As expected, President Bush has renominated Democratic FCC Commissioner
Jonathan Adelstein to the remainder of a five-year term expiring June 30,
2008. The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on confirmations on
Thursday (see http://commerce.senate.gov/hearings/witnesslist.cfm?id=1342).
Communications Daily reports that Commissioner Adelstein could be confirmed
by the Senate by Thursday evening.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA480592.html?display=Breaking+...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
See also --
LA Times:
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-fcc17nov17,1,1431736....
MEDIA
Resurrect Local Radio
Minorities Seek DTV-Vote Delay
ABC Apologizes for Risqu Spot Before 'MNF' Game
U.K. Panel Urges Curbs on TV Spots For 'Junk Food'
Right-Wing Wins Take Wind Out of Talk-Show Hosts
TiVo Will No Longer Skip Past Advertisers
Network Television News Chiefs Hold Forum
Exiting Hollings Cites Media Impact
TELECOM
Can You Tax Me Now?
SBC Seeks to Levy Higher Fees On Internet Phone Companies
QUICKLY
$10 Million Clear Channel Lawsuit Delayed
Notes from CPB Board Meeting
Bush II: Paige Out, NCLB to High School
Senate May Ram Copyright Bill
CDT Comments on Peer-to-Peer Challenges in FTC Proceeding
MEDIA
RESURRECT LOCAL RADIO
[Commentary] Since the 1996 deregulation law unleashed an unparalleled wave
of monopolization, the radio service many of us grew up with has vanished.
Local newscasts are a memory. Homegrown musicians might as well play on the
sidewalk for quarters. Emergency authorities sometimes can't get bulletins
aired in small towns, whose stations are mere relays for robotic
music-feeds from half a continent away. A potential savior is low power
radio (LPFM), tiny, nonprofit radio stations with limited (~3.5 miles)
reach and low start-up costs (~$6,000). LPFM has enormous potential: To
beam to underserved localities, to provide a forum for voices that existing
broadcasters ignore, to rededicate a sliver of the spectrum to community
service, to validate local realities and plans, to remind us all that the
cornerstone of U.S. broadcasting has for 75 years been something called
localism, the geographic counterpart to the federalism that is praised as
rapturously as it is ignored. LPFM could become a reality for many more
communities across the country, but Congress needs to act to make it happen.
[SOURCE: Knight Ridder Newspapers, AUTHOR: Edward Wasserman, Washington and
Lee University]
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/news/editorial/10194642.htm
MINORITIES SEEK DTV-VOTE DELAY
The Minority Media Telecommunications Council, in a recent letter to the
FCC, is asking the Commission to delay voting on a plan to speed the switch
to all-digital television broadcasting until Congress provides subsidies
for digital-TV-compatible equipment for low-income Americans. The FCC is
expected to recommend that Congress subsidize the $1 billion-plus cost of
providing digital-to-analog converters needed to keep old analog sets
working, but White House staff is on the record opposing the idea. "The
exclusion of the least fortunate Americans from the community of television
viewers would even further deepen America's seemingly intractable social
class divisions," said MMTC. "It should matter to all of us whether
low-income families receive accurate and timely information about jobs,
health care, school closings and homeland security." (Agreed, but who gets
valuable information like that watching TV?.)
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA480549.html?display=Breaking+...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
ABC APOLOGIZES FOR RISQU SPOT BEFORE 'MNF' GAME
The FCC has received complaints about the intro to this week's Monday Night
Football telecast which included a woman seducing a player wear only a
towel and then -- um -- dis-toweling. The NFL is mad and the network, ABC,
is apologizing.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR:Rudy Martzke]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20041117/1a_bottomstrip17_dom....
In a related story (not sure how exactly), the LA Times reports that
passage of new broadcast indecency legislation is unlikely during the lame
duck session of Congress. Sen Sam Brownback (R-KS) is expected to
reintroduce the bill in January
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-rup17.7nov17,1,383471...
UK PANEL URGES CURBS ON TV SPOTS FOR 'JUNK FOOD'
The U.K. Department of Health released a report yesterday that calls for
advertisers to limit children's and adults' exposure to food high in sugar,
salt and fat by reducing advertising after 6 p.m., a time when many
children watch television. If marketers don't voluntarily devise a plan to
limit the commercials with U.K. advertising regulatory agency the Office of
Communication, the government could impose a limit, said yesterday's
report. The U.K. government often commissions such "white papers" before
enacting legislation. The limit would affect sodas, French fries, candy and
other foods the government paper calls "junk food." Efforts to curtail
fatty-food advertising in the U.S., which also is fighting rising obesity
rates, haven't been successful. In the U.S. the Federal Trade Commission
tried banning junk-food advertising during the 1970s. It was overruled by
Congress, citing free-speech rights. Currently, a California group of
parents, the Allergy and Food Association, is lobbying for all advertising
to be banned from children's programming, schools and sports sponsorships.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Robert Guy Matthews
robertguy.matthews( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110061072914475385,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
RIGHT-WING WINS TAKES WIND OUT OF TALK-SHOW HOSTS
The President won reelection by 3.5 million votes, Republican majorities
were increased in Congress, "moral values" are suddenly in vogue -- what's
left for the Right to complain about on talk radio? Luckily, they can
always eat their own as Sen Arlen Specter is finding out. "They'll be smart
to turn on themselves and talk about which conservatives are the 'true'
conservatives," says Michael Harrison, publisher of Talkers, a trade
magazine about the talk-show business. "If they keep beating up liberals,
it will ring hollow over time. People realize this isn't 1993 speaking,
it's almost 2005."
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Paul Farhi]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A55425-2004Nov16.html
(requires registration)
TIVO WILL NO LONGER SKIP PAST ADVERTISERS
By March, TiVo viewers will see "billboards," or small logos, popping up
over TV commercials as they fast-forward through them, offering contest
entries, giveaways or links to other ads. If a viewer "opts in" to the ad,
their contact information will be downloaded to that advertiser --
exclusively and by permission only -- so even more direct marketing can
take place. By late 2005, TiVo expects to roll out "couch commerce," a
system that enables viewers to purchase products and participate in surveys
using their remote controls. Perhaps even more significant is TiVo's new
role in market research. As viewers watch, TiVo records their collective
habits -- second by second -- and sells that information to advertisers and
networks.
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR:Gina Piccalo]
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-et-tivo17nov17,1,60009...
(requires registration)
NETWORK TELEVISION NEWS CHIEFS HOLD FORUM
David Westin of ABC News, Neal Shapiro of NBC News and Andrew Heyward of
CBS News met at a forum to discuss changes to broadcast network television
news. Technology, they acknowledge, is raising people's expectations that
news will be delivered to them when/where they want it, instead of waiting
to watch nightly network TV news programs. The three said that while they
hoped to resist a push into opinionated, "edgy" news that has been the
hallmark of Fox News and other cable outlets, they realized that Fox's
success reminded them that networks needed to adapt to the new media
marketplace. All three network news chiefs also defended their decision to
run just an hour of both political parties' national conventions live each
night, saying the conventions generated little if any real news.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Beth Fouhy, Associated Press]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53374-2004Nov16.html
(requires registration)
EXISTING HOLLINGS CITES MEDIA IMPACT
After 38 years in office, there are at least 38 reasons to remember Sen
Ernest "Fritz" Hollings (D-SC) -- and his staff is providing the list. So,
from the home office in Charleston... #22: Reined in the cable TV
monopolies, as the driving force in the early 1990s for the Cable and
Consumer Protections Act. #23: Authored the 1990 Children's TV Act,
requiring stations to carry educational programming for children and
limiting the amount of commercials aired during children's programming. #37
Fighting the good fight for bills that didn't make it. They included
"legislation to protect children from violence on television; and a
constitutional amendment permitting limits on campaign expenditures." If
you poke around the Senator's website you'll find these other
accomplishments: spearheaded bipartisan efforts to reverse the FCC's recent
decision to relax broadcast ownership rules; co-authored 1996
Telecommunications Act, which deregulated the telecom industry, ended the
Bell monopolies, and began the growth of independent telecommunications
companies; served as either the Chairman or Ranking Member of the Commerce,
Science and Transportation Committee since 1981, and has been on the
Committee since 1967; authored legislation in 2000 and 2002 to strengthen
online privacy and improve individual's control over their personal data;
authored legislation, first in 1993 and then reintroduced it 7 times over
the following 10 years, to protect children from excessively violent TV
programming; authored Constitutional Amendment to grant Congress and State
Legislatures authority to set campaign expenditure limits and reduce the
influence of money in politics; and co-authored the legislation in 2002
that created the FTC's "Do Not Call" List.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA480758.html?display=Breaking+...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
http://hollings.senate.gov/~hollings/materials/2003A15C53.html
TELECOM
CAN YOU TAX ME NOW?
As much as Congress wants to wrap up the post-election session, battles
over the Universal Service Fund could break out this week because of what
Precursor Group analyst Scott Cleland called a "self-inflicted wound" by
the Bush administration. Congressional Republicans have long delighted in
calling the fund and its E-rate portion the "Gore Tax" because of the
former vice president's support. If they don't act quickly, however, they
could be the ones responsible for this "tax" ballooning by more than 40%.
It would hit consumers next January -- the same time that regional Bell
companies might raise local phone rates. Last year, in a move to regularize
accounting by quasi-federal entities, OMB said the Universal Service
Administrative Corp. needed to change from business to government
accounting rules by Oct. 1, 2004. Additional concern about high-profile
cases of E-rate fraud prompted the FCC to take a further step, and require
USAC to collect all E-rate money from the fee before doling it out. Sens.
Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) who represent
predominately rural states, have a simple-enough amendment to be attached
to an FY05 appropriations bill that is gathering steam within a strangely
united telecom industry. It would exempt USAC from the Anti-Deficiency Act,
the obscure law that prompted the accounting changes in the first place.
The amendment does nothing to change the way money flows into or out of the
Universal Service Fund. But No one believes the USF can continue in its
current form. Consumers are making more long-distance calls on cellular
phones, and they don't make the same contributions to the fund. On the
distribution side, Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) complains that only 10 states
-- and specifically not Oregon - receive all of the fund's rural telecom
support. His bill changing the distribution formula passed the Senate
Commerce Committee in September. Some Commerce Committee back-benchers
question the need for the fund at all, as do many House Republicans.
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: Drew Clark]
http://nationaljournal.com/about/congressdaily/columns/clark.htm
SBC SEEKS TO LEVY HIGHER FEES ON INTERNET PHONE COMPANIES
SBC plans to file a new tariff with the FCC that potentially increases the
fees paid by Internet service providers for calls completed on the
company's local-phone network. While Internet calls largely avoid the
traditional public-telephone network, they do connect to it when the
recipient of the call isn't an Internet phone user. The tariff would go
into effect immediately, the company plans to have it in place as soon as
tomorrow. The move could mark the first time a regional Bell phone giant
has tried to assess higher fees -- traditionally levied on long-distance
phone calls -- on Internet phone technologies. Currently, most providers of
Internet phone service connect to local-phone networks through arrangements
with companies that lease access to the Bell networks. Because these calls
travel over the Internet until they must connect locally to a customer
using a traditional phone, the Internet phone service companies have been
paying fees associated with local calls, not long-distance calls. These
fees for local connections are substantially lower, and SBC plans to
designate its tariff somewhere between the two amounts. With just one
day's notice, the FCC will have a limited ability to suspend the tariff
from going into effect, though the agency could open an investigation afterward
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Anne Marie Squeo
annemarie.squeo( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110065122384576170,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
QUICKLY
$10 MILLION CLEAR CHANNEL LAWSUIT DELAYED
According to a report in the San Antonio Express-News, a $10 million
antitrust lawsuit against Clear Channel Communications, which was set to go
to trial Monday in Chicago, has been postponed until next year. The
lawsuit, filed in 2002 by JamSports and Entertainment of Chicago, accuses
Clear Channel Entertainment of using monopolistic practices to win a
lucrative motorcycle racing contract. JamSports sued Paradama Productions,
which does business as AMA Pro Racing, for allegedly breaching a contract
that would have given JamSports the right to produce and promote the
American Motorcycle Association Supercross Series for 2003-09. It sued
Clear Channel for competing unfairly to land the AMA Pro Racing contract.
The case would be the first antitrust lawsuit to go to court against Clear
Channel. Earlier this year, the company settled an antitrust lawsuit
brought by Nobody In Particular Presents, a Denver-based concert promoter.
[SOURCE: Radio Ink]
http://www.radioink.com/HeadlineEntry.asp?hid=125855&pt=todaysnews
NOTES FROM CPB BOARD MEETING
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting Board of Directors is meeting this
week. On Tuesday, it adopted resolutions on the following issues: 1) a
reaffirmation of both public broadcasting's statutory obligation and
longstanding commitment to non-commercial and universally available program
services for children
(http://www.cpb.org/about/corp/board/resolutions/0411_childrensprogrammin...),
2) an updated code of ethics for CPB employees
(http://www.cpb.org/about/corp/board/resolutions/0411_updatedethics.html)
and 3) funding priorities to facilitate the effective transition of public
television into the digital era
(http://www.cpb.org/about/corp/board/resolutions/0411_digitalguidelines.html).
The priorities are: a) funding of costs of analog replication and b)
requests that have been approved but cannot be met from FY04 funds may
receive priority for funding from any FY 2005 appropriation. If FY 2004
funds remain unsolicited after the above priorities have been exhausted,
and if demands on the Digital Services Fund extend beyond the amount
previously allocated, CPB may allocate remaining funds towards approved
digital services projects.
[SOURCE: Corporation for Public Broadcasting Press Release]
http://www.cpb.org/programs/pr.php?prn=386
BUSH II: PAIGE OUT, NCLB TO HIGH SCHOOL
School leaders are trying to understand what the election results will mean
for educational technology. Although much of the federal focus will remain
on using technology to implement various aspects of NCLB, the Bush
administration also will be looking to implement a few new ed-tech
initiatives announced during the campaign. These initiatives include
creating an eLearning Clearinghouse to promote online courses available to
students and adults from both public and private sources; providing $200
million to establish individualized learning plans for high school
students; and offering greater access to specialized teachers and Advanced
Placement courses through distance learning.
[SOURCE: eSchool News]
http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5382
SENATE MAY RAM COPYRIGHT BILL
The Consumer Electronics Association, the Computer and Communications
Industry Association, the American Conservative Union and public-interest
advocacy group Public Knowledge and gearing up for a fight in Congress to
prevent passage of legislation they say could overhaul of copyright law,
radically shifting it in favor of Hollywood and record companies. During
the lame duck session of Congress which began yesterday, the Senate might
vote on the Intellectual Property Protection Act, a comprehensive bill that
opponents charge could make many users of peer-to-peer networks,
digital-music players and other products criminally liable for copyright
infringement. The bill would also undo centuries of "fair use" -- the
principle that gives Americans the right to use small samples of the works
of others without having to ask permission or pay.
[SOURCE: Wired News, AUTHOR: Michael Grebb]
http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,65704,00.html?tw=rss.TOP
See statement by Public Knowledge at:
http://www.publicknowledge.org/pressroom/releases/pr111204
CDT COMMENTS ON PEER-TO-PEER CHALLENGES IN FTC PROCEEDING
The Center for Democracy and Technology filed comments for the Federal
Trade Commission's upcoming inquiry into the policy issues surrounding
popular peer-to-peer file-sharing networks. CDT's comments outlined the
challenge in preserving valuable Internet services made possible by
peer-to-peer technologies while addressing the serious privacy, spyware,
and copyright infringement problems raised by some file-sharing networks.
[SOURCE: Center for Democracy and Technology]
(http://www.cdt.org)
Federal Trade Commission Workshop on Peer-to-Peer File-Sharing:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/workshops/filesharing/
CDT Comments to the Federal Trade Commission:
http://www.cdt.org/copyright/20041115cdt.pdf
CDT's Copyright Page:
http://www.cdt.org/copyright
--------------------------------------------------------------
Communications-related Headlines is a free online news summary service
provided by the Benton Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday through
Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments,
policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are
factually accurate, their often informal tone does not always represent the
tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang
(headlines( at )benton.org) -- we welcome your comments.
--------------------------------------------------------------