Next week's events include CPB Board of Directors meeting, a hearing on=20
Universal Service, a conference on Voting Issues and Campaign Fiance=20
Reform, and a meeting of the FCC's Consumer Advisory Committee. For these=20
and other upcoming media policy events, see=
http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
INDECENCY
'Saving Private Ryan': A New Casualty of the Indecency War
FCC Petition Would Muzzle Satellite Stern
MEDIA
How Dan Rather And Media's Kings Lost Their Crowns
The World According To Karmazin
Iraq Tells Media to Toe the Line
BROADBAND/TELECOM
Report: Powell OK with DSL/Phone Bundle
Martin: Cable Model Worth Emulating
Cable Lobby Tells Supreme Court: Forget About
the Broadband Needs of Cities
Proposed FCC Rules Would Cost Businesses $130 Billion
Iowa Communities Team to Install Own High-Speed Lines
After Long Peace, Wireless Operator Stirs Up Industry
QUICKLY
Digital Services Fund for Public Television
Coordination of Spectrum Policy
Tech-Savvy Schools Reclaim Millions
U.S. to Appeal WTO Decision On Web Gambling
Industry and Public Interest Groups Oppose Wiretap Design
Mandates for the Internet
Privacy Threats from a Banana Republic
Latest Conspiracy Theory -- Kerry Won -- Hits the Ether
INDECENCY
'SAVING PRIVATE RYAN': A NEW CASUALTY OF THE INDECENCY WAR
ABC stations owned by Cox Television, Citadel Communications, Belo Corp.,=20
Hearst-Argyle and Scripps Howard Broadcasting and others declined to air=20
the "Saving Private Ryan" saying they fear the FCC could fine them for=20
airing the film's scenes of extreme violence and intense adult language.=20
Among those preempting the World War II movie are stations in Dallas (the=20
country's seventh largest television market), Atlanta (No. 9), Tampa (No.=20
13), Phoenix (No. 15) and Orlando (No. 20). Ironically, most of them=20
already aired "Saving Private Ryan" when ABC ran it, unedited, to=20
commemorate Veterans Day in 2001 and 2002. According to Cox's Atlanta=20
station general manager, Greg Stone, the company asked ABC for permission=20
to edit the film or air it outside prime time but was turned down.=20
According to news reports, ABC's broadcast rights preclude any editing.
[SOURCE: Washington Post 11/11, AUTHOR: Lisa de Moraes]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41464-2004Nov10.html
(requires registration)
The decision by station owners not to air the Oscar-winning film is raising=
=20
the issue of the "chilling effect" of recent FCC indecency enforcement.=20
There's a good deal of coverage/reaction to the issue. See these links:
* Pre-Empting Private Ryan
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton & Allison Romano ]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA479649?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* McCain Defends Private Ryan
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA479747?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* ABC Denies Permission to Redeploy Ryan
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA479931.html?display=3DBreakin...
ws&referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* Some Stations Shelved =91Private Ryan' Amid FCC Fears
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR:Ann Oldenburg]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20041112/1a_bottomstrip12.art.htm
FCC PETITION WOULD MUZZLE SATELLITE STERN
Howard Stern can run to satellite radio, but can he hide there from=20
indecency enforcement? California's Mount Wilson Broadcasters, owner of one=
=20
FM and two AMs, has filed a petition for rulemaking with the FCC arguing=20
that since indecency regulation applies to expression "by means of radio=20
communications," and satellite radio is radio communications, it should be=
=20
subject to the same content restrictions. The Supreme Court has already=20
ruled in the Playboy case that cable television, and arguably subscription=
=20
services in general, are not subject to indecency regulations, though=20
legislators and regulators, including FCC Chairman Michael Powell, have=20
suggested it may be time to rethink that distinction given the fact that=20
most people get their TV via cable.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA479745?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
At the end of June, Infinity and Howard Stern filed a $10 million=20
breach-of-contract suit against Clear Channel for dropping Mr. Stern's=20
radio show earlier in the year. In July, Clear Channel countersued for $3=20
million, alleging Mr. Stern broke his contract with the company by not=20
conforming to federal decency standards. Now that he's announced he will=20
jump to satellite radio, Infinity has withdrawn its financial support from=
=20
Mr. Stern's legal fight against Clear Channel, prompting Stern to seek an=20
early exit from his current contract. Stern brings in some $80 million=20
annually in advertising revenue and $50 million annually in cash flow to=20
Infinity.
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110022565839272316,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_marketplace
MEDIA
HOW DAN RATHER AND MEDIA'S KINGS LOST THEIR CROWNS
[Commentary] The biggest losers in the 2004 election just might be Big=20
Media. The public is beginning to contest the decades-old authority of the=
=20
mainstream media. It is too bad this abdication has occurred just as=20
political opinions have become overheated by the kind of electronic=20
technology deployed in the 2004 election. We really could use some neutral=
=20
ground, a space one could enter without having to suspect that "what we=20
know" about X or Y was being manipulated. The problem with being spun day=20
after day by newspapers or newscasts is that it gets tiresome, no matter=20
your politics. You end up having to Google every subject in the news=20
(Guantanamo, gay marriage statutes, Tora Bora, the Patriot Act) to find out=
=20
what's been left out or buried at the bottom. The real winners here are the=
=20
politicians. Pig heaven for them. If much of the public (a margin large=20
enough to decide elections) believes it no longer has access to a settled=20
information baseline, an agreed-upon set of facts, then it's so much easier=
=20
for the pols, using this new arsenal of high-tech info firepower, to=20
manipulate a doubtful public and push it around with propaganda (they can=20
demographically target ads to the TV screens in health clubs). Henninger=20
offers this low-tech solution: Why don't we finally institute an American=20
version of the parliamentary question period common around the U.K.? If the=
=20
likes of Messrs. Rumsfeld, Ashcroft, Powell, Snow, Cheney and Bush had to=20
appear before the House in this tightly regulated question-and-answer=20
format, broadcast on C-Span, surely the public over time would acquire a=20
clearer sense of which ideas are competing for their support and vote.=20
Let's get to them, before they get to us.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Dan Henninger henninger( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110022312344272245,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_opinion
(requires subscription)
THE WORLD ACCORDING TO KARMAZIN
Speaking at the National Association of Broadcasters European Radio Show,=20
former Viacom chief Mel Karmazin said the US radio industry needs more=20
ownership concentration, but there's no political support from either=20
Democrats or Republicans. Further radio consolidation would continue to=20
make radio attractive to investors, he said. "If radio is not going to be=20
today a big growing part of the companies that own it, then you will=20
probably see a cycle of companies selling. What excitement can there be in=
=20
owning 84 stations when there is no limit to the number of cable networks=20
you can own," Karmazin said. He suggested that in big urban markets such as=
=20
New York, which he said had some 100 radio stations, five groups should be=
=20
allowed to own up to one fifth of the total number of stations, or 20%. Any=
=20
concern that one of these groups would end up controlling too big a share=20
of the advertising market would be dealt with by the Justice Department, he=
=20
argued.
[SOURCE: Billboard Radio Monitor, AUTHOR: Emmanuel Legrand]
http://www.billboardradiomonitor.com/radiomonitor/news/business/top_news...
icle_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=3D1000717248
IRAQ TELLS MEDIA TO TOE THE LINE
Iraq's Media High Commission released a statement saying all media=20
organizations operating in Iraq should "differentiate between the innocent=
=20
Fallouja residents who are not targeted by military operations and=20
terrorist groups that infiltrated the city and held its people hostage=20
under the pretext of resistance and jihad." It said news organizations=20
should "guide correspondents in Fallouja =85 not to promote unrealistic=20
positions or project nationalist tags on terrorist gangs of criminals and=20
killers." It also asked media to "set aside space in your news coverage to=
=20
make the position of the Iraqi government, which expresses the aspirations=
=20
of most Iraqis, clear. We hope you comply =85 otherwise we regret we will be=
=20
forced to take all the legal measures to guarantee higher national=20
interests," the statement said. The commission, set up by the former U.S.=20
governor of Iraq, was intended to be independent of the government and to=20
encourage investment in the media and deter state meddling after decades of=
=20
strict control under President Saddam Hussein.
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Reuters]
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-media12nov12,1,1...
92.story?coll=3Dla-news-a_section
(requires registration)
BROADBAND/TELECOM
REPORT: POWELL OK WITH DSL/PHONE BUNDLE
FCC Chairman Michael Powell reportedly supports voiding state rules that=20
would require the Baby Bell phone companies to unbundle local-phone and=20
digital-subscriber-line service, according to a Legg Mason Wood Walker=20
report released Wednesday. Verizon Communications and BellSouth won't sell=
=20
DSL service to a consumer unless the consumer also buys local phone=20
service. They also require local-phone customers who want to drop that=20
service to terminate DSL service at the same time. Time Warner, Comcast and=
=20
Bright House Networks have complained to federal and state regulators that=
=20
consumers won't switch to a new phone provider if the consumer has to drop=
=20
both DSL and local-phone service. While some state regulators have called=20
the bundling of DSL and local-phone service an illegal tying arrangement,=20
cable companies have pursued a different regulatory angle, perhaps because=
=20
they don't want to be viewed as favoring the a la carte sale of DSL at the=
=20
same time that they are opposing the a la carte sale of cable networks in=20
Congress and at the FCC. Instead, Comcast and Time Warner told the FCC the=
=20
bundling practice violates federal number-portability rules when the phone=
=20
company refuses to transfer a customer=92s number to a new carrier if the=20
customer won't drop DSL at the same time.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA479579.html?display=3DBreaking+News
(requires subscription)
For more on telecom bundles (from a consumer perspective), see
http://news.com.com/DSL+wars+come+down+to+a+battle+of+the+bundles/2100-1...
3-5445712.html?tag=3Dnefd.lede
MARTIN: CABLE MODEL WORTH EMULATING
Deregulation of expanded-basic-cable rates, combined with allowing cable=20
systems to invest in advanced services free from regulatory constraints, is=
=20
a regulatory model that has served the needs of government, cable operators=
=20
and consumers, FCC Commissioner Kevin Martin said Thursday. =93I think we=20
learn some important lessons from the cable experience,=94 he said. =93While=
we=20
can allow states and local authorities to retain their traditional role as=
=20
regulators of some basic services, at the same time, we need to make sure=20
that new technologies and advanced services are substantially free of state=
=20
and local regulation.=94 Martin noted that the 1992 Cable Act imposed=20
comprehensive pricing and behavioral controls on the cable industry. But=20
sensing that satellite services were ramping up and that cable intended to=
=20
upgrade systems to meet that competition and plunge into the voice and data=
=20
markets, Congress decided to strip away cable regulations.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA479870.html?display=3DBreaking+News
(requires subscription)
CABLE LOBBY TELLS SUPREME COURT: FORGET ABOUT THE BROADBAND NEEDS OF CITIES
[Commentary] The battle over the future of cable broadband is now before=20
the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court will soon decide whether to review=
=20
a key case involving U.S. broadband policy (known as the Brand X=20
decision). Recent filings to the court by municipal governmental groups=20
and the cable lobby reveal important issues at stake for communities in the=
=20
U.S. As the Congress begins the lobbying free-for-all in its reworking of=20
the 1996 Telecommunications Act, the issue of how broadband serves the=20
public interest should be at the core of the debate.
[SOURCE: Center for Digital Democracy]
http://www.democraticmedia.org/news/washingtonwatch/BrandXCities.html
PROPOSED FCC RULES WOULD COST BUSINESSES $130 BILLION
Rules pending at the FCC to eliminate cost-based access to the=20
high-capacity loops that serve business customers would cost American=20
businesses about $130 billion over the next 10 years and deprive the=20
economy of more than 426,000 new jobs, according to a new study released=20
Wednesday by CompTel/ASCENT. In its August 2003 Triennial Review Order, the=
=20
FCC aimed to boost competition by allowing competitive providers to lease=20
DS-1 and DS-3 loops as Unbundled Network Elements (UNEs) at cost-based=20
rates. Previously, these providers had been forced to pay excessively high=
=20
"special access" rates to the incumbent Bell companies to access=20
high-capacity loops. The Bells earn rates of return of well over 40 percent=
=20
on special access rates. Eliminating UNE access - as now proposed - would=20
force competitive providers and their business customers to rely=20
exclusively on special access rates and cost business customers $130=20
billion in higher prices and reduced services over the next 10 years (see=20
table below). Businesses would directly pay about $105 billion in higher=20
rates and would be forced to forego another $25 billion worth of additional=
=20
services because of the increased costs. The extra costs incurred by=20
businesses and loss of competitive options translate into fewer jobs. The=20
Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis estimates that every=20
additional $1 million in telecom activity creates 17.5 new jobs. Based on=20
that calculation, a loss of $130 billion in telecom activity translates=20
into 426,000 jobs that could be created over 10 years by reducing the=20
economic drag of higher phone bills.
The study is available at the 2nd URL below.
[SOURCE: CompTel/ASCENT Press Release]
http://www.comptelascent.org/news/recent-news/111004.html
http://www.comptelascent.org/public-policy/federal-regulatory/documents/...
/hicap_study_nov10_2004.pdf
IOWA COMMUNITIES TEAM TO INSTALL OWN HIGH-SPEED LINES
More than 80 communities across Iowa have banded to create Opportunity=20
Iowa. The goal: to wire the state for advanced voice, data and video=20
services. The communities represent about 25% of the state's homes and=20
businesses, and more are expected to join later. Under the plan,=20
communities would install -- on their own dime -- high-speed fiber lines.=20
Then they would invite outside vendors such as AT&T to use the lines. The=20
lines could be used to provide voice, data and video services to homes and=
=20
businesses. Vendors would pay towns =93access=94 fees to use their fiber=
lines,=20
just as the local Bells charge AT&T and MCI fees for handling their=20
long-distance calls.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR:Leslie Cauley]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20041112/4b_mcleod12.art.htm
AFTER LONG PEACE, WIRELESS OPERATOR STIRS UP INDUSTRY
For years, service operators and phone manufacturers coexisted peacefully,=
=20
bonded by a mutual dependency. Companies such as Vodafone didn't want to=20
miss out on hot new phones and phone makers relied on service providers'=20
huge orders. But as the cellphone market slowed, their goals diverged. Now=
=20
Vodafone wants to control the look and feel of a cellphone rather than=20
leave those choices to phone makers. Its profit growth is likely to come=20
from selling add-on services and the most effective way to market them is=20
to embed Vodafone's software inside customers' phones. At stake is control=
=20
of an everyday device owned by more than a billion people. The winner will=
=20
be in a position to shape the future of the cellphone business and cream=20
off the profits that come from being a premium brand. The losers, by=20
contrast, could be stuck with a low-margin commodity business, one that's=20
subservient to its former partner. That was the fate of the U.S.'s=20
personal-computer makers that allowed Microsoft to elevate its own brand=20
over theirs and dominate the discussion about how PCs should operate.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: David Pringle at=
david.pringle( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110021593345772017,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_page_one
(requires subscription)
QUICKLY
DIGITAL SERVICES FUND FOR PUBLIC TELEVISION
On Wednesday, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced the=20
creation of the $4.7 million Digital Services Fund, which will assist local=
=20
public television stations in creating the first generation prototypes of=20
digital content and services. Among other features, digital technology=20
allows public broadcasters to enhance video and audio quality, to offer=20
multicasting and other programming options, and to create a new array of=20
services to benefit the public. The Digital Services Fund will provide=20
grants for demonstration projects and prototypes, which could range from=20
regional public affairs multicasts to instructional and teacher development=
=20
channels and the delivery of community emergency preparedness content. CPB=
=20
anticipates awarding grants of up to $500,000 on a competitive basis. The=20
Fund will accept proposals through December 3, 2004.
[SOURCE: Corporation for Public Broadcasting Press Release]
http://www.cpb.org/programs/pr.php?prn=3D384
COORDINATION OF SPECTRUM POLICY
FCC Chairman Michael Powell and Assistant Secretary of Commerce for=20
Communications and Information Michael Gallagher met on Wednesday to plan=20
and coordinate the efforts of the FCC and the National Telecommunications=20
and Information Administration (NTIA) on spectrum policy issues. The=20
meeting included senior spectrum policy teams from both organizations. Its=
=20
purpose was to continue the coordinated efforts of the two agencies on=20
spectrum policy. The Communications Act assigns joint jurisdiction for=20
spectrum management to the FCC and the NTIA at the Department of=20
Commerce. The FCC is responsible for non-Federal spectrum uses, e.g.,=20
broadcast, commercial, public safety, and state and local government users,=
=20
and NTIA is responsible for Federal spectrum uses.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-254177A1.doc
TECH-SAVVY SCHOOLS RECLAIM MILLIONS
San Diego is one of dozens of school systems nationwide reportedly=20
benefiting from the use of new technology designed to track, monitor,=20
record, and report the delivery of special-education services.
[SOURCE: eSchool News, AUTHOR: Corey Murray]
http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=3D5378
US TO APPEAL WTO DECISION ON WEB GAMBLING
The Bush Administration announced Wednesday that it will appeal a World=20
Trade Organization ruling that the U.S. has no right to ban cross-border=20
gambling on the Internet. A senior U.S. trade official said the=20
administration "fundamentally rejects" an assertion within the WTO ruling=20
that countries don't have an explicit right to limit services affecting=20
public morals. U.S. trade officials were particularly alarmed over parts of=
=20
the WTO ruling that asserted that member states had to consult with other=20
countries before modifying laws that affect public morals.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal 11/11, AUTHOR: Neil King Jr. neil.king( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110010540698470176,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_marketplace
(requires subscription)
INDUSTRY ND PUBLIC INTEREST GROUPS OPPOSE WIRETAP DESIGN MANDATES FOR THE=20
INTERNET
On November 8, CDT filed detailed comments on behalf of a diverse group of=
=20
companies, trade associations and public interest groups from across the=20
political spectrum opposing the plan of the FCC to extend controversial=20
wiretap design mandates to the Internet. CDT and others argued that=20
broadband access and "Voice over IP" (VoIP) services are not covered by the=
=20
Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (CALEA).
[SOURCE: Center for Democracy and Technology]
http://www.cdt.org/publications/vpp/posts.php?hid=3D7
http://www.cdt.org/publications/pp_10.20.shtml
http://www.cdt.org/digi_tele/20041108indpubint.pdf
http://www.cdt.org/digi_tele/voip.shtml
PRIVACY THREATS FROM A BANANA REPUBLIC
[Commentary] A look at the link between offshore outsourcing, the Patriot=20
Act and privacy concerns.
[SOURCE: Cato Institute, AUTHOR: Jim Harper]
http://www.cato.org/tech/tk/041111-tk.html
LATEST CONSPIRACY THEORY -- KERRY WON -- HITS THE ETHER
A closer look at reports circulating around the Internet suggesting John=20
Kerry might have won the election -- and why top Democrats are not=20
believing these theories.
[SOURCE: Washington Post 11/11, AUTHOR: Manuel Roig-Franzia and Dan Keating]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41106-2004Nov10.html
(requires registration)
Vote Fraud Theories, Spread by Blogs, Are Quickly Buried
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Tom Zeller]
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/12/politics/12theory.html?hp&ex=3D1100322...
en=3Dbef1453564cd6e4e&ei=3D5094&partner=3Dhomepage
(requires registration)
--------------------------------------------------------------
Have a great weekend. See you Monday.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Communications-related Headlines is a free online news summary service=20
provided by the Benton Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday through=20
Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments,=20
policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are=20
factually accurate, their often informal tone does not always represent the=
=20
tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang=20
(headlines( at )benton.org) -- we welcome your comments.
--------------------------------------------------------------