GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
President Intervened in Dispute Over Eavesdropping
U.S. ISPs slam into wiretap deadline
Pentagon Newsletter Asks Soldiers to Watch YouTube -- After Banning the Si=
te
- Markey calls on Department of Defense to Reverse Decision
CONTENT
XM Satellite suspends shock jocks Opie & Anthony
PTC Urges Upfront Responsibility
Today's Kids Inundated With Ads
CABLE
FCC Needs Major Overhaul, Says McSlarrow
Cable Customers' Choices Being Debated
TV =E0 la carte? I'll take the buffet
Cable TV, Advertisers Join In Fight to Preserve Power
MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Thomson, Reuters Agree on Merger Terms
INTERNET/BROADBAND
Equal Opportunity Speedway
Web 2.0 meets Campaign 2008
Embarrassment forever
QUICKLY -- Spectrum Management Advisory Committee=20
Meeting; CEA: Consumers Will Have Access To=20
Converters; Supreme Court Declines Telecom Rate=20
Case; GOP Worries About Iraq Fuel War Policy Coverage
GOVERNMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
PRESIDENT INTERVENED IN DISPUTE OVER EAVESDROPPING
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: David Johnston]
President Bush intervened in March 2004 to avert=20
a crisis over the National Security Agency=92s=20
domestic eavesdropping program after Attorney=20
General John Ashcroft, Director Robert S. Mueller=20
III of the F.B.I. and other senior Justice=20
Department aides all threatened to resign, a=20
former deputy attorney general testified Tuesday.=20
President Bush quelled the revolt over the=20
program=92s legality by allowing it to continue=20
without Justice Department approval, also=20
directing department officials to take the=20
necessary steps to bring it into compliance with=20
the law, according to Congressional testimony by=20
the former deputy attorney general, James B.=20
Comey. The former No. 2 official in the Justice=20
Department said the crisis began when he refused=20
to sign a presidential order reauthorizing the=20
program, which allowed monitoring of=20
international telephone calls and e-mail of=20
people inside the United States who were=20
suspected of having terrorist ties. He said he=20
made his decision after the department=92s Office=20
of Legal Counsel, based on an extensive review,=20
concluded that the program did not comply with=20
the law. At the time, Mr. Comey was acting=20
attorney general because Mr. Ashcroft had been=20
hospitalized for emergency gall bladder surgery.=20
Mr. Comey would not describe the rationale for=20
his refusal to approve the eavesdropping program,=20
citing its classified nature. The N.S.A. program,=20
which began soon after the Sept. 11 attacks and=20
did not require court approval to listen in on=20
the communications of Americans and others,=20
provoked an outcry in Congress when it was disclosed in December 2005.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/16/washington/16nsa.html?hp
(requires registration)
* James Comey: White House pressed
http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/james-comey-white-house-pressed-2007...
-15.html
* Gonzales Hospital Episode Detailed
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/15/AR200705...
0864.html
* Ashcroft and the Night Visitors
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/15/AR200705...
1890.html
* Mr. Comey's Tale
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/15/AR200705...
1945.html
* Gonzalez accused of '04 end run while Ashcroft ill
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070516/1a_bottomstrip16_dom....
.htm
US ISPs SLAM INTO WIRETAP DEADLINE
[SOURCE: InfoWorld, AUTHOR: Stephen Lawson, IDG News Service]
U.S. broadband and VOIP providers on Monday hit a=20
deadline to prove they could accommodate=20
law-enforcement wiretaps. The Federal=20
Communications Commission in 2005 required=20
broadband Internet service providers (ISPs) and=20
VOIP (voice over Internet Protocol) carriers that=20
connect to the public telephone network to comply=20
with a wiretap access law. Under the=20
Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act=20
(CALEA), service providers have to prove they're=20
equipped for investigators to carry out the=20
equivalent of a traditional wiretap. The=20
broadband and VOIP providers had to send the FCC=20
by March 12 a plan to comply with CALEA, and by=20
Monday they had to either set up a system that=20
allows monitoring or hire an outside company to=20
make it possible. Those that don't comply must=20
make a good-faith effort to do so and may be referred for enforcement.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/05/15/isps-slam-into-wiretap-deadlin...
.html?source=3Drss&url=3Dhttp://www.infoworld.com/article/07/05/15/isps-sla=
m-into-wiretap-deadline_1.html
PENTAGON NEWSLETTER ASKS SOLDIERS TO WATCH ITS=20
YOUTUBE CHANNEL -- AFTER BANNING THE SITE
[SOURCE: Editor&Publisher, AUTHOR: ]
Eason Jordan's IraqSlogger blog notes an ironic=20
bit in the Defense Department's Multi-National=20
Forces-Iraq (MNF-I) electronic newsletter to=20
soldiers, which asks on a banner that they watch=20
its YouTube channel, even though access to the=20
site was banned worldwide via military computers=20
by the Pentagon yesterday. "Unless the Department=20
of Defense lifts (or doesn't fully apply) its=20
YouTube ban," notes IraqSlogger. "US military=20
personnel won't be able to watch their own=20
Iraq-focused YouTube channel unless they do so on=20
non-DoD computers and via non-DoD Web connectivity."
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_con...
t_id=3D1003585414
* Rep Ed Markey (D-MA) calls on Department of=20
Defense to Reverse Decision to Block Web Sites
"While I understand concerns about bandwidth=20
strain on the network, I fail to see how blocking=20
these particular sites is consistent with=20
achieving network efficiency. If network=20
congestion was an issue, for instance, it is=20
surprising that no bandwidth-intensive gaming=20
sites are on the list of prohibited sites. I=20
believe the military should have opted to ration=20
any scare bandwidth resources it was encountering=20
rather than summarily blocking access to U.S.=20
troops completely. rationed bandwidth between=20
official and recreational use of military=20
networks abroad would have been far preferable to=20
the action the military has chosen to take, which has issues of censorship."
http://markey.house.gov/index.php?option=3Dcom_content&task=3Dview&id=3D...
2&Itemid=3D141
CONTENT
XM SATELLITE SUSPENDS SHOCK JOCKS OPIE & ANTHONY
[SOURCE: Reuters]
Shock jocks "Opie & Anthony" were suspended on=20
Tuesday from their satellite radio show for 30=20
days after remarks by a guest who said he=20
fantasized about sex with U.S. Secretary of State=20
Condoleezza Rice and first lady Laura Bush. In=20
the latest outcry over radio content widely=20
criticized as crossing the bounds of good taste,=20
the company that carries the show, XM Satellite=20
Radio Holdings Inc., said it "deplored" the=20
comments made about a week ago on the program,=20
hosted by Gregg "Opie" Hughes and Anthony Cumia.=20
The hosts issued an apology soon after the=20
original airing, but XM said it was not convinced=20
the two were sincere. The Opie & Anthony Show has=20
gotten the two into hot water before. They were=20
fired from a New York station for a 2002=20
broadcast in which they encouraged couples to have sex in public places.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=3DpeopleNews&storyID...
2007-05-15T223605Z_01_N15454274_RTRIDST_0_PEOPLE-MEDIA-OPIEANTHONY-DC.XML
* XM Radio Takes Two Hosts Off the Air for 30 Days
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/16/arts/music/16radi.html
PTC URGES UPFRONT RESPONSIBILITY
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Linda Moss]
The Parents Television Council Tuesday gave a=20
shout out to advertisers for the upfront, calling=20
on companies making decisions about their=20
sponsorships to exercise corporate=20
responsibility. =93As you make your =91upfront=92=20
television-sponsorship decisions over the coming=20
weeks, please consider how the programming you=20
support with your ad dollars will affect children=20
-- even if children are not part of your target=20
demographic,=94 PTC president Tim Winter said in an open letter to companie=
s.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6442399.html?rssid=3D196
TODAY'S KIDS INUNDATED WITH ADS
[SOURCE: CBS News]
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services=20
teaming up with Dreamworks animation to use the=20
widely popular movie character Shrek to get kids=20
off the couch. But beyond the public service, the=20
studio's also going after promotion -- through=20
tie-ins with more than 70 food products, some healthy, some junk.
http://wcco.com/business/finance_story_135024932.html
CABLE
FCC NEEDS MAJOR OVERHAUL, SAYS MCSLARROW
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
In a speech to the Media Institute in Washington,=20
National Cable & Telecommunications Association=20
President Kyle McSlarrow suggested that Congress=20
should institute some systemic reforms at the=20
Federal Communications Commission, saying the FCC=20
had gotten caught up in an "elaborate Web of=20
rules," and adding that, at the current FCC, "the=20
trivial metastasizes into the burdensome." He=20
said he favors an approach put forth by the=20
Progress & Freedom Foundation in its proposal=20
for rewriting the Telecommunications Act of 1996.=20
That approach would turn the FCC into a more=20
reactive agency, empowered to intervene "only if=20
it determines that marketplace competition would=20
not adequately protect consumers." Essentially,=20
he said, the presumption would be against=20
regulation, and the agency retooled more like an=20
FTC or Justice Department, responding to abuses through adjudication.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6442420.html?rssid=3D193
* NCTA=92s McSlarrow Calls for FCC Downgrade
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6442490.html?rssid=3D196
CABLE CUSTOMERS' CHOICES BEING DEBATED
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: John Dunbar]
Sports fans everywhere want to know: "Why do I=20
have to subscribe to the soap opera channel when=20
all I really want is ESPN?" That's the kind of=20
question the cable TV industry hates answering.=20
The channel choice issue comes up every few=20
years, but people who argue that subscribers=20
should be able to choose channels "a la carte"=20
have never made any real headway. The latest=20
effort, and the newest reasoning for requiring=20
cable companies to offer channel choice, or a la=20
carte cable, has to do with yet another issue:=20
television violence. The overall lack of support=20
for a la carte might seem surprising, considering=20
that the average household in 2006 received 104=20
channels, yet tuned in to only 16 of them.=20
Federal law requires cable companies to offer a=20
bare bones, "basic tier" of service, consisting=20
of local broadcast and public access channels.=20
The second tier, commonly known as "expanded=20
basic," includes most of the major cable=20
networks. There's usually no choice on this tier;=20
subscribers get all the channels or none of them.=20
Beyond that, subscribers may pick premium=20
channels like HBO, that are priced separately.=20
Unlike over-the-air broadcasters, which rely=20
almost entirely on advertising to stay in=20
business, cable networks earn about half their=20
revenue from per-subscriber charges levied on=20
cable system operators. Those costs are passed on=20
to cable subscribers. Two types of companies=20
dominate the cable industry: those that own both=20
broadcast and cable networks (like Walt Disney=20
Co.); and those that own both cable systems and=20
cable networks (like Time Warner Inc.). An a la=20
carte regime would blow up that system and=20
disrupt its economic model. And that would lead=20
-- according to the National Cable and=20
Telecommunications Association, an industry trade=20
group -- to higher prices and less programming=20
diversity. Fewer channels would mean less=20
advertising and fewer advertising dollars. An a=20
la carte system would also require more customer=20
service representatives, higher billing costs and=20
higher marketing costs. These factors and others=20
-- according to the NCTA -- would ultimately lead=20
to higher rates for consumers. The bottom line,=20
though, is there is no way of knowing for sure. A=20
2003 GAO report stated that "a variety of=20
factors" make it "difficult to ascertain how many=20
consumers would be better off and how many would=20
be made worse off under an a la carte approach."=20
Consumers Union has lobbied long and hard for a=20
la carte, saying it would put a halt to steadily=20
rising cable prices. It has an ally in the=20
Parents Television Council, a group that=20
successfully pushed for higher fines for=20
broadcast stations that air raunchy programming.
http://www.redorbit.com/news/technology/936590/cable_customers_choices_b...
g_debated/index.html?source=3Dr_technology
TV A LA CARTE? I'LL TAKE THE BUFFET
[SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle, AUTHOR: Rep Hilda L. Solis (D-CA)]
[Commentary] In 2002, arch-conservative civic=20
groups joined with consumer groups to fight the=20
Federal Communications Commission-proposed "media=20
concentration" rules that would have given large=20
media companies the right to gobble up local=20
print and television outlets. It was a watershed=20
moment -- the kind of left-right consensus rarely=20
seen but fused together over the populist issue=20
of diversity in media. Today, the issue of media=20
concentration is again at the center of a=20
controversial proposal by the FCC that would=20
change how 90 million consumers watch television.=20
The idea is per-channel-charges -- or in the more=20
sanitized lexicon known as =E0 la carte pricing for=20
the cable industry -- federal rules which would=20
allow consumers to purchase cable channels on a=20
per-channel basis. A close look at the idea of =E0=20
la carte pricing shows that it would be a=20
disaster for consumers. Most consumers would pay=20
more for less, as the sweeping rules would=20
decimate small and niche cable channels while=20
raising prices. The fact of the matter is this:=20
nearly every study, nearly every major civic=20
group on the political right and left, and nearly=20
every cable programmer who lives in the=20
competitive trenches all have said that =E0 la=20
carte pricing is a bad deal for consumers and a=20
poison pill for the cause of media diversity.=20
When it comes to cable programming, I'll take the=20
buffet approach over =E0 la carte. On numerous=20
occasions, Congress has made it clear to the FCC=20
and the public its view, to quote old adage, that=20
"if it ain't broke, don't fix it." The chief=20
federal communications' agency out not to be tone deaf to this message.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/chronicle/archive/2007...
/15/EDG23PQO3C1.DTL
CABLE TV, ADVERTISERS JOIN IN FIGHT TO PRESERVE POWER
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Shira Ovide shira.ovide( at )dowjones.com]
Advertisers are teaming up with cable operators=20
to fight back as the Web erodes the power of the=20
traditional TV ad and as viewers use=20
digital-video recorders to zip through=20
commercials. Cable operators, through which a=20
majority of Americans watch TV, are developing a=20
new generation of marketing platform, including=20
video-on-demand and interactive ads that marry=20
traditional TV viewing with the ability to order=20
coupons, target messages to specific viewers or=20
interact in other ways that are more common=20
online. The business model is nascent, but cable=20
operators, which today generate less than 10% of=20
their total revenue from advertising, have made=20
such new advertising platforms among their=20
highest future priorities. The ability to direct=20
ads to viewers' specific interests or demographic=20
groups is driving the growth of Internet=20
advertising, and could fuel the new ad opportunities on cable platforms.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB117928330711804439.html?mod=3Dtodays_us_...
ketplace
(requires subscription)
* Disney aims to sell trips via TV remote
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-disney16may16,1,78785...
story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
MEDIA OWNERSHIP
THOMPSON, REUTERS AGREE ON MERGER TERMS
[SOURCE: Associated Press]
Reuters Group PLC and Thomson Corp. said Tuesday=20
they agreed on terms for a merger to create one=20
of the world's largest financial news providers.=20
The cash and stock transaction values Reuters at=20
$17.2 billion. Reuters trustees, who could have=20
vetoed any takeover, endorsed the deal. Reuters=20
competes with Thomson and Bloomberg LP in=20
providing data terminals to the world's major=20
banks and brokerages. Reuters was the market=20
leader for years before steadily losing ground to=20
Bloomberg. An April report from Inside Market=20
Data Reference said Bloomberg has a 33 percent=20
share of the market, with Reuters holding 23=20
percent and Thomson 11 percent. London-based=20
Reuters was born in 1851 when Paul Julius Reuter=20
started sending stock market quotations between=20
London and Paris via the new Calais-Dover cable.
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_con...
t_id=3D1003585181
* Thomson Adds Reuters in $17 Billion Bid to Be Giant
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/16/business/media/16thomson.html
* Reuters Trustees Say Sale Won't Hurt Journalism
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/16/business/media/16integrity.html
* Reuters, Thomson Reach Deal to Create Data Giant
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/15/AR200705...
0229.html
* Reuters trustees approve $17B offer
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20070516/2b_reuters16.art.htm
* Thomson's acquisition of Reuters faces scrutiny
[SOURCE: Associated Press]
Thomson Corp.'s $17.6-billion takeover of Reuters=20
Group announced Tuesday now faces scrutiny from=20
antitrust regulators and unions unhappy about=20
expected job cuts. The renamed Thomson-Reuters=20
Corp. would reduce the number of major companies=20
providing financial data, news and trading=20
systems to the financial services industry from=20
three to two and vault it slightly ahead of the=20
current market leader, privately held Bloomberg.=20
Reuters journalists expressed their "deep=20
concerns" in an open letter to Pehr Gyllenhammar,=20
chairman of the trustee company, "over whether a=20
reconstituted Reuters would maintain the high=20
standards of journalism and the integrity,=20
independence and freedom from bias that have=20
shaped the company's 156-year-old reputation and=20
are crucial to its future success."
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-reuters16may16,1,6013...
.story?coll=3Dla-headlines-pe-business
(requires registration)
INTERNET/BROADBAND
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY SPEEDWAY
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: ]
Speedy Internet connections once were considered=20
perks for the privileged. Robust Net access was=20
enjoyed by 30% of U.S. households as late as=20
2005, mostly in white homes. Meanwhile, so-called=20
broadband adoption by blacks was a mere 14%,=20
according to data from the Pew Internet &=20
American Life Project. The resulting "digital=20
divide" between white and black was considered a=20
lasting socioeconomic problem--like the=20
protracted disparity between black and white=20
unemployment. But in the past two years, African=20
Americans have been devouring broadband=20
technology--and the digital divide has shrunk=20
significantly, at least for this group. The share=20
of black households with a cable modem, DSL, or=20
satellite Internet connection climbed to 40% this=20
year, Pew says. That's almost twice as fast as=20
the growth of broadband penetration for the=20
general population, which grew to 47%. The income=20
gap has narrowed, too, but not as much:=20
Households making less than $30,000 a year=20
doubled their broadband participation, to 30%.=20
That still pales next to 76% for households that=20
have incomes of at least $75,000. Some of the=20
closing of the racial divide can be traced to=20
falling prices and rising availability of new=20
technology. But that masks a deeper shift in the=20
relationship of blacks to the Web. The Net today=20
offers an abundance of entertainment=20
riches--digital music, pictures, movies, video=20
chat, games--that can be tailored to individual=20
taste, not to mention services such as job=20
networks and training. Gaining access to that=20
killer content without broadband speeds would be=20
like sucking hot fudge through a straw.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_21/b4035061.htm?campaign...
=3Drss_tech
WEB 2.0 MEETS CAMPAIGN 2008
[SOURCE: The Christian Science Monitor, AUTHOR: Linda Feldmann]
There's no doubt that interaction with voters =96=20
aided and amplified by still-unfolding Web=20
innovations =96 is the name of the game in the 2008=20
presidential race. What's clear is that the=20
advent of Web 2.0 =96 the wave of=20
social-networking, file-sharing, and=20
collaborative sites that have come into common=20
use =96 has expanded the playing field for=20
presidential candidates in ways that were=20
unthinkable just a few years ago. Wherever there=20
are people, there will be politics. That's why=20
candidates have flocked to set up pages on=20
MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr. In the=20
6-million-member Second Life cyberworld,=20
presidential candidates have "offices," organized=20
by volunteers who keep in touch with the official=20
campaigns. MySpace will push the envelope in=20
Web-based politics when it conducts its own=20
presidential primary on Jan. 1 and 2, 2008 =96 just=20
before the real primaries begin. With 64 million=20
MySpace members being asked to vote, that's a=20
contest the candidates cannot ignore.
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0516/p01s02-uspo.html
EMBARRASSMENT FOREVER
[SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle, AUTHOR: Jim Louderback, PC magazine]
[Commentary] Everyone wants their 15 seconds of=20
fame, but from now on it's more likely to be 15=20
seconds of embarrassment -- and it will live=20
online forever. YouTube, pervasive cell-phone=20
video cameras, and even newer technologies are=20
conspiring to foster an environment where nothing=20
is private. Today's Internet and the powerful=20
computers that feed it mercilessly record=20
everything they see and hear and store those=20
recordings forever. Breakthrough technologies=20
debut and quickly spread, without regard to how=20
they might be misused. Take headcasting, for=20
example. It's now possible for anyone to staple a=20
tiny wireless camera to their head and broadcast=20
their life 24 hours a day. Or Twitter, which lets=20
anyone send the most banal thoughts instantly to=20
anyone's computer or phone in the world. Forget=20
"Candid Camera;" it's likely that you're live=20
now, and recorded forever for posterity.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/chronicle/archive/2007...
/15/EDGGTP3E441.DTL
QUICKLY
SPECTRUM MANAGEMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING
[SOURCE: National Telecommunications and Information Administration]
The Spectrum Management Advisory Committee, which=20
provides advise on spectrum management to the=20
National Telecommunications and Information=20
Administration, will meet again on May 30 at the=20
US Department of Commerce. The Committee will=20
receive recommendations from its Subcommittee on=20
Technical Sharing Efficiencies and provide advice=20
to NTIA on its Spectrum Sharing Test-Bed=20
Proposal; will receive a status report from its=20
Subcommittee on Operational Sharing Efficiencies,=20
and will hear public comment. Interested parties=20
are invited to attend and to submit written=20
comments. Written comments should be sent to the=20
above listed address and received by close of=20
business on May 24, 2007 to provide sufficient=20
time for review. Comments received after May 24,=20
2007, will be distributed to the Committee, but=20
may not be reviewed prior to the meeting.
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/frnotices/2007/SMACMeeting_051507.html
CEA: CONSUMERS WILL HAVE ACCESS TO CONVERTERS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The Consumer Electronics Association says=20
broadcasters can rest assured that "every=20
interested American" will have access to a range=20
of retail options to obtain a digital-to-analog=20
converter box," but stopped short of saying that=20
would be by January 2008 or that every retail=20
store would stock them. In a letter to National=20
Association of Broadcasters President David Rehr,=20
CEA President Gary Shapiro says "I imagine that=20
certain boutique, custom installation and=20
high-end stores may choose not to sell the=20
coupon-eligible boxes, but rest assured any=20
American who wants to purchase a coupon-eligible=20
box will have a wide variety of convenient retail=20
sources." That may or may not include Best Buy,=20
which in a Hill hearing earlier this year would=20
not commit to carrying the boxes in all stores.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6442402.html?rssid=3D193
* Broadcasters Want Converters On Shelves By January
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6442241.html?rssid=3D193
SUPREME COURT DECLINES TELECOM RATE CASE
[SOURCE: Associated Press]
The Supreme Court Monday turned down an appeal=20
from an Iowa telecommunications company that=20
claimed Qwest Communications International Inc.=20
owed it money for wireless phone calls that Qwest=20
connected to its network. At issue in the case,=20
which was brought by Iowa Network Services Inc.,=20
is whether federal regulators have the final say=20
on telecom rates or whether local call rates can=20
be set by state officials. Lower federal courts=20
ruled in Qwest's favor and gave Iowa's state=20
utilities board a role in resolving the dispute.=20
By declining to take the case, without comment,=20
the Court let stand the lower court rulings in=20
Qwest's favor, which will save Qwest tens of=20
millions of dollars in charges and interest that INS had sought.
http://money.aol.com/news/articles/_a/supreme-court-declines-telecom-rat...
ase/n20070514103709990036?cid=3D1225
GOP WORRIES ABOUT IRAQ FUEL WAR POLICY COVERAGE
[SOURCE: Project for Excellence in Journalism,=20
AUTHOR: Tom Rosenstiel, Paul Hitlin, and Mark Jurkowitz]
As it has on a number of weeks this year, the=20
political debate over U.S. policy in Iraq=20
generated more coverage than any other story last=20
week, filling 14% of the overall newshole,=20
according to PEJ=92s News Coverage Index from May=20
6-May 11. This time, however, the story was not=20
the predictable and continuing squabbling of=20
Democrats and Republicans over Congressional=20
maneuvering. It was Republicans challenging the=20
President with their concerns that the war in=20
Iraq would damage the party=92s political fortunes=20
for years to come. And much of the American news=20
media treated the exchange at the White House as a breakthrough event.
http://www.journalism.org/node/5575
--------------------------------------------------------------
Communications-related Headlines is a free online=20
news summary service provided by the Benton=20
Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday=20
through Friday, this service provides updates on=20
important industry developments, policy issues,=20
and other related news events. While the=20
summaries are factually accurate, their often=20
informal tone does not always represent the tone=20
of the original articles. Headlines are compiled=20
by Kevin Taglang headlines( at )benton.org -- we welcome your comments.
--------------------------------------------------------------