Television
KFF: Assessing Local Television News Coverage of Health Issues
NYT: FCC Approves Rating System for TV; Sets With Blockers
Will Be on Market Within a Year
FCC: Commission Finds Industry Video Programming Rating
System Acceptable
FCC: FCC Begins Inquiry Into Broadcast Ownership Rules
WP: P.I.G. Network
Legislation
NYT: Senate Panel Moves Again to Limit Children's Access to Net Porn
TelecomAM: Senate Commerce Committee Passes Three Telecom Bills
TelecomAM: Markey Introduces Schools and Libraries Internet Filtering Bill
Telephony
WP: MCI-Worldcom
TelecomAM: MCI Accuses GTE Of 'Orchestrating' Opposition To WorldCom Deal
TelecomAM: IXCS In Texas Urge $750M Cut In SBC Access Charges
As LD Entry Condition
TelecomAM: Joint Board Wants Crack At Jurisdictional High-Cost Support Issues
WSJ: CellularVision's Hopes for Wireless Service Fall Flat
Internet
WSJ: Netscape to Expand Internet Service, Boosting Its Rivalry With
Other Firms
WSJ: Sendmail Software's Author Is Starting Firm to Develop and
Distribute Program
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous
NYT: Aiming for Business This Time, Gates Plans 2d Book
** Television **
Title: Assessing Local Television News Coverage of Health Issues
Source: Kaiser Family Foundation
http://www.kff.org/archive/media/general/crime/crime.html
Issue: Television
Description: [Following up on yesterday's Washington Post article] "A new
analysis of local television news programs documents that crime is indeed
the single biggest topic of local news coverage, and most crime stories
focus on murders, shootings, and other violent crime."
Title: FCC Approves Rating System for TV; Sets With Blockers
Will Be on Market Within a Year
Source: New York Times (A16)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/washpol/tv-ratings.html
Author: Lawrie Mifflin
Issue: V-Chip
Description: Yesterday, the Federal Communications Commission approved the
TV-ratings system developed last year by broadcasters, parent advocacy
groups and the Motion Picture Association of America. Television
manufacturers must now begin making TV sets that can block programs
according to the new rating system by installing blocking circuitry, called
a v-chip. The v-chip will enable parents to block objectionable programs
from being viewed on their television set. All TV sets with a screen 13" or
larger will be required to have v-chip capability by January 1, 2000.
Title: Commission Finds Industry Video Programming Rating System Acceptable
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Cable/News_Releases/1998/nrcb8003.html
Issue: V-Chip
Description: "The Commission adopted an order finding acceptable the video
programming rating system currently in voluntary use and established
technical requirements for consumer electronic equipment to enable blocking
of video programming. These two actions will help provide parents with the
information and ability to make informed viewing decisions for their families."
Title: FCC Begins Inquiry Into Broadcast Ownership Rules
Source: FCC
http://www.fcc.gov/Bureaus/Mass_Media/News_Releases/1998/nrmm8007.html
Issue: Ownership
Description: "The FCC began a formal inquiry to review all of its broadcast
ownership rules as required by the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Section
202(h) of the 1996 Telecom Act requires the FCC to review the broadcast
ownership rules every two years to "determine whether any of such rules are
necessary in the public interest as the result of competition," and to
repeal or modify any rules that are determined to no longer be in the public
interest. The Notice of Inquiry adopted by the Commission today is its first
step in carrying out this statutory mandate for the 1998 biennial review of
its broadcast ownership rules. The Commission said that if in this review it
determined that any of its broadcast ownership rules were no longer in the
public interest, it would subsequently commence an appropriate Notice(s) of
Proposed Rule Making to modify or repeal the rule(s)."
Title: P.I.G. Network
Source: Washington Post (A24)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Author: HERBlock
Issue: Free Time for Candidates
Description: Editorial Cartoon. Picture this: a hefty looking pig/TV
reporter smoking a
cigar in a suit and tie with lights and camera shining down upon him. He has
a stack of papers to his left and in his hand is holding a piece of paper
that says: "Proposal for some free time for candidates before elections."
Then in the (bubble) space above his head it reads: "This is broadcasting
network P.I.G. enjoying free
public-air -- here is a silly suggestion that we give back a few bucks worth
of time -- right back after a few more commercials..." [For a full viewing
of this image, see the upper right corner of sec.A, pg24 in today's WPost.]
** Legislation **
Title: Senate Panel Moves Again to Limit Children's Access to Net Porn
Source: New York Times (CyberTimes)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/03/cyber/articles/13senate.html
Author: Jeri Clausing
Issue: Internet Regulation
Description: The Senate Commerce Committee approved two bills yesterday
intended to limit children's access to "smut" on the Internet. One bill
targets the distribution of pornography to anyone under the age of 18 on the
Web, the other would require schools that receive
federal subsidies for Internet connections to install filtering software on
their computers. "This is just Congress again making the same mistake they
made with the Communications Decency Act, expecting that they can control
content on the Internet and, I think, leading constituents down an absolute
blind alley," said Daniel J. Weitzner, deputy director of the Center for
Democracy and Technology. Ann Beeson, an American Civil Liberties Union
national staff lawyer, said, "We tend to assume that just because the courts
have become educated about these issues, which clearly they have...we tend
to assume legislators have become educated too, which clearly they haven't,
especially at the state level." Senator Dan Coates (R-IN), who sponsored the
bill targeting
commercial distribution called Thursday's vote "a great victory, and the
first big step on the way to the Senate floor."
Title: Senate Commerce Committee Passes Three Telecom Bills
Source: Telecom AM
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Legislation
Description: The Senate Commerce Committee passed bills to 1) reduce slamming,
2) require schools and libraries receiving subsidies for Internet hookups to
install filtering software, and 3) ban commercial distribution on the Web
of material harmful to minors. It didn't vote on funding research on the
Next Generation Internet. The anti-slamming bill, sponsored by Committee
Chairman John McCain (R-AZ) and five others, seemed to have little
opposition and
John McCain said it has overwhelming popular support. The Committee approved
an amendment by Sen. Conrad Burns requiring the FCC to report to Congress on
the worst slammers. Sen. McCain's Internet School Filtering Act received
bipartisan praise for leaving to local authorities decisions as to what sort
of software they need and what content to filter.
Title: Markey Introduces Schools and Libraries Internet Filtering Bill
Source: Telecom AM
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Legislation
Description: Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced his version of a measure linking
subsidies for hooking schools and libraries to the Internet to protecting
children from indecency. The House Telecom Subcommittee's ranking Democrat
proposed a bill requiring schools and libraries to "establish a policy with
respect to access to material that is inappropriate for children." Similar
to the suggestion advanced by Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT), Markey's bill would
allow
more local flexibility than the one introduced by Sen. Commerce Committee
Chairman John McCain (R-AZ) and passed by the Senate Committee. Sen.
McCain's bill
requires schools and libraries to install and use filtering software.
** Telephony **
Title: MCI-Worldcom
Source: Washington Post (F3)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-03/13/052l-031398-idx.html
Author: Mike Mills
Issue: Merger
Description: On Thursday, Virginia Attorney General Mark Early asked federal
regulators to carefully review whether the MCI-Worldcom merger would hinder
competition on the Internet. "We think these companies are good companies,
and their presence in Virginia is very positive," Attorney General Early
said. But he added: "Virginia has a very unique interest in making sure the
Internet...remains competitive." (The state hosts many Internet-related jobs
and much of the early work on the Internet was done in Northern VA.)
Critics of the merger say that the combination of the two companies would
carry as much as "60
percent of the transmissions on the Internet's trunk lines, raising a
possibility of restraint of trade." Both MCI and Worldcom claim that the
actual figure would be much lower.
Title: MCI Accuses GTE Of 'Orchestrating' Opposition To WorldCom Deal
Source: Telecom AM
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Mergers, Sneakiness & Jealousy
Description: GTE is "orchestrating" much of the opposition to the
MCI-WorldCom merger, MCI said. An MCI spokesman said GTE, which was outbid
by WorldCom for MCI, is acting like a "disappointed suitor." GTE said MCI is
looking for a "scapegoat" as the merger faces "serious trouble" with
antitrust regulators.
Title: IXCS In Texas Urge $750M Cut In SBC Access Charges As LD Entry Condition
Source: Telecom AM
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Long Distance
Description: Interexchange carriers in Texas jointly advised the Texas PUC
that the intrastate access charges of Southwestern Bell Telephone need to be
cut by as much as $750 million before the telco can be allowed into the
interLATA long distance market. The IXCs, including national carriers AT&T
and MCI, said Southwestern's access charges need to come down to what they
contend is a cost-based level. Otherwise, they argue that the telco will be
able to sustain anticompetitive and discriminatory long distance pricing
structures. AT&T and MCI said the 12 cent a minute access charge level in
Texas is 24 times the half cent per minute cost they claim access service
actually costs Southwestern Bell to provide.
Title: Joint Board Wants Crack At Jurisdictional High-Cost Support Issues
Source: Telecom AM
http://www.telecommunications.com/am/
Issue: Universal Service
Description: The state members of the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal
Service have asked the FCC to refer five major issues relating to
jurisdictional high-cost universal service support for the board's
consideration. These issues include 1) what role the FCC should play in
making intrastate high-cost support systems explicit, 2) how to split
responsibility for recovery of joint and common costs, 3) whether FCC
high-cost support should stay limited to 25% of the need, 4) whether federal
universal service funds should be applied to reduce carrier access charges,
and 5) what is the most appropriate method for apportioning and distributing
high cost funds among the states.
Title: CellularVision's Hopes for Wireless Service Fall Flat
Source: Wall Street Journal (B4)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Barbara Martinez
Issue: Wireless/Corporate
Description: For years, CellularVision USA CEO Shant Hovnanian assured
investors that a federal auction of licenses to offer a wireless service
called LMDS would make CellularVision's own LMDS license covering NYC
skyrocket in value. Now that the auction is here, bidding has been lukewarm.
That has cast doubt on the value of CellularVision's principal asset. And it
raises questions about the company's long-term prospects, given its poor
track record in landing customers and improving its financial performance.
Suddenly CellularVision's once-coveted license doesn't seem to be worth as
much as it once was. It is cutting jobs, struggling to raise capital, it's
stock price is dropping, and a high-ranking exec quit recently.
** Internet **
Title: Netscape to Expand Internet Service, Boosting Its Rivalry With Other
Firms
Source: Wall Street Journal (A3)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Kara Swisher & Nick Wingfield
Issue: Online Services/Competition
Description: Netscape is planning to expand its online service into a major
Internet gateway, a move that could require it to both compete and cooperate
with other Internet companies. The move to shift it's recently launched
Netcenter site to a broader "portal" site -- a combination of content,
communications and community features plus Internet navigation tools -- will
bring Netscape into more direct competition with many major Internet
players, including Yahoo!, Excite, AOL, and a similar site that will soon be
launched by Microsoft called Start. But how Netscape configures such a site
might also include a single partnership or series of partnerships with some
of those same competitors.
Title: Sendmail Software's Author Is Starting Firm to Develop and
Distribute Program
Source: Wall Street Journal (B8)
http://wsj.com/
Author: Don Clark
Issue: E-mail
Description: A technical pillar of the Internet is going commercial in a
move that could shape the evolution of e-mail. The author of an 18-year old
program called Sendmail, which routes computer messages around the global
collection of computer networks, is forming a company that will take over
development and distribution of the software. Sendmail plans to keep
distributing and updating a free version of the program, while selling
commercial variants along with technical support for companies and Internet
services. Sendmail exemplifies the 'Net's altruistic, anarchistic
traditions, and how entrepreneurs are finding new ways to exploit them. The
software was created by programmer Eric Allman along with versions of the
Unix operating system that researchers at the Univ. of California at
Berkeley helped popularize in the late 1970s.
** Lifestyles **
Title: Aiming for Business This Time, Gates Plans 2d Book
Source: New York Times (C4)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/98/03/biztech/articles/13microsoft.html
Author: John Markoff
Issue: Microsoft/Lifestyle
Description: In an effort to highlight his talents as technologist and
improve his government tarnished image, Bill Gates, chairman of the
Microsoft Corp., plans to write a new book. The new book to be aimed at
Microsoft's millions of customers will reportedly portray Gates as "an
innovator who built a company that changed the way the world does business."
Paul Saffo, a technology consultant at the Institute for the Future, in
Menlo Park, CA, said about the book: "There is something touchingly quaint
about the fact that the guy who made his fortune in digital technology feels
that the only way he can explain himself is in print." [As if don't have
ENOUGH to read about Microsoft already...]
*********