MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Headhunting for Michael Powell
CPI Enables Searchable Database of Electronic Media
INTERNET
Digital Vandalism Spurs a Call for Oversight
Colleges Attempt to Stop Student File-Swapping
WORLD SUMMIT ON THE INFORMATION SOCIETY
Seeking Suggestions: US Content Nominations for the World Summit
Awards
EVENTS
Town Hall Meeting: Local Broadcast News And Local Democracy
Wired.org: Nonprofits and NGOs Work the Web
-------------------------------------------------------------------
MEDIA OWNERSHIP
HEADHUNTING FOR MICHAEL POWELL
Fear not, Michael Powell -- yours is a city of second chances. That is the
theme of Benjamin Wallace-Wells' piece in this month's installment of
Washington Monthly. Despite being dealt an apparent defeat on the FCC's new
media ownership rules, the chairman need not fret over his future in
Washington, even if he is asked by President Bush to step down. The trail
has been blazed by the likes of Bob Packwood, Michael Deaver and G. Gordon
Liddy, each of whom suffered serious political missteps but managed to find
lucrative political consulting careers. In fact, the District holds a
cottage industry for placing former top government officials in private
sector positions. Nels Olson, managing director of Korn/Ferry International,
does just that -- and believes that Powell has it made. "This is a town
where people have their ups and downs, but it's frequently only a matter of
having some time pass."
SOURCE: Washington Monthly; AUTHOR: Benjamin Wallace-Wells
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2003/0309.wallace-wells2.html
WELL CONNECTED: CPI ENABLES SEARCHABLE DATABASE OF ELECTRONIC MEDIA
The Center for Public Integrity now offers a database of media ownership,
searchable by zip code. CPI's unprecedented study of the telecommunications
industry produced a catalogue of some 65,000 entries, capturing virtually
every radio, TV, phone and cable company in America. The database also
includes ownership market share numbers by company, though it does not
indicate listener/viewer market share.
SOURCE: Center for Public Integrity
Search the database:
http://www.openairwaves.org/telecom
INTERNET
DIGITAL VANDALISM SPURS A CALL FOR OVERSIGHT
With last month's costly computer virus attacks (billions of US dollars in
lost productivity alone), there is growing consensus that government
intervention is needed to increase Internet security. Voluntary efforts of
the industry to make software less vulnerable are "insufficient, and the
repercussions are vast," says Michael A. Vatis, a former director at the
FBI's National Infrastructure Protection Center. Many security experts now
advocate direct regulation, in the form of legislation that would make
software companies liable for damage caused by security flaws in their
products. "When Firestone produces a tire with a systemic flaw, they're
liable. When Microsoft produces an operating system with two systemic flaws
per week, they're not liable," comments Bruce Schneier of Counterpane
Internet Security. Critics claim that Internet security has been too low a
priority for the Bush administration. Nearly 60 percent of Internet users
say they favor the government's requiring American corporations to disclose
information about their security vulnerabilities, according to a study by
the Pew Internet and American Life Project.
SOURCE: The New York Times; AUTHOR: Amy Harmon
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/01/technology/01NET.html
COLLEGES ATTEMPT TO STOP STUDENT FILE-SWAPPING
Several universities are responding to efforts of the Recording Industry
Association of America (RIAA) to crack down on illegal file sharing. The
schools want to ensure that students understand how the technology works and
the legal ramifications of file sharing. Campus initiatives include
distributing brochures, running ads in student newspapers and using software
to control the amount of data passing through file-sharing programs. At the
University of California-Berkeley, which has received one subpoena request,
students living on campus must participate in an orientation on copyright
infringement before getting a university Internet account. There is also a
weekly limit on uploading and downloading data (about four movies and 200
song files). Last year, UCLA received dozens of complaints from the industry
about copyright violations. The school has emphasized the legal perils of
file sharing during student orientation and will reinforce the message
through emails. Ohio State University, the University of Virginia and the
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, among others, also have become more
aggressive in warning students about downloading music.
SOURCE: USA Today; AUTHOR: Associated Press
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2003-09-02-file-sharing-stu...
s_x.htm
WORLD SUMMIT ON THE INFORMATION SOCIETY
SEEKING SUGGESTIONS: U.S. CONTENT NOMINATIONS FOR THE WORLD SUMMIT AWARDS
The Benton Foundation's Andy Carvin has been selected to represent the
United States at the World Summit Awards, the official awards program of the
World Summit on the Information Society. Andy will nominate the best digital
content (Internet, CD-ROM, DVD, DTV, gaming platforms, etc) representing the
US, and he's seeking input from the public. Suggestions must be applicable
to one of eight awards categories: e-Government, e-Health, e-Learning,
e-Entertainment, e-Culture, e-Science, e-Business and e-Inclusion. Andy will
accept suggestions through Friday, September 15.
SOURCE: Benton Foundation
Make a suggestion:
http://www.benton.org/contact/summitawards.html
World Summit Awards:
http://www.europrix.org/wsis-award/index_1.htm
World Summit on the Information Society
http://www.itu.int/wsis
EVENTS
TOWN HALL MEETING: LOCAL BROADCAST NEWS AND LOCAL DEMOCRACY
Are local broadcast news stations doing enough to strengthen American
democracy? What is the state of local radio news? What can citizens do in
their own communities to support more useful local reporting? These are just
a few of the many questions to be discussed at this weekend's town hall
meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The meeting will take place this
Saturday, September 6th, at the Albuquerque Academy's Simms Auditorium.
Highlights from the meeting will be included in an hour long public radio
special entitled, "Local Broadcast News and Local Democracy," to be
broadcast this fall on public radio stations nationwide. For more
information on panelists and agenda items, please visit the link below.
SOURCE: Good Radio Shows, Inc.
http://www.paulingles.com/democracy.shtml
WIRED.ORG: NONPROFITS AND NGOs WORK THE WEB
Wired.org is a four-day international virtual conference geared to nonprofit
and nongovernmental organizations, socially responsible companies and
educational institutions. Vision2Lead, Inc. and iCohere will host the
conference September 16-19. Presenters from leading organizations such as
TechSoup, CLEARCorps, Sohodojo and United Nations Volunteers will share
experiences and ideas. Professionals, volunteers, educators and supporters
of nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations from Belarus to Boston and
Lima to Lexington will meet online to discuss issues their organizations
face and strategic ways to use the Internet to address them. Since the
conference is virtual, participants can take part in this online conference
from their own locations at their own pace. Topics will include
Communication and Community Building, Cross-sector Partnerships and Social
Entrepreneurism, Managing Multi-site Organizations, Online Volunteering and
Technology Planning.
SOURCE: Vision2Lead; CONTACT: Janet Salmons
http://www.icohere.com/wiredorg
----------------------------------------------------------------------