Reminder: the 2005 National Conference for Media Reform takes place May=20
13-15 in St Louis (http://www.freepress.net/conference/).
For this and other upcoming media policy events, see=20
http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
MEDIA IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST
Electronic News Facing Credibility Gap -- RTNDA=92s Shelley
Deloitte: TV Nets Obsolete
PBS Scrutiny Raises Political Antennas
CBS Issues Responsibility Rundown
NBC: Pax 'Abandoning' Net Programming
BROADCASTING
NAB Expects Congress to Decide Multicast Must-Carry
Interoperability Amendment Fails in House Committee
CABLE
More Clout for Cable
Adelphia Deal to Shuffle Cable
Roberts: Post-Adelphia, Comcast at 29%
GAO: Cable=92s Urban Fort Under DBS Assault
TELECOM
Watchdogs to FCC: Telecom Mergers A Disaster for
Competition, Consumers
Qwest Raises Bid For MCI in Effort To Upend Verizon
AT THE FCC
Open Meeting Agenda
$3.65 in E-rate Support Sought in 2005
QUICKLY -- FCC to Clarify Online Indecency Form; Lawmakers Vote to Ban=20
Internet-Based Hunting; Lotteries may Gamble on Internet
MEDIA IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST
ELECTRONIC NEWS FACING CREDIBILITY GAP -- RTDNA'S SHELLEY
Electronic media face a =93credibility gap as fewer and fewer people, from=
=20
across the ideological spectrum, believe what we tell them,=94 said new=20
Radio-Television News Directors Association Chairman Dan Shelley. He said=
=20
viewers have many other news options and =93we insist on telling them we=92r=
e=20
not biased when they know we are.=94 News has become =93an information on=20
demand world,=94 Shelley said, and traditional electronic journalists can no=
=20
longer =93stubbornly cling to the old paradigms of our business.=94 He said=
=20
=93some day=94 broadcast and print news may become =93quaint relics of a=
bygone=20
era.=94 The media are =93uniquely positioned=94 to succeed
in this new environment =93but we will do so only if we begin to act --=20
now... Technological advances have made traditional delivery methods much=20
less relevant.=94
Shelley also criticized =93government manipulation=94 of the media. He cited=
=20
the FCC=92s =93draconian crackdown=94 on broadcast indecency and efforts in=
=20
Congress to force TV and radio stations to provide more local coverage of=20
local news. He agreed there should be more coverage, but =93it just=
shouldn't=20
be mandated by the government.=94
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Tack Nail]
(Not available online)
See also --
RTNDA: ID CORPORATE VNRs
The Federal Communications Commission does not require broadcasters to=20
identify corporate video-news releases so long as they have not been=20
directly paid to run them, but the Radio-Television News Directors=20
Association said they must identify them anyway.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA526831?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
PERCEPTION AND REALITY: THE BUSINESS OF MEDIA
Media companies are acting more like companies than they are the champions=
=20
of free speech and the public good, so it shouldn't be a surprise that they=
=20
are viewed increasingly as untrustworthy.
[SOURCE: NPR, AUTHOR: David Folkenflik]
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=3D4600783
DELOITTE: TV NETS OBSOLETE
The technology, media and telecommunications group of consulting firm=20
Deloitte released a report Thursday saying TV networks are threatened with=
=20
extinction if they don't evolve quickly into something else. What, you ask?=
=20
"A multi-dimensional, highly adaptable, customer-focused model." In=20
English? "Extending the brand into areas including interactivity and=20
on-demand offerings and new distribution channels like wired and wireless=20
networks." The report's suggestions include: Offer content across a variety=
=20
of channels and platforms; Re-package and market content as services as=20
well as products; Extend content lifespan by offering more digital content=
=20
that can be easily packaged and sold or rented as DVD, VHS, memory cards,=20
and wired and wireless electronic downloads. That repackaging could take=20
the form of: On-demand =ADWarehousing audio and video for web-casts, radio,=
=20
mobile phones, and Video-on-Demand; Interactivity =AD Voting, purchasing,=20
news, games, polls, comment/questions, and web-based chat; and Events =AD=20
Tie-in events like the American Idol concert series.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA526626?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
PBS SCRUTINY RAISES POLITICAL ANTENNAS
Some observers, including people inside the Public Broadcasting Service,=20
see recent developments as troubling. PBS, they say, is being forced to toe=
=20
a more conservative line in its programming by the Republican-dominated=20
Corporation for Public Broadcasting which provides about $30 million in=20
federal funds to PBS. CPB officials say they are merely seeking to ensure=20
balance and fairness in the network's presentation of political news and=20
ideas (using the Fox News Channel as a model). In negotiations with PBS=20
earlier this year, CPB insisted, for the first time, on tying new funding=20
to an agreement that would commit the network to strict "objectivity and=20
balance" in each of its programs -- an idea that PBS's general counsel=20
described in an internal memo as amounting to "government encroachment on=20
and supervision of program content, potentially in violation of the First=20
Amendment." A senior Federal Communications Commission official, who would=
=20
not speak for attribution because he must rule on issues affecting public=20
broadcasting, said CPB "is engaged in a systematic effort not just to=20
sanitize the truth, but to impose a right-wing agenda on PBS. It's almost=20
like a right-wing coup. It appears to be orchestrated."
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Paul Farhi]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8067-2005Apr21.html
(requires registration)
See also --
FALLING UP AT CPB
[Commentary] Ken Ferree is now the top executive at the Corporation for=20
Public Broadcasting, charged with developing programming for National=20
Public Radio, Public Radio International and PBS. He's also the former Mass=
=20
media Bureau Chief at the FCC. At the FCC, Ferree acted as the key aide to=
=20
Chairman Michael Powell on media policy formation. As head of the FCC's=20
Media Bureau, Ferree was a key player in putting together the Commission's=
=20
attempt to ram through a set of rules in 2003 that would have taken the lid=
=20
off media ownership limits, effectively allowing media conglomerates to buy=
=20
up as much of the media landscape as their riches would allow.
[SOURCE: Center for American Progress, AUTHOR: Eric Alterman]
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=3DbiJRJ8OVF&b=3D569645
CBS ISSUES RESPONSIBILITY RUNDOWN
How does the CBS network and the TV stations it owns serve the public=20
interest. The company decided to count the ways: it aired $212 million=20
worth of PSA's in 2004; a number of writers who have participated in the=20
networks' Writers' Mentoring Program have landed jobs on network programs,=
=20
increasing diversity; it is captioning 90-95 hours of programming; it=20
covered the 2004 election (in infamous fashion) and airs "60 Minutes." [So=
=20
you decide -- are we getting enough of a return on our investment?]
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA526863?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
NBC: PAX 'ABANDONING' NET PROGRAMMING
In its relentless pursuit to serve the public interest, convenience and=20
necessity, Pax TV will virtually cease entertainment programming and=20
instead load its schedule with infomercials, direct response and other paid=
=20
programming.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John M. Higgins]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA526901?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
BROADCASTING
NAB EXPECTS CONGRESS TO DECIDE MULTICAST MUST-CARRY
A TV station=92s right to require cable systems to carry multiple digital=20
channels probably will be included in congressional DTV legislation,=20
National Association of Broadcasters President Eddie Fritts told reporters=
=20
Wednesday. The NAB was expected to file comments late Thurs. favoring=20
reconsideration of the FCC=92s Feb. ruling that cable need carry only one=20
program stream per station. The association believes stations are entitled=
=20
to require cable to carry all of a stations=92s digital programming,=20
including multiple video streams.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Tania Panczyk-Collins]
(Not available online)
INTEROPERABILITY AMENDMENT FAILS IN HOUSE COMMITTEE
The House Homeland Security Committee rejected an amendment that would have=
=20
established a separate grant program for interoperable communications.=20
Several Members said that broadcasters were the real source of problems in=
=20
developing interoperable public safety communications. By blocking DTV=20
transition legislation, broadcasters are keeping public safety from getting=
=20
spectrum that would improve interoperability, they said. Rep Weldon (R-PA)=
=20
urged the committee to =93stand
up to broadcasters.=94 Rep Weldon and Rep. Harman (D-CA) have pushed=20
legislation that would require broadcasters to vacate analog spectrum=20
designated for public safety use. Rep. Pascrell (D-NJ) said spectrum was=20
the main issue and Committee leaders needed to acknowledge a =93turf war=94=
=20
between the Homeland Security and Commerce committees. =93Broadcasters have=
=20
taken the front seat while firefighters are in the back seat,=94 he said.=20
Other members, including Reps. Simmons (R-CT), Reichert (R-WA) and King=20
(R-NY), also cited spectrum reclamation as the leading issue for improved=20
interoperability.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Terry Lane]
(Not available online)
CABLE
MORE CLOUT FOR CABLE
Time Warner and Comcast are paying $17.7 billion in cash and stock for the=
=20
assets of Adelphia, which is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. Time=
=20
Warner plans to issue shares in its cable company, which will be merged=20
with most of Adelphia. The deal also enables Comcast to unwind the 21%=20
stake in Time Warner's cable company. If the deal announced yesterday wins=
=20
approval from regulators, 37 million subscribers -- more than one in four=20
U.S. households -- will get their television service from either Comcast or=
=20
Time Warner. Time Warner and Comcast will be able to use their new strength=
=20
in key markets to try to grab the kind of programs and services that can=20
keep customers from defecting and attract new ones. Much of this battle=20
will be conducted in the realm of phone service -- and sports programming.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Peter Grant peter.grant( at )wsj.com and=20
Julia Angwin julia.angwin( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111408022142013094,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_marketplace
(requires subscription)
There's lots more coverage --
USAToday:=20
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20050422/1b_adelphia22.art.htm
B&C: http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA526618?display=3DBreaking+Ne=
ws
Multichannel:=20
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA526508.html?display=3DBreaking+News
TVWeek: http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=3D7689
LATimes:=20
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-adelphia22apr22,1,105...
.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/business/media/22cable.html
ADELPHIA DEAL TO SHUFFLE CABLE
About one in ten U.S. cable subscribers would get a new provider as the=20
result of the $17.6 billion deal unveiled Thursday in which Comcast Corp.=20
and Time Warner Corp. agreed to jointly buy Adelphia Communications as well=
=20
as swap some of their own cable customers. Time Warner is getting a net=20
gain of about 3.5 million basic cable subscribers as part of the deal. Time=
=20
Warner will have 14.4 million basic subscribers of its own, and another 1.5=
=20
million in a continued partnership with Comcast. It is paying $9.2 billion=
=20
in cash for the Adelphia assets in addition to issuing the stake in its=20
cable unit, as well as paying $2.0 billion to Comcast for a stake it has=20
held in Time Warner Cable. The additional customers push Time Warner Cable=
=20
ahead of the nation's two satellite television operators: DirecTV and=20
EchoStar Communications' Dish Network. After the deal Comcast will have=20
about 23.3 million basic cable customers of its own and an additional 3.5=20
million additional subscribers held in various partnerships. In addition to=
=20
using Adelphia's territories to supplement their own system, Comcast and=20
Time Warner will also swap certain cable operations as part of the deal to=
=20
give each one greater concentration of customers in their new service area.=
=20
Time Warner will have 85 percent of its customers in five large clusters,=20
with more than a third of its overall customer base in either the New York=
=20
or Los Angeles metropolitan areas. Comcast will have much of its customer=20
base concentrated in the Boston to Washington corridor, as well as the=20
upper Midwest.
[SOURCE: CNNMoney (owned by Time Warner), AUTHOR: Chris Isidore]
http://money.cnn.com/2005/04/21/technology/adelphia/index.htm?cnn=3Dyes
ROBERTS: POST-ADELPHIA, COMCAST AT 29%
With the purchase with Time Warner of Adelphia cable systems, Comcast will=
=20
pick up 1.8 million subscribers and will have 23.3 million wholly owned=20
subscribers after the transaction closes. It will continue to own under FCC=
=20
attribution rules another 3.5 million subscribers in various partnerships.=
=20
Based on a pay TV market with 92.2 million subscribers, Comcast ends up=20
with 29% of the market.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA526720.html?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
GAO: CABLE'S URBAN FORT UNDER DBS ASSAULT
The U.S. Government Accountability Office released a report Thursday=20
confirming what cable operators have known for a long time:=20
Direct-broadcast satellite providers are invading their urban fortress.=20
According to the 40-page report, EchoStar Communications Corp. and DirecTV=
=20
Inc. have grown =93most rapidly in urban and suburban areas=94 since 2001.=
=20
However, the report noted, DBS penetration remains highest in rural=20
markets. In the report, the GAO found that from 2001-04, satellite=92s=
growth=20
rate was 15% in rural areas, 32% in suburban areas and 50% in urban areas.=
=20
It also found that DBS served 29% of rural, 18% of suburban and 13% of=20
urban homes. In examining other trends, the GAO found that DBS providers=20
were less successful in picking up subscribers in markets where they do not=
=20
offer local TV signals and where cable companies have upgraded their=20
networks. The GAO found that DirecTV and EchoStar have also been struggling=
=20
in so-called overbuild markets, where the cable incumbent goes head-to-head=
=20
with another wire-line pay TV provider. The GAO report was requested by=20
Sens. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) and Herb Kohl (D-Wis.), respectively the=20
chairman and ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on=20
Antitrust, Competition, Business and Consumer Rights.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA526900.html?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
TELECOM
WATCHDOGS TO FCC: TELECOM MERGERS A DISASTER FOR COMPETITION, CONSUMERS
Consumers Union, the Consumer Federation of America, U.S. Public Interest=20
Research Group and the National Association of State Utility Consumer=20
Advocates condemned the pending telecommunications mergers between SBC-AT&T=
=20
and Verizon-MCI currently before the Federal Communications Commission=20
(FCC), because further consolidation threatens consumer prices, competition=
=20
and access to the high-speed Internet. The groups argued that the=20
telecommunications marketplace today is already concentrated and lacks real=
=20
competition. If approved, the two proposed mergers will unite the nation=92s=
=20
two largest telecom firms with their two largest competitors in a=20
monopolistic stranglehold on consumers and potential competitors. They=20
argue that the mergers seek to transform Baby Bells into regionally=20
dominant =93Behemoth Bells=94, undoing the anti-monopoly goals of the 1984=
=20
breakup of the AT&T monopoly. Should the mergers be approved, the newly=20
formed telecommunications giants will attain about a 90 percent market=20
share in residential local wireline, 70 percent in long distance, and 40-50=
=20
percent in wireless. As Behemoth Bells they will have the incentive and=20
opportunity to discriminate through price squeezes against those=20
competitors who require access to their networks.
[SOURCE: Consumers Union Press Release]
http://www.consumersunion.org/pub/core_telecom_and_utilities/002169.html...
e
QWEST RAISES BID FOR MCI IN EFFORT TO UPEND VERIZON
MCI has until tomorrow to decide on a "best and final" offer from Qwest=20
which is now offering $30/share. The total value of the bid is $9.74=20
billion. MCI and Verizon currently have an accepted deal valued at $23.10 a=
=20
share.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Jesse Drucker jesse.drucker( at )wsj.com=20
and Almar Latour almar.latour( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111411855367313690,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_page_one
(requires subscription)
Also in:
WP: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8104-2005Apr21.html
USAToday:=
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20050422/qwest22.art.htm
LATimes:=20
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-qwest22apr22,1,707940...
ory?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/business/22qwest.html
AT THE FCC
OPEN MEETING AGENDA
The Federal Communications Commission will hold an Open Meeting on=20
Thursday, April 28, 2005, which is scheduled to commence at 9:30 a.m. in=20
Room TW-C305, at 445 12th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. The agenda=20
includes four items: 1) a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that initiates a=20
proceeding to implement new satellite broadcast carriage requirements in=20
the noncontiguous states; 2) a Notice of Inquiry regarding standards that=20
allow viewers that are unserved by a digital television broadcast station=20
to receive network programming via satellite; 3) a Report and Order=20
concerning the Mandatory Electronic Filing for International=20
Telecommunications Services; and 4) an Order the Subscriber List=20
Information (SLI)/Directory Assistance (DA). Come early to get a good seat;=
=20
I'll see you there.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-258262A1.doc
More info at: http://www.fcc.gov/fccmeetings.html
$3.65 IN E-RATE SUPPORT SOUGHT IN 2005
On April 15, 2005, the Schools and Libraries Division (SLD) of the=20
Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) reported to the Federal=20
Communications Commission that $3.65 billion in requested funding has been=
=20
estimated for schools and libraries seeking E-rate discounts for Funding=20
Year 2005. This estimate is based on the dollars requested in 38,799=20
applications received or postmarked by February 18, 2005, the close of the=
=20
Form 471 application filing window. There are several factors that will=20
reduce ultimately the funds requested from the estimated level. First,=20
while efforts have been made to eliminate duplicate requests, inevitably we=
=20
will discover more duplication as we process these applications. Second,=20
the SLD's efforts to assure that applications are substantially complete=20
and that funds are committed only for eligible services, for use by=20
eligible entities with the appropriate discount rate, and are otherwise=20
consistent with program rules, will further reduce the demand.
[SOURCE: , AUTHOR: ]
http://www.sl.universalservice.org/whatsnew/2005/042005.asp#041805
QUICKLY
FCC TO CLARIFY ONLINE INDECENCY FORM
After a B&C story noted the confusion created by the FCC's new indecency=20
complaint form, the FCC is moving to change and clarify online instructions=
=20
for filling out the form.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA526826?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
CALIFORNIA LAWMAKERS VOTE TO BAN INTERNET-BASED HUNTING
California state senators approved a bill on Thursday that would ban=20
hunters from killing animals over the Internet.
Hunters may now stalk prey online at www.live-shot.com, a Web site linking=
=20
firearms and cameras so customers can point, click and shoot antelope,=20
sheep and wild hogs on a Texas ranch from thousands of miles away.
[SOURCE: Reuters]
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=3DinternetNews&storyID=3D8...
48
LOTTERIES MAY GAMBLE ON INTERNET
Several states are considering selling lottery tickets on the Internet
[SOURCE: USAToday]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20050422/1a_bottomstrip22.art.htm
--------------------------------------------------------------
...and we are outta here. Have a great weekend -- is it Spring yet in your=
=20
neck of the woods?
--------------------------------------------------------------
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.
--------------------------------------------------------------