For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
MEDIA & POLITICS
In '04, Local TV Newscasts Were Light on Campaign Coverage, a Study Finds
Beyond 'Fair and Balanced'
A Column With Support At Each End
More Clout, More Problems
CONTENT
Janet=92s Impact Still Felt
Brownback Slates Obscenity Hearing
Flip-Flop on TV Sex
The Vine: Nets, Guilds Eye Indecency Fight
The Rabbit Test (audio file)
DIC Forms FCC-Friendly Panel
Even Paul McCartney Offended Somebody
MUST CARRY/CABLE
'Must=92 Bust
Correct on Must-Carry
New NCTA Pres. Needs to Keep Cable Unified, Sachs Says
TELECOM
Verizon Takeover Of MCI Approved For $6.8 Billion
Telecom: To Buy or To Build?
N.Y. PSC to See If Competition Can Enforce Verizon Retail Service Quality
INTERNET
Despite Opposition, Might the Web Need New Government Jolt?
Bells Ask FCC to Act on Verizon Forbearance Petition
QUICKLY -- A League of Her Own; Safety & Reality TV; New Resource helps=20
Schools write RFPs; Speeding Rollout of Wireless Broadband; States To Help=
=20
FCC's Diversity Committee; Unity: Minorities Should Be 20% Of Newsrooms By=
=20
2008; Low Power Radio (audio file)
MEDIA & POLITICS
IN '04, LOCAL TV NEWSCASTS WERE LIGHT ON CAMPAIGN COVERAGE, A STUDY FINDS
In the month leading up to last year's presidential election, local=20
television stations in big cities devoted eight times as much air time to=20
car crashes and other accidents than to campaigns for the House of=20
Representatives, state senate, city hall and other local offices, according=
=20
to a new study carried out by researchers at the University of Wisconsin=20
and Seton Hall University and led by the Norman Lear Center at the=20
Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern=20
California. The study found that only 8% of TV newscasts included a report=
=20
about a local race. By contrast, more than half contained a report on the=20
presidential race. In the 11 markets studied, the hours of advertising by=20
House candidates eclipsed actual coverage of those races by a ratio of 5 to=
=20
1. The apparent disparity between local and national political coverage at=
=20
the local level is being added to the debate over how many television=20
stations a company may own. Last week, the researchers filed their report=20
with the Federal Communications Commission, which is in the midst of an=20
inquiry into easing local ownership rules. "I think most stations fear that=
=20
covering politics is ratings poison," said Martin Kaplan, associate dean of=
=20
the Annenberg School and one of the lead authors of the study.=20
"Interestingly, they don't seem to fear that running a torrent of political=
=20
ads hurts them with their audience." The study will be formally presented=20
tomorrow at a news conference hosted by Senator John McCain of Arizona, a=20
critic of efforts to ease restrictions on media ownership.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Jacques Steinberg]
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/14/business/media/14broadcast.html
(requires registration)
BEYOND 'FAIR AND BALANCED
In the firmament of right-wing media outlets, Sinclair stands somewhere to=
=20
the right of Fox News. Its archconservative politics may not be served up=20
with Fox's raw-meat bite, but what Sinclair lacks in flash, it makes up for=
=20
in unabashed cheerleading for the Bush administration. It sent a team to=20
Iraq to report "good news" about the war and forced each of its sixty-two=20
stations to broadcast a pledge of support for Bush. Last April, it refused=
=20
to air a Nightline special listing the name of every American soldier=20
killed in Iraq, and it gave national exposure to Stolen Honor, a=20
documentary attacking John Kerry, just weeks before the election. And each=
=20
night, Sinclair requires all of its stations to air an editorial segment=20
called "The Point," in which company vice president Mark Hyman rails=20
against the "angry left" and "clueless academia," dismisses peace activists=
=20
as "wack jobs," calls the French "cheese-eating surrender monkeys" and=20
supports a host of right-wing initiatives, from a national sales tax to=20
privatizing Medicare. Because Sinclair broadcasts mostly in out-of-the-way=
=20
markets, beyond the glare of the national media, no one much noticed until=
=20
recently. But within the company, current and former employees have long=20
known that there is a fine line between ideology and coercion. Citizens=20
groups are challenging the company's bid to renew its licenses in North and=
=20
South Carolina, saying Sinclair's lack of local news and one-sided=20
programming fail to satisfy even the bare-minimum standards imposed by the=
=20
FCC.
[SOURCE: Rolling Stone, AUTHOR: Eric Klinenberg]
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/_/id/6959139?pageid=3Drs.Home...
eregion=3Dsingle7&rnd=3D1108060601108&has-player=3Dfalse
See also:
* 'Conversation' Stopper
What is the sound of one voice talking? That Zen-like question occurred to=
=20
Rory O'Connor recently as he placed yet another call to Mark Hyman,=20
vice-president of the Sinclair Broadcast Group, the largest single=20
owner/operator of television stations in the United States. Not=20
surprisingly, the call went unreturned -- as had numerous others since=20
Hyman agreed to entertain a proposal to join a "conversation."
[SOURCE: MediaChannel.org, AUTHOR: Rory O'Connor]
http://www.mediachannel.org/views/dissector/affalert323.shtml
* Pay to Play: A Lesson in Conservative Media Tactics
[SOURCE: Center for American Progress, AUTHOR: Eric Alterman]
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=3DbiJRJ8OVF&b=3D327897
A COLUMN WITH SUPPORT AT EACH END
The issue of pundit payola, it seems, is not limited to inside the Beltway.=
=20
Eric Wesson, a columnist for the Call, an African American newspaper in=20
Kansas City, offered plenty of praise last year for the successful House=20
bid of Democrat Emanuel Cleaver. Cleaver's campaign last summer paid $1,500=
=20
to a firm called One Goal Consultants. And the sole owner of One Goal=20
Consultants, according to state records, is Wesson. "I wrote out some phone=
=20
scripts for his phone banks," Wesson says. "I think I did about 50 of them=
=20
and some other miscellaneous things. It had nothing to do with the job I do=
=20
for the Call. The Call has always written articles favorable to African=20
American candidates. We're an advocacy newspaper." Readers of the Call,=20
however, were unaware that Wesson was getting cash from the campaign.=20
"Should I have disclosed it in my articles? I don't know," says Wesson.=20
"Would it have made any difference?" Luther Washington, who managed=20
Cleaver's campaign, said Wesson's firm was given a new contract after the=20
congressman's election. "We used him for brainstorming for ideas for=20
national news stories specifically targeted to the black press," Washington=
=20
said. Meanwhile, Wesson, who will write the releases under the rubric=20
"Congressman's Corner," has continued to cover Cleaver.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Howard Kurtz]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22088-2005Feb13.html
(requires registration)
MORE CLOUT, MORE PROBLEMS
Mark Twain said =93politicians are uniquely respectful of anyone who buys=
ink=20
by the barrel.=94 Dr. Frank Wright, the president of the National Religious=
=20
Broadcasters (NRB), says, =93In the modern world, politicians are respectful=
=20
of broadcast platforms and broadcasters can have an impact.=94 [Yeah, yeah,=
=20
he's no Twain -- are you?] A July 2002 poll by Barna Research Group found=20
that about 43% of all adults -- about 90 million people -- watched a=20
Christian TV program in the past month. This same survey found that about=20
38% of all adults listened to a teaching, preaching or Christian talk show=
=20
on radio and that about 43% had listened to Christian music. NRB is against=
=20
media ownership consolidation -- =93With media consolidation, the prices for=
=20
radio and TV stations even in mid-sized markets have risen far beyond the=20
reach of religious broadcasters. The only solution is a regulatory one that=
=20
prevents companies from controlling too much of the market," Wright says.=20
NRB has been pushing the FCC to create must-carry rules that would require=
=20
cable operators to carry the multiplexed digital broadcast signals, a move=
=20
that would provide religious programmers with more distribution. Wright=20
vows to take this fight to Congress if the FCC rules against them, as some=
=20
religious broadcasters expect. Evangelical groups have applauded the FCC's=
=20
crackdown on =93indecency,=94 but faith-based networks have been hurt by the=
=20
commission's requirement that broadcasters archive programming. The NRB=20
also continues to fight against attempts to bring back the Fairness=20
Doctrine. Wright credits the decision to end the Fairness Doctrine as=20
playing a key role in the rise of conservative and religious talk-radio=20
programs, but complains that new legislation attempting to bring back those=
=20
rules is introduced in nearly every session.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: George Winslow]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503568.html?display=3DSpecial...
ort&referral=3DSUPP
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503567.html?display=3DSpecial...
ort&referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
CONTENT
JANET'S IMPACT STILL FELT
Last Wednesday, the House Commerce Committee, as one of its first acts of=20
the new Congress, overwhelmingly passed a bill (H.R. 310) that calls for a=
=20
15-fold increase in monetary penalties against TV and radio stations that=20
air indecent programming. Motivating the legislation is ongoing concern=20
about out-of-control content on radio and TV, highlighted by singer=20
Jackson=92s fleeting breast exposure during last year=92s Super Bowl=
halftime=20
show, seen by millions of children. The bill also calls on broadcasters to=
=20
restore the family hour, starting at 8 p.m. Although the bill targets=20
broadcasters, some lawmakers felt it was time to include cable TV,=20
satellite television and satellite radio under the indecency rules and=20
subject those media to the same fines. =93There is a considerable amount of=
=20
filth, really, being aired on our televisions by some in the cable=20
industry,=94 said Rep. Joseph Pitts (R-PA). =93The problem is getting bad=20
enough that something needs to be done.=94 Rep. Nathan Deal (R-GA) said=
cable=20
could fend off indecency and a la carte regulation if it assembled a tier=20
of family-friendly programming.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA503523.html?display=3DPolicy&refer...
=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
BROWNBACK SLATES OBSCENITY HEARING
Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas) will preside over a Judiciary Committee=20
hearing on "Obscenity Prosecution and the First Amendment" Wednesday=20
February 16. Some regulators critical of cable adult channels have argued=20
that since cable is not subject to the FCC's indecency regime, the=20
government could pursue it on obscenity grounds. So that could be on the=20
agenda as well as Internet porn and broadcast indecency.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503543?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
FLIP-FLOP ON TV SEX
Republicans have always been against protecting kids from indecent TV=20
programming, right? Some, maybe. But Indiana's Steve Buyer reminded House=20
Commerce Committee colleagues that he, like 80% of House Republicans,=20
rejected the government's last attempt to shield children from sex and=20
violence in 1995: the V-chip requirement. Committee Chairman Joe Barton=20
also voted against the V-chip as did New Hampshire's Charles Bass,=20
Georgia's Nathan Deal and Charlie Norwood, Arizona's John Shadegg,=20
Florida's Michael Bilirakis and Cliff Stearns, and Kentucky's Ed Whitfield.=
=20
All of them voted to support increasing fines for broadcast indecency last=
=20
week, however.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503664.html?display=3DNews&re...
al=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
THE VINE: NETS, GUILDS EYE INDECENCY FIGHT
Television networks and some of the creative guilds are discussing ways to=
=20
attack the constitutional underpinnings of the nation's indecency laws.=20
Boliek writes, "While no one would talk about it officially, the=20
telecommunications community that lives and breathes everything FCC was=20
buzzing about a new lawsuit that will make a direct free speech challenge=20
to the indecency laws and their interpretation."
[SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter, AUTHOR: Brooks Boliek]
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr/columns/the_vine_display.jsp?vnu_co...
t_id=3D1000798721
THE RABBIT TEST
The PBS children=92s show =93Postcards From Buster=94 recently found itself=
=20
involved in a minor scandal when an episode, =93Sugartime!,=94 showed=
Buster,=20
the titular animated rabbit, learning to make maple syrup from a young=20
Vermonter named Emma. Incidentally, Emma has two mothers. PBS opted not to=
=20
distribute the episode to its member stations but defiantly, WGBH, who=20
produced the show, made the program directly available to its fellow=20
affiliates. So far, only around 40 have decided to air it. Allan Pizzato is=
=20
an Alabama affiliate executive director who refused =93Sugartime!=94 and he=
=20
joins Brooke to explain why.
[SOURCE: On the Media]
http://www.onthemedia.org/stream/ram.py?file=3Draotm/otm021105f.ra
http://www.onthemedia.org/pretranscript.html
DIC FORMS FCC-FRIENDLY PANEL
DIC Entertainment Corp. has set up an advisory board of academics and=20
physicians to help review the development of its TV programs for children,=
=20
with an emphasis on children=92s-health issues like nutrition, exercise and=
=20
obesity. A couple of DIC=92s FCC-friendly shows -- "Stargate Infinity" and=
=20
"Ace Lightning" -- were the subject of FCC challenges last September from=20
activists arguing they were not sufficiently educational.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Jim Finkle]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503377?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
EVEN PAUL MCCARTNEY OFFENDED SOMEBODY
You had to know that line about "California grass" would get him in=20
trouble: two viewers of the Super Bowl filed complaints at the FCC saying=20
Sir Paul's performance was indecent.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Nat Ives]
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/14/business/media/14fcc.html
(requires registration)
MUST CARRY/CABLE
'MUST' BUST
TV broadcasters didn't just lose big last week on the digital must carry=20
vote, Hearn writes, "They were humiliated." For the National Association of=
=20
Broadcasters, which pushed for expanded carriage mandates, the FCC outcome=
=20
was its worst defeat at the agency in years, forcing the trade group to=20
turn to the courts and Congress to seek reversal. Add to the injury the=20
insult of a 10-page statement from Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein who=20
suggested he might have changed his vote if broadcasters would have=20
addressed more local and public-interest programming and more substantive=20
election coverage. =93When I called upon the industry to do more and they=20
didn't, there are consequences and I think we see one of those consequences=
=20
here today,=94 Commissioner Adelstein said.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA503674.html?display=3DTop+Stories&...
rral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
CORRECT ON MUST-CARRY
[Editorial] B&C salutes the FCC's decision on digital must-carry. B&C has=20
always been bothered by must-carry, which requires cable companies to carry=
=20
broadcast signals whether they want to or not. Local broadcasting remains a=
=20
national treasure worth guarding, but the First Amendment implications of=20
mandating what cable must show has always troubled us, too. Our first=20
allegiance is to the First Amendment, which says nobody has a right to=20
program somebody else's medium. If broadcasters believe that their=20
successful switch to digital hinges on mandatory cable carriage of multiple=
=20
channels (that means they are effectively a cable service themselves), they=
=20
need to convince Congress; the FCC isn't persuaded. Broadcasters will also=
=20
have to argue that what they are trying to preserve is local weather and=20
news, not home shopping and infomercials. Congress is preparing a rewrite=20
of the 1996 Telecommunications Act. If it wishes to better define mandatory=
=20
cable carriage of =93primary video,=94 it should do so now.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Editorial Staff]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503656.html?display=3DOpinion...
erral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
NEW NCTA PRESIDENT NEEDS TO KEEP CABLE UNIFIED, SACHS SAYS
Robert Sachs, President & CEO of the National Cable & Telecommunications=20
Association, is stepping down and planning to become a "cable consultant"=20
in Boston. He has a few words of advise for incoming president Kyle=20
McSlarrow, who takes office March 1. =93I believe the reason NCTA has=
enjoyed=20
the success it has with respect to must carry, multicasting and a la carte=
=20
is because our operators and programmers worked closely together. It=92s=20
vitally important to maintain a unified industry.=94 Because NCTA has=
crafted=20
a reputation for presenting a unified front, he said, it has more clout in=
=20
presenting its positions on the Hill or before the FCC. =93If you have=20
something worked out that you can say represents the consensus view of my=20
members, it=92s more effective.=94 NCTA also made a strategic decision not=
to=20
compete by pressing for regulation on competitors, and that historical=20
track record is helpful as cable now tries to enter the telephone business,=
=20
Sachs said. =93It gives us credibility when we say we do not want our=20
broadband business or VoIP business subject to regulations, except to the=20
extent where we recognize that there are social responsibilities. We=92re=20
seen as being consistent and I think that=92s important.=94
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Anne Veigle]
(Not available online)
Also see B&C interview with Sachs:
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503559.html?display=3DQA
TELECOM
VERIZON TAKEOVER OF MCI APPROVED FOR $6.8 BILLION
Expect an announcement this morning that Verizon has agreed to buy MCI for=
=20
about $6.8 billion in cash, shares and dividends. Amid a flurry of telecom=
=20
deals, the fight over MCI has been intense because the No. 2 U.S.=20
long-distance company, with 14 million residential and more than a million=
=20
coveted corporate customers, is one of the last companies left unattached=20
in the recent rush to consolidate. The purchase of MCI would mark the end=20
of the nation's independent long-distance industry. MCI, long before it was=
=20
acquired by WorldCom Inc. in 1998, was credited with bringing the first=20
competition to the telecom industry and the original AT&T phone monopoly by=
=20
setting up a network of microwave towers to transmit calls. Verizon wants=20
to acquire MCI because it would speed up for Verizon the growth of=20
corporate business, for decades the domain of companies with long-distance=
=20
networks, like MCI, which has one million business customers, and No. 1=20
AT&T. Verizon has been building new networks for data and voice calls and=20
is assembling its own sales force. If it could get MCI at the right price,=
=20
Verizon could save some of its expansion costs and use MCI's networks and=20
sales force instead. Moreover, MCI has large customers such as the U.S.=20
government in Washington and corporations in New York -- both in Verizon's=
=20
phone territory -- and Verizon wants to keep them in the fold, as well as=20
sell them more services. The acquisition of MCI would catapult Verizon to=20
the No. 2 spot in corporate business, after AT&T.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Almar Latour almar.latour( at )wsj.com and=
=20
Dennis K. Berman dennis.berman( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110833564362853454,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_page_one
(requires subscription)
Additional coverage --
WashPost:=
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22085-2005Feb13.html
USAToday:=
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20050214/1b_mci14.art.htm
LATimes:=20
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-mcideal14feb14,1...
3029.story?coll=3Dla-news-a_section
TELECOM: TO BUY OR TO BUILD
[Commentary] There seem to be two different approaches to growth in the=20
telecom industry: 1) buy other companies or 2) focus on growth in the=20
profitable wireless and broadband markets while building up in the=20
enterprise market. Which approach is right? Snatching up a long-distance=20
company's enterprise business generates huge amounts of cash. And, unlike=20
individual consumers who frequently change providers, big companies can't=20
easily switch to a new phone company: They'd be forced to buy tons of new=20
equipment, an expensive and time-consuming headache. But the enterprise=20
business, though an $85 billion market today, is fading fast. Revenues are=
=20
shrinking about 10% a year. Profit margins are getting squeezed by=20
stepped-up competition and the advent of Internet technology. And no one=20
really knows how wireless technology, optical networking, or regulation,=20
for that matter, will alter the competitive landscape.
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: Steve Rosenbush]
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/feb2005/tc20050211_1886_t...
.htm
See also --
Will BellSouth Stay on the Sidelines?
BellSouth, the third-largest regional Bell has courted several possible=20
partners in recent years, bidding $100 billion for Sprint in 1999 and=20
coming close to buying AT&T in 2003. Neither of those deals was=20
consummated, however. Now, analysts ponder whether BellSouth could be left=
=20
behind as its rivals merge, cut costs, and swallow up lucrative big=20
business customers. An interview with BellSouth chief executive F. Duane=20
Ackerman.
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: Brian Grow]
(http://www.businessweek.com/technology/index.html/)
NY PSC TO SEE IF COMPETITION CAN ENFORCE VERIZON RETAIL SERVICE QUALITY
The New York State Public Service Commission said it wants to see if market=
=20
forces are strong enough to ensure dominant telephone carrier Verizon=20
maintains adequate
retail service quality, so it intends to allow Verizon=92s current=20
penalty-based quality enforcement plan to expire at month's end, without a=
=20
replacement. Since 1994, Verizon and its corporate ancestors were required=
=20
to meet specific PSC service quality standards imposed as merger or price=20
cap approval conditions, or pay rebates and penalties. Verizon last year=20
paid $40 million in customer rebates for failure to meet repair timeliness=
=20
standards. The PSC said it will continue to monitor Verizon service quality=
=20
performance through quarterly service reports about outages and other=20
network problems, and through customer complaints. And the PSC stressed=20
that it retains
the right to reimpose a penalty plan if market discipline proves inadequate=
=20
to ensure Verizon=92s service quality. Verizon loves the idea, but not so=
for=20
the Communications Workers of America or state Assemblyman Richard Brodsky=
=20
(D), chmn. of the Assembly Corporations, Commissions & Authorities=20
Committee and a past critic of Verizon service quality. They think the PSC=
=20
is abandoning consumers.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Herb Kirchhoff]
(Not available online)
INTERNET
DESPITE OPPOSITION, MIGHT THE WEB NEED NEW GOVERNMENT JOLT?
[Commentary] The speeds at which homes can link up to the Internet has=20
plateaued at current DSL and cable rates, badly lagging behind the speeds=20
available in many other countries, notably in Asia. Might it require=20
another bit of government involvement to prod things along? That's one of=20
the questions being raised in connection with the plans of a growing number=
=20
of American cities to sponsor municipal wireless networks to provide=20
Internet access to residents. Philadelphia is in the middle of unveiling=20
such a plan; it hopes to blanket the metropolitan area with a wireless=20
network that will provide speeds of at least one megabit for both uploading=
=20
and downloading. Critics contend that cities will be using scarce tax money=
=20
to build networks that compete with systems already offered by telephone=20
and cable companies. What's more, they say, any network a city would build=
=20
will quickly grow outdated because of rapidly changing technology. It's=20
easy to bash city governments as being full of maladroit bureaucrats eager=
=20
to manhandle a new technology, and even economists who support municipal=20
networks say cities shouldn't rush into them. But well-thought-out city=20
plans could help everyone by acting as a catalyst and shaking up the status=
=20
quo. Some might even call that competition.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Lee Gomes]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB110833554526853450,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_marketplace
(requires subscription)
BELLS ASK FCC TO ACT ON VERIZON FORBEARANCE PETITION
Verizon has friends in its fellow Baby Bells as it asks the FCC for=20
forbearance from Title II and Computer Inquiry rules as they apply to=20
broadband service. The Bells say the broadband marketplace is highly=20
competitive and the regulatory structures they face give cable providers in=
=20
particular an unfair advantage. Competitors argued that Verizon wants to=20
destroy competition. The two sides recently faced off in a similar battle=20
over a BellSouth forbearance petition also before the Commission.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Howard Buskirk]
(Not available online)
QUICKLY
A LEAGUE OF HER OWN
A look at Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis, the policy and federal regulations at the=
=20
National League of Cities. =93Two of our top five priorities involve media=
=20
policy,=94 she notes. Perennial issues for the League: keep city=
governments'=20
powers to set cable franchise fees and dictate cable operators' obligations=
=20
to serve low-income neighborhoods. As Congress gears up to rewrite=20
telecommunications laws, new issues, such as regulation of cable telephone=
=20
and phone companies' Internet TV, will top her agenda. Another big=20
priority: getting broadcasters to give up their old analog channels=20
quickly, so local emergency departments can use them for communications. To=
=20
help carry the load, Mohrman-Gillis hired former Media Access Project=20
attorney Cheryl Leanza last year as lead legislative counsel.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Bill McConnell]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503562?display=3DPeople&refer...
=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
A REALITY WAITING TO HAPPEN
Are reality TV shows safe for participants? Maybe not. If you've ever=20
dreamt of drinking pureed rat or some other crazy stunt for a national=20
audience, read the fine print first.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Deborah Starr Seibel]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA503556.html?display=3DFeature...
erral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
NEW RESOURCE HELPS SCHOOLS WRITE RFPs
With thousands and sometimes millions of dollars in public money at stake,=
=20
writing a Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit bids for complex=20
technology products and services can be a frustrating and sometimes=20
daunting experience for school leaders. Recognizing how difficult RFPs can=
=20
be for all parties involved, the nonprofit Software & Information Industry=
=20
Association (SIIA) has unveiled a new initiative meant to make the process=
=20
simpler for both schools and vendors.
[SOURCE: eSchool News, AUTHOR: Corey Murray]
http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=3D5510
SPEEDING THE ROLLOUT OF WIRELESS BROADBAND SERVICES
Last Thursday, the FCC's Wireless Broadband Access Task Force (Task Force)=
=20
today recommended various Commission actions to help speed the deployment=20
of wireless broadband services to consumers across America. The Task Force=
=20
recommendations are based upon its inquiry into the state of wireless=20
broadband in the United States as well as the FCC's policies impacting=20
these services. The Task Force recommends that the Commission: 1) promote=20
voluntary frequency coordination efforts by private industry for=20
license-exempt spectrum; 2) promote voluntary industry "best practices"=20
among unlicensed users to maximize the potential opportunities for spectrum=
=20
use, 3) expedite the transition of the digital television (DTV) spectrum=20
for advanced wireless services and public safety and 4) apply a=20
pro-competitive, innovative national framework for wireless broadband=20
services - one that imposes the fewest regulatory barriers at both the=20
federal and state level - to wireless broadband services. There's more at=20
the URL below -- or http://www.fcc.gov/wbatf/.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-256694A1.doc
COUNCIL OF STATE COMMISSIONERS AND REGULATORS TO ASSIST FCC'S DIVERSITY=20
COMMITTEE
The FCC's Advisory Committee on Diversity for Communications in the Digital=
=20
Age has asked a group of state commissioners and communications regulators=
=20
to assist the Committee in its work. The Diversity Committee's mission is=
=20
to determine how to ensure that a broad cross-section of the public has the=
=20
opportunity to own or manage communications and communications-related=20
companies. The Council of state commissioners and regulators will help the=
=20
Committee execute its mandate by encouraging state-federal cooperation to=20
better promote the shared goal of diversity in communications. The Council=
=20
will assist the Committee by developing joint federal-state initiatives, by=
=20
promoting awareness of both the mission and the work of the Diversity=20
Committee throughout the nation, and by expanding the Committee's work on=20
industry best-practices. Daryl Bassett of the Arkansas Public Service=20
Commission will Chair the Council.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-256720A1.doc
UNITY: MINORITIES SHOULD BE 20% OF NEWSROOMS BY 2008
By 2008, minority journalists should comprise no less than 20% of American=
=20
newsrooms, and at least 15% of newsroom managers, declares the new=20
five-year strategic plan from Unity: Journalists of Color Inc. Unity, the=20
alliance of the four national associations for black, Hispanic, Asian=20
American, and Native American journalists, also intends to sponsor a=20
presidential debate during the 2008 election cycle "to ensure that issues=20
critical to the nation=92s communities of color are addressed," the plan=
says.
[SOURCE: Editor&Publisher, AUTHOR: Mark Fitzgerald]
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_con...
_id=3D1000798781
THE BALLISTICS OF RADIO
Five years ago the Federal Communications Commission authorized low-power=20
FM, opening up the FM airwaves to thousands more community broadcasters.=20
But the National Association of Broadcasters and NPR both testified to=20
Congress that low-power FM would interfere with existing signals. The FCC=20
had done its own tests proving otherwise but Congress put on the brakes,=20
stalling LPFM =85until this week. Seen as an antidote to media=
consolidation,=20
LPFM has been exhumed in a bill co-sponsored by John McCain that seems=20
likely to put Low Power back on the fast track. Or will it?
[SOURCE: On the Media]
http://www.onthemedia.org/stream/ram.py?file=3Draotm/otm021105a.ra
http://www.onthemedia.org/pretranscript.html
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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.
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