OLD V. NEW MEDIA
In a Wired World, Multimedia is the Message (USA)
POLITICAL DISCOURSE
GOP Complaints Lead Some Stations To Pull TV Spots (WP)
EDTECH
New Textbooks, New Pencils, New Internet Use Policies? (CyberTimes)
ECOMMERCE
Many Nations Lag In E-Commerce Status (USA)
JOBS
Local Issues Prolong Phone Strike in 6 States (NYT)
MERGERS
EU Antitrust Regulators List Concerns For AOL, Time Warner,
EMI Mergers (WSJ)
PHILANTHROPY
Expanding Philanthropy through the Internet Conference (IS)
SECURITY
Telecommunications and Information Security Workshop (NTIA)
OLD V. NEW MEDIA
IN A WIRED WORLD, MULTIMEDIA IS THE MESSAGE
Issue: Old vs New Media
Despite Jetson-like predictions, the Internet has not taken over for all
other media. Box office hits are still bringing in millions, record sales
are still high, people are still reading books and 40 million people are
expected to tune in to see if Rudy really is the sole Survivor. The Internet
is "just not near as far enough advanced to be enjoyable," says Paul Kelly,
a student in Odessa (TX). "Something's got to change. . . . There's all
these little sites that are selling independent films, but even if you have
high-tech equipment, it's choppy and not real clear, and they show them on
2-inch screens." John Robinson, professor of sociology and director of the
Americans' Use of Time Project at the Survey Research Center, part of the
University of Maryland, says, Yes, Internet use continues to rise, but in an
odd sociological phenomenon, it hasn't taken away from any other media.
"From a variety of different angles, it does appear that the Internet is
simply leading to enhanced information media use, rather than adversely
affecting it." Instead of distracting people from the traditional content
created by media corporations, Internet chat room and Web sites are helping
to drive interest in it. "It goes along with our notion of the more, the
more," says Robinson, meaning the more of something we like to do that's
offered to us, the more we will use it. "It goes along with our notion of
the more, the more," says Robinson, meaning the more of something we like to
do that's offered to us, the more we will use it. An accounting of media
time in a recent MTV Networks/Viacom report supports Robinson's theory. A
survey group of 4,000 multi-taskers between the ages of 4 and 70 managed to
cram so much into 24 hours that it added up to an average 29.8-hour day
(including eight hours of sleep) when every activity was separated out and
added up.
[SOURCE: USAToday (6D), AUTHOR: Ann Oldenburg]
(http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20000823/2574921s.htm)
POLITICAL DISCOURSE
GOP COMPLAINTS LEAD SOME STATIONS TO PULL TV SPOTS
Issue: Political Discourse
Television stations in three key congressional districts have pulled
Democratic ads, as a result of Republican accusations that they distorted
the GOP candidates' voting records. In one ad, for example, Democrats charge
that former representative Dick Zimmer (R-NJ) "has never voted for a
single education spending bill--not one," though he supported three separate
education measures. Some experts say that the GOP's organized crusade might
bring greater accountability to campaigns, which they say have become
increasingly negative in recent years. Kathleen Hall Jamieson, dean of
the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg School for Communication, said
"it's very difficult" to get news stations to pull political ads and
especially rare for parties to press their case in an organized fashion.
Television stations cannot be held legally liable for the content of ads
funded by candidates for federal office, but they can be sued for defamation
in the case of issue ads funded by outside groups. Some GOP ads were pulled
last year and just before the 1998 election at the urging of Democrats.
[SOURCE: Washington Post (A10), AUTHOR: Juliet Eilperin]
(http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7685-2000Aug22.html)
EDTECH
NEW TEXTBOOKS, NEW PENCILS, NEW INTERNET USE POLICIES?
Issue: EdTech
Acceptable use policies (AUPs) spell out guidelines for student and staff
use of the Internet in schools and include policies on the privacy of e-mail
messages, rules for complying with copyright laws and consequences for
misusing school computers and networks. Edtech experts suggest that school
administrators review AUPs at least annually to keep up with the rapidly
changing technology. "An AUP should not be something you write once and
forget about until you have a problem," said Michael McGuire, a private
attorney in Minneapolis, who has worked with schools to develop their
computer use policies. "They should be a document that helps people
understand what the computers are for and what they are not for." Currently,
schools are not required to have AUPs, but legislation moving through
Congress could require them. Many schools do it on their own anyway
providing important legal protections for schools and administrators and
lending a sense of security to parents, says Gloria Barber, director of
instructional media and training for the Virginia Education Department's
Office of Technology. "Parents are very concerned, and naturally so," she
said. "We want to assure parents that yes, the world isn't so nice out
there, but students' safety isn't compromised when they're taught. It lets
parents feel a little more secure." The National School Boards Association
(http://www.nsba.org/) developed model guidelines several years ago stating
that school districts should send parents some sort of annual notification
about the policy and should even encourage parents and students to
acknowledge the document by signing it. Policies should also stipulate that
districts have the right to limit the content students view to educational
materials; supervise student e-mail and Internet use; prohibit obscenity;
warn what Web sites are off-limits and explain copyright laws and how to
comply with them.
[SOURCE: CyberTimes, AUTHOR: Rebecca Weiner (rweiner( at )nytimes.com)]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/08/cyber/education/23education.html)
(requires registration)
ECOMMERCE
MANY NATIONS LAG IN E-COMMERCE STATUS
Issue: E-Commerce
A new study of 42 developing economies found that many are lacking in
important areas of readiness for Internet commerce. The study rated each
country in five areas: connectivity ; e-leadership (is it a national
priority?); information security; human capital; and e-business climate
(government and financial structures). McConnell International, the
consulting firm that conducted the study, found that 23 countries, including
China, Russia, Indonesia and South Africa, need much progress in at least
two areas. "Technology-led growth of the global economy is at risk unless
countries take action," said Bruce McConnell, president of McConnell
International. The report warned that unless these countries increase their
"e-readiness," the entire global digital economy could stagnate.
[SOURCE: USAToday (6B), AUTHOR: Bill Nichols]
(http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20000823/2574976s.htm)
JOBS
LOCAL ISSUES PROLONG PHONE STRIKE IN 6 STATES
Issue: Jobs
Verizon employees in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, West
Virginia, Virginia and Washington (DC) remain on strike as their union
negotiates the final details of their contracts. The remaining issues
include limits on mandatory overtime and the definition of certain jobs.
"We're simply trying to arrive at the best possible agreement," said Candice
Johnson, a spokeswoman for the Communications Workers of America, the union
to which who have not returned to work belong.
[SOURCE: New York Times (C7), AUTHOR: Simon Romero]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/financial/082300verizon-talks.html)
(requires registration)
See Also
VERIZON, STRIKING FACTION CONTINUE TALKS AS TENSIONS GROW AMONG CWA MEMBERS
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A3), AUTHOR: Deborah Solomon & Yochi Dreazen]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB966983628767201899.htm)
(requires subscription)
MERGERS
EU ANTITRUST REGULATORS LIST CONCERNS FOR AOL, TIME WARNER, EMI MERGERS
Issue: Merger
The proposed mergers between America Online and Time Warner, and between EMI
Group and Time Warner, continue to face opposition in Europe. This time,
the European Commission has advanced its antitrust investigation by sending
the companies detailed lists of regulatory concerns about the deals. The
commission's biggest concern stemmed from the vertical integration of a
leading Internet company and a powerful content provider. Regulators also
balked at the possibility of EMI and Time Warner cornering the market for
digital delivery of music and music publishing. Although the two mergers are
being investigated separately, the commission's regulators point to links
between the two. They say Time Warner-EMI's muscle in digital delivery of
music will be strengthened by AOL's takeover of Time Warner. A Time Warner
spokesman said "we are confident that we'll provide [regulators] with
assurances on the issues they've raised."
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal (A17), AUTHOR: Philip Shishkin]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB966985856200998526.htm)
(requires subscription)
PHILANTHROPY
EXPANDING PHILANTHROPY THROUGH THE INTERNET CONFERENCE
Issue: Philanthropy
September 25-26, San Jose (CA). Expanding Philanthropy through the Internet
is a follow-up to the first e-Philanthropy Forum held in October 1999 as
part of the White House Conference on Philanthropy in Washington (DC). The
conference will be held September 25-26, at the Fairmont San Jose Hotel in
San Jose, CA. The plenary and concurrent sessions are designed to build
commitment among attendees for ongoing dialogue based on key learnings
exchanged at the conference. The goal is to work toward resolving difficult
issues in ways that are inclusive of all practitioners in philanthropy so
the conversations result in increased philanthropy using the Internet to
support America's nonprofit organizations.
[SOURCE: Independent Sector]
(http://www.independentsector.org/e_philanthropy/ephilanthropy.htm)
SECURITY
TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION SECURITY WORKSHOP
Issue: Security
September 27-28, 2000, University of Tulsa (OK). The nation's economy and
government critically depend on both trustworthy telecommunications and
information networks. Moreover, the communications and information sectors
are now in an unprecedented period of flux. In fact, it appears that the
underlying telecommunications and information infrastructures are converging
into a single network. In the not too distant future, distributed
information networks will depend upon telecommunications services to
exchange data, in particular multimedia data, while the telecommunications
networks will depend upon information networks to provide services and
network administration. Information-based services will be provided directly
to individuals instead of to fixed locations, raising profound security issues.
This workshop will bring together security experts from both the Information
and the Telecommunications Infrastructure communities so that they can
explore problems in their specific area while offering the opportunity to
interact with colleagues in the other community.
[SOURCE: NTIA]
(http://www.cis.utulsa.edu/tisw2000/)
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