Two hearings of note today -- one on the digital TV transition and spectrum=
=20
for first responders (see story below) and one on the E-rate program. For=20
upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
MEDIA & ELECTIONS
Public Interest Advocates Launch =91Media Watchdog Project=92
Big Three Commit to Debates, Fox Waffles
Court Ruling Won't Stop 527 Ads
CBS Storm Washes Over Viacom
Bloggers Keep Eye on the News
LEGISLATION
Public Interest Groups Decry Shortcomings of "Save Lives" Digital=20
Transition Act
Before Senate, Verizon Wireless Warns Colleagues on 411
Congress Should Pass Cell Phone Number Privacy Bill Before
Wireless Industry Launches 411 Directory
EPIC to Testify on Wireless Phone Directories
Largent Promotes Wireless 411 in Senate Hearing
Broadcast Voyeurism, Anti-Piracy and Privacy Tackled by House Tuesday
Critics Say Bill Could Trigger Flood of Faxes
CABLE
The War for Your Remote: Satellite Gains on Cable
Three Bells Support DOJ=92s Brand X Appeal
PUBLIC BROADCASTING
PBS Panders to Right With New Programming
CPB and IMLS create Partnership for a Nation of Learners
IF ONLY IT WERE APRIL
Mexico Churches Wage High-Tech War on Cell Phones
New German Mobile Phone to Detect Bad Breath
MEDIA & ELECTIONS
PUBLIC INTEREST ADVOCATES LAUNCH 'MEDIA WATCHDOG PROJECT'
With six weeks left until Election Day, the Alliance for Better Campaigns=20
today launched a Media Watchdog Project=20
(http://www.ourairwaves.org/scorecard) to encourage citizens to monitor=20
their local stations and call on broadcasters to devote more time to=20
candidate and issue discussion =AD particularly at the state and local=
level.=20
The Media Watchdog Project asks citizens to score media coverage of=20
elections on a variety of factors =AD including coverage of state and local=
=20
races, the amount of issue discussion vs. strategy or horserace coverage,=20
and the number of candidate soundbites. After completing the scorecard,=20
citizens have an opportunity to send customized feedback to station=20
managers and news directors via email. The launch of the Alliance=92s Media=
=20
Watchdog Project follows on the heels of the =93Community-by-Community=20
Campaign for Better Local Broadcasting=94. That campaign, organized by the=
=20
Public Interest, Public Airwaves Coalition, uses online advocacy technology=
=20
to allow citizens to connect with others in their community, and to=20
schedule meetings with local broadcasters to express their concerns about=20
election coverage. At the meetings, citizen activists also ask broadcasters=
=20
to sign a pledge agreeing to air a minimum of two hours per week of=20
candidate- or electoral issue-centered discourse during prime viewing hours=
=20
in the six weeks prior to the November 2 elections. The Alliance is a=20
founding member of the PIPA Coalition [which includes the Benton=
Foundation].
[SOURCE: Alliance for Better Campaigns Press Release]
http://www.ourairwaves.org/press/release.php?ReleaseID=3D61
BIG THREE COMMIT TO DEBATES, FOX WAFFLES
More than 45,000 people have asked the major broadcast networks to provide=
=20
coverage of the debates between candidates for President and Vice=20
President. CBS responded within 18 hours of the petition's launch. The=20
office of CBS News President Andrew Hayward contacted Media for Democracy=20
on Friday to announce: "Absolutely, positively, 1,000 percent correct, we=20
will carry all of the debates live." By the end of the day Monday, NBC and=
=20
ABC had followed suit, announcing that they planned to cover all of the=20
debates as well. The one hold out remains Fox, which has so far committed=20
to air only one debate, the first, via their more than 200 local broadcast=
=20
affiliates. Given Fox's track record there is reason for concern. In 2000,=
=20
Fox skipped a debate, opting to air the premiere episode of "Dark Angel."=20
This year, they have the rights to air the Major League Baseball playoffs,=
=20
and might preempt the debates if they pose a scheduling conflict.
The URL below will help readers petition Fox to air all of the debates.
[SOURCE: MediaChannel]
http://www.mediafordemocracy.us/campaign/debate
COURT RULING WON'T STOP 527 ADS
A new court order requiring election regulators to rewrite campaign-finance=
=20
rules isn't likely to affect this year=92s presidential election,=20
particularly the independent groups funding attack TV and radio ads on both=
=20
candidates. The chairman of the Federal Election Commission says current=20
campaign finance regulations are all but certain to remain in place though=
=20
this fall=92s election, despite a court order to rewrite rules implementing=
=20
the 2002 reform law. =93It is literally impossible to have new regulations=
=20
prior to the elections,=94 said Chairman Bradley Smith. Any new rules would=
=20
have to be submitted for a round of public comment before approval by the=20
commission.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Bill McConnell]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA454690?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
CBS STORM WASHES OVER VIACOM
Although the CBS news division will suffer some damage because of the=20
National Guard memo scandal, there's good news at parent Viacom -- the=20
company will go right along making lots of money. See how -- an another=20
example of the "power of the brand" -- at the URL below.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Geraldine Fabikant]
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/22/business/media/22viacom.html
(requires registration)
Also see:
CBS, Sitting Between Fiasco And Fallout
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Howard Kurtz]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39939-2004Sep21.html
(requires registration)
CBS Controversy Comes As Network Nightly News Shows Are Losing Clout
The CBS debacle has raised worries within and outside the news business=20
that the media will turn even warier about taking on contentious subjects=20
just as the campaign is heating up.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Brooks Barnes brooks.barnes( at )wsj.com &=
=20
Joe Flint joe.flint( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109581440937724464,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_marketplace
(requires subscription)
BLOGGERS KEEP EYE ON THE NEWS
Are you starting to take bloggers more seriously? Apparently, the=20
traditional media are. The CBS/National Guard memo incident is=20
demonstrating how there's an expert about everything out there and how=20
quickly they can share their knowledge now. "There's no question we all=20
have to take them seriously,=94 says Terence Smith, media correspondent and=
=20
senior producer at PBS' The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. =93They do provide, at=
=20
least potentially, a useful fact-checking function." For the old media,=20
=93this must have been what it was like for the Catholic Church when movable=
=20
type was invented,=94 says Jack Shafer, who writes a media column called=20
=93Press Box=94 for the online magazine Slate. =93Until then, the church=20
controlled who would be the scribes.=94 For some media experts, the=
documents=20
episode underscores a troubling fact about this year's political reporting.=
=20
With just six weeks left in the presidential campaign, the media experts=20
say it appears the stories the news media will be most remembered for=20
reporting are about memos that might be forgeries and things that happened=
=20
30 years ago on a river in Vietnam. Those stories focus on charges =97 all=
=20
challenged =97 leveled by a group of Vietnam War veterans at Democratic=20
presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry. Many editors say they recognize=20
what's happening and hope to use the time between now and Election Day,=20
Nov. 2, to put more substance into the news they report. =93I'm reaching the=
=20
point where I want to ratchet down considerably the volume of coverage we=20
give to the campaigns' back-and-forth and ratchet up the coverage we give=20
to where the candidates stand on the issues,=94 says Douglas Clifton, editor=
=20
of The Plain Dealer in Cleveland.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR:Mark Memmott]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20040922/a_documents_media22.a...
tm
LEGISLATION
PUBLIC INTEREST GROUPS DECRY SHORTCOMINGS OF "SAVE LIVES" DIGITAL=20
TRANSITION ACT
The Consumer Federation of America and Free Press have sent an open letter=
=20
to members of the Senate Commerce Committee about provisions in the=20
Spectrum Availability for Emergency-Response and Law Enforcement To Improve=
=20
Vital Emergency Services Act (the Save Lives Act). The legislation aims at=
=20
quickening the transition to digital-only TV broadcasting to make spectrum=
=20
available to public safety workers. "Unfortunately, the provisions that=20
claim to protect consumers and promote the public interest in other uses of=
=20
the airwaves are a disaster," the letter states. The groups say flaws in=20
the legislation include: 1) failure to allocate any of the airwaves to=20
unlicensed use and makes it harder for the FCC to designate spectrum for=20
unlicensed uses in the future, 2) earmarking far too much radio spectrum=20
for auction, without any analysis of the needs for resources to accomplish=
=20
the transition, 3) failure to allocate any of the proceeds of the auction=20
of the airwaves to a public trust for noncommercial or community media, 4)=
=20
failure to require full compatibility for all television sets in all=20
households, 5) opening the door for cable and satellite companies to seek=20
subsidies for equipment they are planning to deploy on a commercial basis,=
=20
and 6) providing no policy direction for establishing the public interest=20
obligations of broadcasters, cable operators, and satellite companies.
The Senate Commerce Committee is expected to vote on the bill Wednesday.
[SOURCE: Consumer Federation of America/Free Press]
http://www.freepress.net/news/release.php?id=3D26
See also:
Spectrum Bill Vote Scheduled
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: Bill McConnell]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA454714?display=3DBreaking+New...
ferral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
BEFORE SENATE, VERIZON WIRELESS WARNS COLLEAGUES ON 411
Privacy concerns were raised at the Senate Commerce Committee hearing on a=
=20
411 directory for wireless phones. Verizon Wireless CEO Dennis Strigl said=
=20
his company would never participate in such a directory and Sen Barbara=20
Boxer (D-CA) warned colleagues about the =93chaos=94 that would ensue once=
=20
constituents in their states start
receiving unwanted calls on their wireless phone. She added she was working=
=20
with Sen Specter (R-PA) on an amendment to proposed legislation, S-1963, to=
=20
add privacy protections to a bill that already aims to require opt-in=20
privacy protection for existing wireless subscribers and opt-out options=20
for new subscribers. Sen Boxer wants consumers to know about requests for=20
their numbers before the information is given out.
The bill is scheduled to be marked-up by the same committee today.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Terry Lane]
(Not available online)
Also see --
*News.com
http://news.com.com/Will+cell+numbers+be+listed+with+411/2100-1039_3-537...
.html?tag=3Dnefd.top
See summaries of testimony and links below.
http://commerce.senate.gov/hearings/witnesslist.cfm?id=3D1315
CONGRESS SHOULD PASS CELL PHONE NUMBER PRIVACY BILL BEFORE WIRELESS=20
INDUSTRY LAUNCHES 411 DIRECTORY
Congress should immediately pass a law to give cell phone customers control=
=20
over their phone numbers before the wireless industry launches a proposed=20
411 directory in the coming months, Consumers Union urged Tuesday in=20
written testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee. Consumers Union is=
=20
supporting S. 1963, the =93Wireless 411 Privacy Act,=94 because the bill=
would=20
make law some privacy protections rather than relying on industry promises=
=20
to do so. The bill, which is to be considered today by the full Senate=20
Commerce Committee, prohibits charging new fees for unlisted numbers and=20
gives consumers discretion whether to list their number. However,=20
Consumers Union is urging that the legislation be strengthened through an=20
amendment to require that all customers affirmatively =93opt-in=94 to the=20
directory in writing. As filed, the legislation creates a dual system of=20
obtaining consumers=92 permission to have their cell phone numbers listed in=
=20
the directory. Current customers would have to affirmatively opt into the=20
directory, while new customers would have their numbers included in the=20
directory unless they opted-out. The directory is expected to reap billions=
=20
for the cell phone industry -- based on anticipated revenues from callers=20
to the 411 directory service and more calls being connected.
[SOURCE: Consumers Union]
http://www.consumersunion.org/pub/core_telecom_and_utilities/001380.html...
e
EPIC TO TESTIFY ON WIRELESS PHONE DIRECTORIES
On Tuesday, September 21, EPIC Executive Director Marc Rotenberg testified=
=20
before the Senate Commerce Committee on "The Wireless 411 Privacy Act." The=
=20
law would establish some privacy safeguards for wireless phone subscribers.=
=20
EPIC's testimony argues for an opt-in approach for directory listings,=20
security safeguards, and a prohibition on the sale of personal mobile phone=
=20
numbers to data brokers.
[SOURCE: Electronic Privacy Information Center]
http://www.epic.org/privacy/wireless/dirtest_904.html
LARGENT PROMOTES WIRELESS 411 IN SENATE HEARING
Citing the proposed Wireless 411 service as the newest chapter in the=20
wireless industry=92s outstanding history of providing consumers with=20
attractive options, Steve Largent, President and CEO of CTIA-The Wireless=20
Association, testified today before the United States Senate Committee on=20
Commerce, Science and Transportation. Largent=92s testimony was in regard to=
=20
S. 1963, the "Wireless 411 Privacy Act", introduced by Senator Arlen=20
Specter (R-Pennsylvania) and Senator Barbara Boxer (D-California). Largent=
=20
told the committee the wireless industry has always placed a premium on=20
protecting consumers=92 privacy and that the proposed service was developed=
=20
with maintaining that respect. Largent says the Wireless 411 service would=
=20
be appealing to millions of small business owners in the United States as=20
well as the more than eight million Americans who have "cut the cord" and=20
exclusively use their wireless phone for telecommunication. Many of these=20
customers currently pay to have their wireless numbers listed in "landline"=
=20
directories. He also outlined the featured components of the system: only=20
consumers who "opt-in" will have their numbers available in the database;=20
if a consumer chooses not to be included, they will not have to do=20
anything; there will be no fee assessed for not participating; there will=20
be no published directory of the numbers; there will be no Internet access=
=20
to the numbers; the database cannot be sold to any third-party. Largent=20
also told the committee that legislation was premature since the service=20
had not even been implemented, and that legislation was unnecessary due to=
=20
a much more powerful force, the wireless consumer.
[SOURCE: Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association]
http://www.ctia.org/news_media/press/body.cfm?record_id=3D1436
Read Larget's testimony at
http://www.ctia.org/news_media/press/body.cfm?record_id=3D1435
BROADCAST VOYEURISM, ANTI-PIRACY AND PRIVACY TACKLED BY HOUSE TUESDAY
The House approved three bills creating new criminal and civil penalties=20
for voyeurism, software and media piracy, and online fraud. The voyeurism=20
bill, S-1301 by Sen. DeWine (R-O.), already passed the Senate last year on=
=20
a voice vote. It was amended and needs to go back to the Senate, but could=
=20
make it to President Bush's desk this year. No legislation similar to the=20
copyright bill (HR-3632) or domain name fraud (HR-3754) has cleared the=20
Senate.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Patrick Ross]
(Not available online)
Also see:
* Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=3DXTNLIHK31OC1YCRBAE...
A?type=3DinternetNews&storyID=3D6297075
* News.com
http://news.com.com/House+takes+on+piracy%2C+video+voyeurism/2110-1028_3...
6601.html?tag=3Dnefd.hed
CRITICS SAY BILL COULD TRIGGER FLOOD OF FAXES
The Junk Fax Prevention Act, which has passed through the House and awaits=
=20
a vote in the Senate, was designed to clarify rules for advertising via fax=
=20
machines, but could expose consumers to a flood of unwanted solicitations.=
=20
The bill mirrors current law by banning unsolicited faxes, but makes=20
explicit an exception for companies that have "established business=20
relationships" with consumers or other businesses. Under that exception,=20
consumers who once purchased a product, or even sought information, from a=
=20
company could be sent faxed promotions even if they had expressed no=20
interest in future transactions or had not provided their fax number. The=20
relationship could be at least five years old, but no more than seven,=20
under the bill's terms.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Jonathan Krim]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39773-2004Sep21.html
(requires registration)
CABLE
THE WAR FOR YOUR REMOTE: SATELLITE GAINS ON CABLE
Why cable subscribership went down for the first time last year, satellite=
=20
TV operators added 2.3 million new customers. One of the biggest reasons=20
for satellite's recent gains is that cable companies, which still have=20
three times more subscribers than satellite, have lost what has long been=20
one of their most compelling competitive advantages: the ability to offer=20
local channels. That includes the local affiliates of networks such as CBS=
=20
and Fox, and popular shows such as the local news. In recent years, the two=
=20
major satellite providers, DirecTV and EchoStar, have added enough=20
satellite capacity to accommodate these extra channels in most major=20
markets. EchoStar offers them to more than 92% of U.S. households. Cable=20
has held on to its biggest spending customers and is fighting back by=20
offering local digital channels and video-on-demand.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Peter Grant at peter.grant( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB109580709654324175,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
s_personal_journal
(requires subscription)
THREE BELLS SUPPORT DOF'S BRAND X APPEAL
BellSouth, SBC and Verizon have asked the Supreme Court to review a=20
decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San=20
Francisco, which held that cable-modem service is subject to open-access=20
requirements. The three Bells are concerned that if the Supreme Court does=
=20
not strike down the ruling in Brand X Internet Services vs. the Federal=20
Communications Commission, the FCC will be denied the authority assigned it=
=20
by Congress to establish a national deregulatory approach to broadband=20
services, regardless of the provider. In March 2002, the FCC decided to=20
keep cable-modem service deregulated, and the agency later proposed to=20
accord the same treatment to the Bells=92 digital-subscriber-line service.=
=20
But the Ninth Circuit=92s reversal of the cable-modem decision froze the FCC=
=20
from taking further steps to deregulate DSL, which must comply with=20
open-access rules.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA454708?display=3DBreaking+News
(requires subscription)
PUBLIC BROADCASTING
PBS PANDERS TO RIGHT WITH NEW PROGRAMMING
A new public television program called The Journal Editorial Report,=20
featuring writers and editors from the conservative Wall Street Journal=20
editorial page, debuted recently on public television stations around the=
=20
country. The show joins Tucker Carlson: Unfiltered, hosted by conservative=
=20
CNN pundit Tucker Carlson, and a planned program featuring conservative=20
commentator Michael Medved as part of what many see as politically=20
motivated decisions to bring more right-wing voices to "balance" public=20
television. The notion that public broadcasting should find ways to balance=
=20
itself is odd, and accepts at face value the right-wing critique that PBS=20
is biased to the left. If anything, public broadcasting is theoretically=20
designed to balance the voices that dominate the commercial media. As the=
=20
1967 Public Broadcasting Act proposed, public broadcasting should have=20
"instructional, educational and cultural purposes" and should address "the=
=20
needs of unserved and underserved audiences, particularly
children and minorities." Instead, public television has in practice=20
largely been a home for elite viewpoints, dominated by long-running=20
political shows hosted by conservatives and by business shows aimed at the=
=20
investing class. CPB was initially intended to be a "heat shield" for=20
public broadcasting, protecting programmers from political pressures from=20
partisan lawmakers who control the purse strings. It's long since become a=
=20
mechanism for transmitting Congress' ideological desires to public=20
broadcasting, and the new shows announced for public TV show that it's very=
=20
effective in that role.
[SOURCE: FAIR]
http://www.fair.org/activism/pbs-goes-right.html
CPB AND IMLS CREATE PARTNERSHIP FOR A NATION OF LEARNERS
Partnership for a Nation of Learners, a multi-year, $3 million initiative=20
of CPB and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), will=20
provide resources to bring together libraries, public broadcasters, and=20
museums to leverage community assets and create new pathways to learning,=20
discovery, and exploration. The initiative will offer competitive grants to=
=20
support existing collaborations and to create new ones, encourage=20
professional development, and conduct project evaluations to measure=20
effectiveness. Grant application guidelines and more information about the=
=20
initiative will be available on October 31, 2004, at=20
http://www.cpb.org/partners/.
[SOURCE: Corporation for Public Broadcasting/Institute of Museum and=20
Library Services Press Release]
http://www.cpb.org/programs/pr.php?prn=3D375
Also see:
Tomlinson, Cruz Elected to Second Terms as Chair, Vice Chair of CPB Board
Kenneth Tomlinson, a veteran journalist and author, has served on the CPB=20
board since September 2000. Prior to being elected to his first term as=20
board chair, he chaired CPB=92s audit and finance committee (2001-2003).=20
Currently, he chairs the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) which=20
oversees all U.S. international broadcasting including Voice of America=20
(VOA), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Radio Free Asia (RFA) and=
=20
Radio-TV Marti. Tomlinson was editor-in-chief of Reader=92s Digest until=
1996.
Frank Cruz was appointed to the CPB board in August 1994, and was=20
reconfirmed for a second term in 2000. He is a past chair of CPB=92s audit=
=20
and finance committee (1996 to 1998), and past board chair (1999 to 2001).=
=20
Cruz is currently president of Cruz and Associates, which he founded in=20
1995. He founded Gulf Atlantic Life Insurance Company, the first=20
Hispanic-owned life insurance company in the United States. A former=20
journalist, Cruz is a founder of Telemundo, the nation=92s second Spanish=20
language network, and of KVEA-TV in Los Angeles. He is a member of the=20
board of trustees of the University of Southern California and a trustee of=
=20
the James Irvine Foundation and Health Net.
http://www.cpb.org/programs/pr.php?prn=3D376
IF ONLY IT WERE APRIL
MEXICO CHURCHES WAGE HIGH-TECH WAR ON CELL PHONES
Turn off those g*% %( at )&# cell phones, say some Mexican churches. Actually,=20
they are using state-of-the-art technology to silence cell phones that ring=
=20
during mass. The technology blocks incoming calls. "Before we had the=20
system, it was very uncomfortable hearing calls coming in during the=20
celebration of mass. But now it's 95 percent quiet," said Bulmaro Carranza,=
=20
a caretaker at Sacred Heart church. Outgoing calls are not blocked as some=
=20
church goes may have god's number.
[SOURCE: Reuters]
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=3DtechnologyNews&storyID=3...
6345
NEW GERMAN MOBILE PHONE TO DETECT BAD BREATH
Some people take smelling good rather seriously and, thankfully, there's a=
=20
cell phone maker with them in mind. Siemens Mobile is developing the first=
=20
mobile phone that will alert users when their breath is bad or if they are=
=20
giving off offensive smells. And added feature will dispense breath mints=20
and deodorant.
[SOURCE: Reuters]
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=3DtechnologyNews&storyID=3...
4563
--------------------------------------------------------------
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.
--------------------------------------------------------------