.org/headlines/senate-report-says-pentagon-paid-sports-leagues-patriotic-events | New York Times
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STORIES FROM ABROAD

DETAILS OF UK WEBSITE VISITS 'TO BE STORED FOR YEAR'
[SOURCE: BBC, AUTHOR: ]
The Internet activity of everyone in Britain will have to be stored for a year by service providers, under new surveillance law plans. Police and intelligence officers will be able to see the names of sites people have visited without a warrant, Home Secretary Theresa May said. But there would be new safeguards over MI5, MI6 and the police spying on the full content of people's web use. May told members of Parliament the proposed powers were needed to fight crime and terror. The wide-ranging draft Investigatory Powers Bill also contains proposals covering how the state can hack devices and run operations to sweep up large amounts of data as it flows through the Internet, enshrining in law the previously covert activities of GCHQ, as uncovered by whistleblower Edward Snowden. May told members of Parliament the draft bill was a "significant departure" from previous plans, dubbed the "snooper's charter" by critics, which were blocked by the Liberal Democrats, and will "provide some of the strongest protections and safeguards anywhere in the democratic world and an approach that sets new standards for openness, transparency and oversight".
benton.org/headlines/details-uk-website-visits-be-stored-year | BBC
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November 2015

Charter Pushes FCC To Clear Merger With Time Warner

Hillary Clinton is Actually Winning the TV War

Rise Broadband Aims for 50 Mbps Broadband with LTE Fixed Wireless

Wade Henderson to step down as national civil rights leader

US Detects Flurry of Iranian Hacking

To save pay TV, give us more Video On Demand

Doing More with Data

November 5, 2015 (Trump on SNL; Pentagon Paid Sports Leagues for Patriotic Events)

Senate Report Says Pentagon Paid Sports Leagues for Patriotic Events

NFL Says Teams Will Have to Return Improper Military Payments