For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
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.
BROADCASTING
Big Trick
'Upfront' Ad Sales Cast Doubt on Broadcast's Clout
Networks Grant Affiliates Power to Pre-empt
DGA Releases Annual Employment Survey
Clear Channel Scales Back Ad Time
Why Not Use the "White Space" in the FM Band to Create More Community=
Voices?
CABLE
Cheaper by the Dozen
Regulating the Internet
TELECOM
'Last Mile' to Local Service Growing Longer for AT&T
CONTENT
Family Movie Act Moves Ahead in House
BROADCASTING
BIG TRICK
With nearly half of all Americans saying they are more interested in this=20
presidential election than they were four years ago, why give them the=20
political coverage they want when you can sell it them on cable? NBC will=20
supply wall-to-wall coverage of the Democratic convention this -- just not=
=20
on NBC affiliate TV stations. Instead, cable network MSNBC will be the=20
showcase. Like other broadcasters, NBC is offering only three hours of=20
coverage of the convention -- about the same schedule as in 2000. MSNBC,=20
CNN and Fox News hope to capture news-hungry political junkies and promote=
=20
their big-name talent. They're seeking more than the spike in ratings such=
=20
events generate: a shot at building a permanent following among newshounds=
=20
that fit in the channels' demographic.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Bill McConnell]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA437175?display=3DTop+of+the+Week
(requires subscription)
'UPFRONT' AD SALES CAST DOUBT ON BROADCAST'S CLOUT
With negotiations mostly done, upfront sales for the 2004-05 TV season are=
=20
projected to be up 6.4% to $15.5 billion. But the story within that story=20
is the broadcast-vs.-cable battle. With more viewers watching cable=20
networks, ad dollars are following eyeballs. Cable networks appear to have=
=20
taken $600 million that typically would have gone to broadcasters. The=20
result is that cable network sales should rise 20% to $6.4 billion. The six=
=20
broadcast networks are expected to finish down 1.4% to $9.1 billion. Add to=
=20
broadcasters' woes the fact that advertisers usually end up canceling 3% to=
=20
4% of what they reserve upfront. A stall in the economy or another=20
terrorist attack could mean even worse numbers.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR:Michael McCarthy]
http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040719/6375575s.htm
NETWORKS GRANT AFFILIATES POWER TO PRE-EMPT
Believing that the FCC was poised to act on a 3-year-old Network Affiliated=
=20
Stations Alliance (NASA) complaint about the restrictive contracts, ABC,=20
NBC and Fox loosened contract provisions that limited the affiliates' right=
=20
to reject network shows for local substitutes. (CBS dropped such limits in=
=20
2001.) The development could shift some power back to the independently=20
owned affiliates, making it easier, amid a furor over indecency, for=20
affiliates to pre-empt network shows they deem offensive. NASA still wants=
=20
the FCC to set new rules clarifying the affiliates' right to reject network=
=20
programs, partly because it's unclear if the changes apply only to current=
=20
contracts or to future deals as well. Also, Fox still requires that=20
affiliates reserve all their new digital channels for Fox shows, NASA says.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Paul Davidson]
http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040719/6375577s.htm
DGA RELEASES ANNUAL EMPLOYMENT SURVEY
On Friday the Directors Guild of America released its annual employment=20
survey documenting the hiring of women and minorities among the top 40=20
prime-time drama and comedy series in 2003-04. The survey shows a mild=20
increase in the hiring of African American directors since 2000, while the=
=20
presence of women and minorities in the director's chair have declined. The=
=20
DGA singled out "Everybody Loves Raymond," "Friends," "JAG," "CSI,"=20
"Malcolm in the Middle," "According to Jim" and "Yes, Dear" as particularly=
=20
egregious offenders, while "Cold Case" "The Practice," "Third Watch,"=20
"Frasier" and "ER" had made efforts to diversify hiring.
[SOURCE: Current, AUTHOR: James Hibberd]
http://www.tvweek.com/news/web071604.html
CLEAR CHANNEL SCALES BACK AD TIME
Radio averages 15 minutes of advertising an hour, compared with 12.5=20
minutes for television and some "drive time" radio programs squeeze 22=20
minutes of advertising into each hour. With so much time available for=20
advertisers, they have been able to pay less for ads. But Clear Channel is=
=20
launching "Less Is More," a plan to reduce inventory and, eventually, raise=
=20
the price of radio advertising. Under its new rules no station can run more=
=20
than 15 minutes of advertising in a single hour. In addition, no commercial=
=20
break will run longer than four minutes or contain more than six=20
commercials. Clear Channel also plans to cut promotional inventory -- those=
=20
spots that advertise contests, or segments coming up later. Clear Channel=20
stations must comply with the promotional limits by Oct. 1, and the=20
commercial limits by Jan. 1. As the market leader with 1,200 stations=20
around the country, Clear Channel will likely be copied by smaller radio=20
groups.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Sarah McBride at=
sarah.mcbride( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109018737288866819,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_marketplace
(requires subscription)
NYTimes: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/19/business/media/19adcol.html
WHY NOT USE THE "WHITE SPACE" IN THE FM BAND TO CREATE MORE COMMUNITY=
VOICES?
The New America Foundation hosted a policy briefing on low power FM radio=20
on Friday. The debate on LPFM continues as the Senate Commerce Committee is=
=20
scheduled to consider a bill on the subject on Thursday. LPFM stations are=
=20
small, localized services that don't pose a threat to big broadcasters,=20
said Paul McLane, editor of Radio World=92s U.S. edition. =93Tiny stations=
are=20
moving onto the dial already and the world has not fallen apart,=94 he said.=
=20
But the National Association of Broadcasters are fighting any expansion in=
=20
the number of LPFM stations saying they will interfere with established=20
full-power stations. =93Easily $2 million has been spent
in 3-4 years to see if we can get a church on the air,=94 said Cheryl Leanza=
=20
of the Media Access Project at the briefing. The bill to be considered this=
=20
week, introduced by Sen John McCain (R-AZ) would eliminate congressionally=
=20
imposed limits on LPFM licensing.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily]
(Not available online)
CABLE
CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN
Consumers are saving money choosing their own line-up of cable channels and=
=20
the Consumers Union wants Americans to have the same freedom to save here.=
=20
In the past year, 15% of Canadian have opted for a la carte, says Jean-Paul=
=20
Galarneau, spokesman for Videotron, Canada's third-largest cable company.=20
Of those, the overwhelming majority patch together a full lineup of 20 or=20
more additional channels. Canadians who buy Videotron's 20-channel =E0 la=20
carte tier pay roughly $36 a month in U.S. dollars versus the $42 they'd=20
pay for the next largest package of channels. Americans, who pay $40-$50=20
for a set lineup, could enjoy similar savings if they were permitted to=20
weed out channels they didn't want, argues Consumer Union.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Bill McConnell]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA437178?display=3DWashington
(requires subscription)
REGULATING THE INTERNET
The Progress & Freedom Foundation hosted a conference on Friday addressing=
=20
regulation of the Internet. Vanderbilt Law School Professor Christopher Yoo=
=20
presented finding from his research -- =93The Economics of Net Neutrality:=
=20
Why the Physical Layer Should Not Be Regulated.=94 Professor Yoo argued that=
=20
net neutrality regulation proposals are =93mistaken,=94 saying they are=20
unnecessary and would have =93perverse=94 effects. He said neutrality=
proposals=20
were =93rooted in concerns about vertical
integration=94 that were =93more imaginary than real.=94 Professor Yoo=
argued in=20
his report that the residential broadband market is not concentrated,=20
because it is a national
geographic market not a local one. MCI Senior Director of Global Policy &=20
Planning Richard Whitt countered that, to consumers, the broadband market=20
is local. =93It doesn't help a consumer to know that Verizon offers DSL in=
=20
Maryland if they happen to live in SBC territory in Illinois.=94 Mr. Whitt=
=20
said =93just because some of the larger ISPs are national in scope does not=
=20
mean that their purchasing decisions about broadband platforms can be made=
=20
on a national basis. The essence of a local broadband platform is that it=20
is local.=94 Whitt insisted there was =93indeed significant concentration=
and=20
power=94 in residential broadband market and the wholesale access=
requirement=20
=97 or open access =97 was =93the most effective and least intrusive=
remedy.=94 He=20
said open access should be coupled with =93vigorous FCC action to promote=20
alternate broadband platforms.=94
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Susan Polyakova, Brigitte Greenberg]
(Not available online)
TELECOM
=18
'LAST MILE' TO LOCAL SERVICE GROWING LONGER FOR AT&T
Faced with rising costs, plummeting profit and an uncertain regulatory=20
environment, AT&T soon will decide whether to abandon its nationwide foray=
=20
into local phone service. If it decides to give up, the ramifications=20
could be huge. Only a company as big as AT&T can roll out new technologies=
=20
in the mass market to bypass existing networks. AT&T's dilemma is=20
precipitated by a federal court ruling in March that threw out key phone=20
competition rules written by the FCC to implement the 1996 Telecom Act. The=
=20
rules had allowed AT&T and other carriers to lease from Baby Bells at=20
regulated wholesale rates the lines and equipment necessary to provide=20
local service; because building local networks from scratch would be=20
prohibitively expensive, the act required the Baby Bells to lease theirs to=
=20
rivals. Ironically, AT&T had laid or strung many of the local lines when it=
=20
was Ma Bell.
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR:James S. Granelli]
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-att19jul19,1,308447.s...
?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)
CONTENT
FAMILY MOVIE ACT MOVES AHEAD IN HOUSE
The Family Movie Act (H.R. 4586), sponsored by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), is=
=20
making its way through the House. The bill would address a lawsuit by the=20
seven major Hollywood studios and the Directors Guild of America against=20
ClearPlay, one of a half-dozen filtering services, and allow the sale of=20
DVD players with filtering technology. The technology does not alter movies=
=20
before or after they are purchased. Rather, the technology is programmed=20
into a DVD player, which offers an off-on switch and 14 degrees of=20
filtering, or is available separately for computers. A movie viewer could=20
opt to block strong action violence or gory, brutal violence; disturbing=20
and gruesome images; and crude sexual content. Or, to a lesser degree,=20
viewers could block =93highly sensual dialogue and situations,=94 =93highly=
=20
provocative and revealing clothing=94 or =93vain or irreverent references to=
=20
God or a deity.=94 Drug use, racial and social slurs and crude humor also=
can=20
be isolated. The Directors Guild of America said the move by Congress would=
=20
=93erode the nation=92s copyright laws by permitting companies to market=20
software that edits the content of films.=94 =93This legislation is about=
much=20
more than giving consumers a choice in what they watch and don't watch,=94=
=20
the DGA said in a statement. =93Unidentified employees of electronic-editing=
=20
companies make the choices of what is edited out of each film they review =
=97=20
it is their choices that govern and not the consumer=92s.=94
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Glenn Maffei]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA437108?display=3DPolicy
(requires subscription)
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