For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
After Katrina, Communications Still Hobbled
Gulf Region Infrastructure Slowly Revives
BellSouth Exec Says Katrina Caused Unprecedented Damage to Facilities
Gulf Coast Regulators Face Tough Telecom Issues in Katrina's Wake
FCC, Congress Urge Wireless Industry to Keep Service On For Hurricane Vict=
ims
Live From the Astrodome, a Radio Station for Evacuees
Small WISPs Help Hurricane Victims
Media Hurricane
Online Scams Solicit Katrina Donations, Risk Identity Theft
TELEVISION
Citing Katrina, Experts Step Up Push For Digital TV Transition
Barton Says Committee Won't Make Sept. 16 DTV Deadline
NCTA: We'll Fight vs. Multicast Must-Carry
Consumer Groups Oppose =93Multicast Must Carry=94
Must-Carry Fights Smut-Carry, Says NRB
Texas OKs Statewide Cable Franchises
PBS Stands for Pork
Liquor and TV Advertising
OWNERSHIP
Study Ties Indecency to Consolidation of Media
Web Buying Spree for Big Media
EBay May Buy Web Phone Firm In Strategy Shift
INTERNATIONAL
Controversy dogs Telstra stake sale
In Japan Campaign, Web Goes Silent
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
AFTER KATRINA, COMMUNICATIONS STILL HOBBLED
Since the Hurricane Katrina, government officials and communications=20
vendors have been working nonstop to repair damaged public-safety systems,=
=20
with their efforts sometimes bordering on the heroic. Volunteers drove=20
vehicles packed with communications equipment from as far away as Florida=
=20
within hours after the storm passed to help some of the hardest hit areas.=
=20
Of the 17 public-safety systems being tracked by Motorola eight were "up=20
and running" yesterday morning. The company listed seven others, including=
=20
the one serving the Louisiana State Police, as "marginal" and wasn't able=
=20
to make contact with two others. The communications failures left many=20
fire, ambulance and police officers with no way to communicate with their=
=20
headquarters or each other at a time when thousands needed rescue and=20
lawlessness was rampant. At one point in New Orleans, hundreds of police=20
officers were trying to communicate on two radio channels on a backup=20
system, forcing most of them to wait for minutes to get their messages=20
through. Public-safety officials and vendors say they've already begun to=
=20
think about how to improve emergency communications. But past efforts to=20
improve networks after disasters like Sept. 11 have fallen short of goals.=
=20
"After every single calamity we see the exact same thing," says Reed Hundt,=
=20
former chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Peter Grant peter.grant( at )wsj.com and=
=20
Christopher Rhoads christopher.rhoads( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112613389036634560,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
us_marketplace
(requires subscription)
GULF REGION INFRASTRUCTURE SLOWLY REVIVES
Key parts of the Gulf Coast's transportation systems, communications and=20
energy production remain out of service for the foreseeable future. More=20
than 1 million telephone lines and about 30 percent of cell phone towers in=
=20
the affected region remain out of service. Louisiana officials yesterday=20
began dealing with cell phone systems in Baton Rouge that are overloaded=20
with traffic from evacuees who have reached the state's capital. "It's=20
choked," Louisiana Public Service Commissioner James M. "Jimmy" Field said=
=20
of the cellular network. "We are trying to work out something to make sure=
=20
emergency calls can get through." Even for the companies that successfully=
=20
navigated all the downed infrastructure, the use of generators, satellite=
=20
phones and rerouted shipments may exact new costs. "Businesses are going to=
=20
be able to get around all these disruptions, but it won't be cheap," said=
=20
Peter Morici, an economist at the University of Maryland business school.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Neil Irwin and Sara Kehaulani Goo]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/07/AR200509...
2099.html
(requires registration)
BELLSOUTH EXEC SAYS KATRINA CAUSED UNPRECEDENTED DAMAGE TO FACILITIES
In the first of what will probably be many Congressional hearings on=20
Hurricane Katrina, Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., who chairs the Commerce=20
Committee's Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee, raised=20
concerns about the ability of emergency rescue personnel to communicate=20
with each other. "Clearly that is not an acceptable situation," responded=
=20
Kenneth Moran, director of the homeland security office in the FCC=20
Enforcement Bureau. "Effective communications for emergency responders is a=
=20
priority for the commission." But he blamed the communications problems=20
partly on other factors, such as power outages and battery shortages. He=20
said security concerns prevented rescuers from replenishing some supplies.=
=20
A BellSouth executive praised the FCC and other agencies for waiving=20
restrictions to make it easier for BellSouth to rebuild. He also asked=20
lawmakers to help BellSouth secure access to capital that it will need to=
=20
finance repairs. The FCC's Moran said the storm disrupted phone service to=
=20
3 million customers. Of 41 broadcast radio stations in the New Orleans=20
area, only four remained on the air after Katrina. A week after the=20
hurricane, more than 1 million phone customers still did not have service,=
=20
30 percent of cellular sites were down, and 50 to 100 TV and radio stations=
=20
were dark.
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: David Hatch]
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-LNHH1126125165356.html
* Statement of Kenneth Moran, FCC
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-260895A1.pdf
* Fifty to 100 Stations Still Off Air
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6254917?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* New Orleans Station Gets Boost From Paxson
WDSU, a Hearst-Argyle-owned NBC affiliate, was knocked off the air by=20
Hurricane Katrina, but it is now back, broadcasting on Paxson stations in=
=20
New Orleans and Houston.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: ]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6255184?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
GULF COAST REGULATORS FACE TOUGH ISSUES IN KATRINA'S WAKE
State telecom regulators in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama are=20
returning to work and face tough decisions: 1) Whether to waive service=20
quality standards such as for timely installations and repairs be waived=20
until carriers complete restoration of service and replacement of destroyed=
=20
facilities; 2) Whether to allow regulated carriers a temporary local rate=
=20
increase or surcharge to enable them to recover the extraordinary and=20
unexpected costs the storm caused; 3) Whether to let carriers restore=20
networks to pre-storm condition, or encourage them toward wholesale=20
replacement of older wires, cables and switches with the latest in fiber=20
and digital technologies; and 4) How to use state regulation to facilitate=
=20
electronic communications among emergency responders and prevent breakdowns.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Herb Kirchhoff]
(Not available online)
FCC, CONGRESS URGE WIRELESS INDUSTRY TO KEEP SERVICE ON FOR HURRICANE VICTI=
MS
The FCC and members of Congress urged the wireless industry to maintain=20
service to Hurricane Katrina victims who can't pay their bills. The FCC=20
gave wireless service licensees with hurricane-affected customers until=20
today (Sept. 8) to submit a report verifying =93compliance with the standar=
d=20
industry practice of maintaining service to people displaced by Hurricane=
=20
Katrina despite failure to pay bills.=94 Reports should describe the grace=
=20
period or other relief licensees are providing, the agency said. =93Hurrica=
ne=20
Katrina displaced hundreds of thousands of residents of Louisiana,=20
Mississippi and Alabama, and many thousands of these customers rely on=20
their wireless service during this difficult time to remain in touch with=
=20
loved ones,=94 the FCC said Wed. It said affected residents can't pay their=
=20
bills for many reasons. For example, it said, the U.S. Post Office isn't=20
operating throughout the affected areas, commercial power isn't available=
=20
everywhere and communications networks, including Internet for online bill=
=20
payment, aren't at pre-hurricane capabilities.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Susan Polyakova]
(Not available online)
* Facilitating Restoration of Wireless Facilities in Areas Impacted by=20
Hurricane Katrina
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-05-2427A1.doc
* Maintaining Wireless Service for Consumers Affected by Hurricane Katrina
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-05-2421A1.doc
LIVE FROM THE ASTRODOME, A RADIO STATION FOR EVACUEES
Federal regulators have authorized an unusual radio station to serve the=20
estimated 10,000 evacuees living in the Houston Astrodome, part of an=20
effort to fill the information void left by Hurricane Katrina's disruption=
=20
of communications services along the Gulf Coast. The Federal Communications=
=20
Commission over the weekend granted Houston relief volunteers and media=20
organizers permission to build a 30-watt radio station inside the=20
Astrodome. Government and industry officials said it was the first time=20
they could recall that a domestic radio station had been set up primarily=
=20
to keep victims of a U.S. disaster informed. They predicted that the=20
station would improve communications for residents, who rely mostly on=20
bulletin board postings and word of mouth for news about jobs, missing=20
relatives, housing and child care.
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Jube Shiver Jr]
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-radio8sep08,1,25...
20.story?coll=3Dla-news-a_section
(requires registration)
* Broadcasters Offer Portable TVs to First Responders in Hurricane Katrina=
=20
Relief Efforts
The National Association of Broadcasters is partnering with Louisiana and=
=20
Mississippi broadcasters to distribute 1,300 battery-operated handheld=20
television sets to public safety officials assisting with Hurricane Katrina=
=20
relief efforts.
[SOURCE: National Association of Broadcasters press release]
http://www.nab.org/newsroom/pressrel/Releases/090705_HurricaneKatrina_TV...
dsets.htm
SMALL WISPs HELP HURRICANE VICTIMS
Stepping to the plate, hundreds of small wireless ISPs are helping Gulf=20
Coast residents caught in Hurricane
Katrina. The Part 15 Organization (Part-15.org) -- one of the biggest WISP=
=20
groups -- met Fri. with FCC officials
via teleconference to discuss how to utilize WISPs better, and got the=20
necessary clearances Tues. night. The FCC has designated Part-15.org as a=
=20
single point of contact, responsible for gathering
information the Commission needs to coordinate WISP efforts with the Red=20
Cross, FEMA and others,
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Susan Polyakova]
(Not available online)
MEDIA HURRICANE
[Commentary] The magnitude of the Hurricane Katrina disaster and the=20
media's astonished--and astonishingly vigorous-- response puts in=20
perspective how hard it has generally become, in this country, to deliver=
=20
the unadorned, unapologetic truth. Indeed, for at least as long as George=
=20
Bush has been in office, the great unspoken challenge for mainstream=20
journalists has been to do one's job while keeping one's job.
[SOURCE: AlterNet, AUTHOR: Russ Baker, TomPaine.com]
http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/25158/
ONLINE SCAMS SOLICIT KATRINA DONATIONS, RISK IDENTITY THEFT
Thousands of domain names containing "hurricane," "Katrina" or "Hurricane=
=20
Katrina" have popped up on the Internet, and millions of people are=20
receiving email soliciting donations for hurricane victims. But authorities=
=20
and Internet security experts warn that some of these Web sites may be=20
scams intended to trick people into handing over money and identity=20
information or download viruses onto their computers. The Federal Bureau of=
=20
Investigation has identified at least a dozen potential Katrina-related=20
Internet frauds that it is investigating -- and the agency expects the=20
number to increase in coming days.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Li Yuan li.yuan( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112614471129734872,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
us_marketplace
(requires subscription)
TELEVISION
CITING KATRINA, EXPERTS STEP UP PUSH FOR DIGITAL TV TRANSITION
Given that many of the problems Hurricane Katrina emergency workers have=20
encountered are due to an ineffective communications system, a panel of=20
experts suggested that it would be unwise for Congress to delay action on=
=20
the transition from analog to digital television. When broadcasters make=20
the transition to digital signals, it will free more spectrum for use by=20
public safety agencies in communicating across jurisdictions. Digital=20
television "is about public safety, it's about the emergency response and=
=20
it's about Katrina," Cheryl Leanza, principal legislative council for the=
=20
National League of Cities, told a Capitol Hill luncheon sponsored by the=20
New America Foundation. "The idea that we would set aside this issue ... is=
=20
a little mystifying," she declared.
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: Chloe Albanesius]
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-VXPM1126125619410.html
BARTON SAYS COMMITTEE WON'T MAKE SEPT 16 DTV DEADLINE
House Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-TX) hopes to put DTV=20
legislation on a =93fast track=94 behind concerns about interoperability du=
ring=20
Hurricane Katrina, but the crisis will make it impossible to meet the Sept.=
=20
16 budget reconciliation deadline that would include a DTV measure. He made=
=20
his comments after a full-day hearing on the impact of the hurricane=20
focusing mainly on oil prices and emergency response times. The committee=
=20
put together a discussion draft in May and a mark-up is expected to be=20
scheduled for some time in the next 2 weeks.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Anne Veigle, Tania Panczyk-Collins]
(Not available online)
NCTA: WE'LL FIGHT VS MULTICAST MUST-CARRY
Big cable vowed Wednesday to fight broadcasters=92 plea for Congress to for=
ce=20
cable operators to carry any digital program a TV station broadcasts. =93Th=
e=20
point is, it=92s just not right,=94 said Kyle McSlarrow, President of the=
=20
National Cable & Telecommunications Association. In the same vein, the NCTA=
=20
will begin a lobbying campaign against the designated hitter rule and=20
low-fat ice cream. McSlarrow said forcing carriage of the six digital=20
channels that broadcasters can send would deny others space on increasingly=
=20
crowded cable systems. He said such a requirement would violate=20
constitutional guarantees against government-compelled speech, and against=
=20
government takings of private property. McSlarrow said he's no fan of=20
artificial turf either.
[SOURCE: MediaWeek, AUTHOR: Todd Shields]
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=3D100...
6074
* Cable Lobbyist Calls 'Multicasting' A 'Taking' Of Private Property
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-QPAS1126124018268.html
CONSUMER GROUPS OPPOSE "MULTICAST MUST CARRY"
Consumers Union, the Consumer Federation of America, Free Press, and the=20
Center for Digital Democracy urged Congress to reject any proposals that=20
would require automatic cable distribution of every channel local=20
broadcasters choose to provide following the digital television transition,=
=20
known as =93multicast must carry.=94 In letters to the House and Senate=20
Commerce Committees, the groups wrote, =93=85there exists no compelling pub=
lic=20
policy reason at this time to extend this requirement to all digital=20
channels, nor is there a significant consumer benefit of doing so=85 A=20
decision on multicast must-carry is premature and should not be made before=
=20
a thorough consideration of viewpoint diversity, consumer benefit, and=20
policies that will increase access to diverse content through technologies=
=20
that use the public airwaves.=94 The groups argue that the dominant=20
broadcasters would only see their already significant megaphone amplified=
=20
under multicast must-carry, creating the very outcome that Congress has=20
sought to avoid when it rejected FCC=92s broadcast ownership rules=97the=20
expansion of the reach of dominant media voices.
[SOURCE: Consumers Union Press Release]
http://www.hearusnow.org/other/newsroom/tvradiocable/cuopposesmulticastm...
carry/
* Consumer Groups Oppose Multicast Must-Carry
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6255046?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* Consumer Groups Fight Multicast Must-Carry
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6255182.html?display=3DBreaking+News
(requires subscription)
MUST-CARRY FIGHTS SMUT-CARRY, SAYS NRB
Religious Broadcasters have come up with a new argument for requiring cable=
=20
to carry all of the channels broadcasters can fit into their digital=20
spectrum allotment: At least they won't be cable channels. That dimension,=
=20
they argued in a letter to House Speaker Dennis Hastert, is that their=20
stations could be bumped in favor of cable channels that "will not be=20
subject to federal indecency standards."
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6254415?display=3DBreaking+Ne...
referral=3DSUPP
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
TEXAS OKs STATEWIDE CABLE FRANCHISES
As expected, Texas Gov. Rick Perry has signed the bill, passed in a special=
=20
legislative session, which authorizes statewide franchises for competitive=
=20
cable franchises. The wide-ranging telecommunications bill also deregulates=
=20
some of the wire-line services of the incumbent local providers, including=
=20
SBC Communications and Verizon Communications,. And the bill promotes the=
=20
deployment of broadband over power lines.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Linda Haugsted]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6255082.html?display=3DBreaking+News
* Texas Opens Door to Cable Competitors
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=3D100...
6376
(both stories require subscription)
PBS STANDS FOR PORK
[Commentary] When the House of Representatives restored $100 million to the=
=20
budget of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, bringing its annual=20
appropriation up to $400 million, there were no headlines in the Post, New=
=20
York Times or other media about wasting taxpayer dollars on "pork." In the=
=20
classic sense, however, spending on public broadcasting qualifies as pork.=
=20
It represents members of Congress returning money to their districts, in=20
the form of grants to local public TV and radio stations.
[SOURCE: Accuracy in Media, AUTHOR: Cliff Kincaid]
http://www.aim.org/media_monitor/3975_0_2_0_C/
LIQUOR AND TV ADVERTISING
For virtually all mainstream advertisers, television has for decades been=
=20
the medium that matters most, whether broadcast or cable, local or=20
national, stations or networks. The abilities of TV to bring a sales spiel=
=20
to life with sight, sound and motion - and to reach large numbers of=20
consumers quickly and frequently - have been invaluable in generating=20
demand for products from fluoride toothpaste to light beer. But Under=20
voluntary policies that dated to the beginning of radio and television,=20
distilled spirits remained off those media. Indeed, it has been brewers'=20
access to television as an advertising medium that distillers have deemed=
=20
the biggest reason for their loss of market share and so-called buzz to=20
beer brands, particularly among consumers aged 21 to 34. But in 1996, after=
=20
Seagram began defying the bans, they were lifted, although the biggest=20
broadcast TV networks - ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, UPN and WB - continue to refuse=
=20
to run liquor commercials. So the distillers have cobbled together an=20
informal web of national cable networks, local cable systems and local=20
broadcast stations to run their commercials. Among the more than two dozen=
=20
cable networks that take liquor spots are BET, Bravo, CNN, CMT, Comedy=20
Central, Discovery Channel, FX, Fox Sports Network, OLN, Spike TV, Golf=20
Channel, Sci-Fi Channel, USA and VH1.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Stuart Elliott]
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/08/business/media/08adco.html
(requires registration)
OWNERSHIP
STUDY TIES INDECENCY TO CONSOLIDATION OF MEDIA
The consolidation of the broadcast industry over the last decade may have=
=20
increased indecent programming on the nation's airwaves, according to a new=
=20
report by the Center for Creative Voices in Media and Fordham University.=
=20
According to the report, as leading broadcasters such as Clear Channel=20
Communications and Viacom Inc.'s Infinity Broadcasting have bought more=20
stations, they have frequently replaced local programming with shock jocks=
=20
such as Howard Stern and Bubba the Love Sponge, who are prone to vulgarity.=
=20
Those programming decisions may have lured more young listeners, the ones=
=20
that advertisers most covet, while also saving the companies money. But=20
that may have led to an increase in indecency complaints, according to the=
=20
report, which is to be released today. From 2000 to 2003, the report found,=
=20
the nation's four largest radio companies racked up 96% of the fines handed=
=20
out by the Federal Communications Commission, while their stations=20
accounted for only about half of the country's listening audience. The=20
study suggests that instead of relying on stiffer fines, regulators seeking=
=20
to rein in indecency would be better off breaking up large broadcast groups.
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Sallie Hofmeister]
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-indecent8sep08,1,2409...
.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)
For more on release of the report, see:
http://www.creativevoices.us/php-bin/news/showArticle.php?id=3D135&PHPSE...
D=3Dd3b061b92e55ba728d9c4d35be013930
WEB BUYING SPREE FOR BIG MEDIA
[Commentary] About.com is among the many Web properties that traditional=20
media companies have snapped up this year as they scramble to cash in on=20
the second big Internet advertising boom. While Internet ads claim a small=
=20
slice of the overall ad pie -- generating not quite $10 billion in the=20
United States last year, less than 5 percent of all ad revenue -- the=20
online dollars grew more than 30 percent, much faster than off-line. In=20
response, traditional media companies have been making some startling moves.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Leslie Walker]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/07/AR200509...
2178.html
(requires registration)
* News Corp. to Pay $650 Million For Operator of Web Game Sites
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112614765764734958,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
us_marketplace
EBAY MAY BUY WEB PHONE FIRM IN STRATEGY SHIFT
EBay is in talks to acquire Internet-telephony company Skype Technologies=
=20
SA for $2 billion to $3 billion, in a deal that would represent a dramatic=
=20
shift in strategy for the world's largest online auction site.=20
Luxembourg-based Skype, whose software allows consumers to make free=20
telephone calls around the world using Internet technology, has been in=20
active discussions with other technology companies, and none has led to a=
=20
deal. But the emergence of eBay as a suitor reveals a lot about the auction=
=20
leader's growth prospects and strategy. While still dominating its field,=
=20
eBay's core business is maturing, and the company is searching for new=20
product categories and international markets. The company has made a steady=
=20
string of acquisitions and investments over the last year and a half to=20
enter markets such as rental-property listings, online classified-ad=20
listings and comparison shopping.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Mylene Mangalindan=20
mylene.mangalindan( at )wsj.com and Dennis K. Berman dennis.berman( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112615385922335028,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
us_page_one
(requires subscription)
INTERNATIONAL
CONTROVERSY DOGS TELSTRA STAKE SALE
Controversy engulfing the Australian government=92s plans to sell its=20
remaining 51.8 per cent stake in Telstra, the country's largest=20
telecommunications company, widened on Wednesday as legislation enabling=20
the sale was presented to Australian parliament and an official=20
investigation into possible violations of stock market rules by Telstra=20
executives began.
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR:]
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/0eb5bbca-1fb5-11da-853a-00000e2511c8.html
(requires subscription)
IN JAPAN CAMPAIGN, WEB GOES SILENT
As political candidates campaign feverishly before the Japanese elections=
=20
Sunday, an antiquated law that effectively bans the use of the Internet is=
=20
causing confusion, bickering and finger-pointing. The law, which dates to=
=20
1955, limits candidates' direct written communication with constituents to=
=20
postcards and pamphlets. This means politicians and their parties are=20
prohibited from sending emails or updating their Web sites during the=20
official 12-day campaign period. But many candidates are finding it=20
increasingly difficult to accommodate the law as the Internet gains=20
importance as a source of political information. Struggling to stay within=
=20
the rules, politicians have shut down their Weblogs or hired lawyers to=20
advise them on what they can and can't post. Political parties, meanwhile,=
=20
are seizing the opportunity to point fingers at rivals they accuse of using=
=20
the Internet in illegal ways.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Ginny Parker Woods=20
ginny.parker( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112612187732634311,00.html?mod=3Dtoda...
us_page_one
(requires subscription)
--------------------------------------------------------------
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.
--------------------------------------------------------------