"Tina Fey has done more to hurt Sarah Palin and John McCain than anyone."
-- Dick Bennett, American Research Group
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for TUESDAY OCTOBER 28, 2008
For upcoming media policy events, see http://benton.org/calendar
JOURNALISM
Is America Still a Beacon for Press Freedom?
Black issues invisible in this campaign
INTERNET/BROADBAND
Big Tech Companies Back Global Plan to Shield Online Speech
MEDIA & ELECTIONS
Is your local TV news providing enough local election coverage?
Landslide for TV
And here They Come Around the Final Turn...
Coverage of Election Now Lacks Suspense
In Senate Battlegrounds, Fusillades of TV Ads
ABC Jumps Too Late On Obama's 'Buy'
Obama ads overwhelm TV presence of McCain
'SNL' Playing a Role in 2008 Election?
WHITE SPACES
White Spaces Debate is White Hot
Et tu, Brute?
FCC decision could help Vermont
THE ECONOMY
TV quickly spreads financial crisis
Public Might Cut Cord on Landlines, Cable TV
Newspapers' circulation drops 4.6 percent
BROADCASTING
Some Consumers Keep Old TVs Despite Switch to Digital Signals
Broadcasters: It's The Access, Not The Screen
The Broadcast Ad Model Is Broken. Now What?
TELECOM
Critics Urge FCC to Delay Action on Phone Rates
CenturyTel acquires Embarq for $11.6B
Verizon Wireless: Who needs the iPhone?
QUICKLY -- Music Exec: Industry Can't Wait For Congress To Act; Social networks exploding, may appear in government; Former-Senate Commerce Committee Chair Stevens Found Guilty of Making False Statements; Testing for Tech Literacy
JOURNALISM
IS AMERICA STILL A BEACON FOR PRESS FREEDOM?
[SOURCE: The Huffington Post, AUTHOR: Craig Aaron]
[Commentary] The United States of America -- land of the free, home of the First Amendment -- is supposed to be a beacon for the rest of the world. So where do we stand in the latest global rankings of press freedom? Thirty-sixth. That's not a typo. It's a national disgrace. The Press Freedom Index released last week by Reporters Without Borders reflects both the freedoms journalists enjoy as well as the "efforts made by the authorities to respect and ensure respect for this freedom." The annual rankings examine the way that financial pressures lead to self-censorship in the press, government abuses of the press, as well as murders, imprisonment and physical abuse of journalists. As we enter a new year and a new administration, America's 36th-place finish is a clarion call for us to take a hard look at how we are meeting the information needs of our communities and upholding the values of the Constitution.
http://benton.org/node/18227
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BLACK ISSUES INVISIBLE IN THIS CAMPAIGN
[SOURCE: Miami Herald, AUTHOR: Edward Wasserman]
[Commentary] What's odd is that while this election is historic precisely because of the major-party candidacy of a man who, under U.S. standards of race, is black, race goes unaddressed. Instead, race is both everywhere and nowhere, overriding and unacknowledged, a presence rather than a set of concrete issues. It stalks the conference room, uninvited, and never gets to sit at the table with the subjects that matter. The media's failure to force either candidate to talk about race-related policies creates an enormous potential for Obama, no less than McCain, to ignore or soft-pedal a basketful of historically explosive issues. Three years ago, after Hurricane Katrina reacquainted white Americans with the persistence of black poverty, brave words were spoken and bold pledges made. How ironic it would be if now this racially historic campaign ushered in a new era of racial neglect.
http://benton.org/node/18226
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INTERNET/BROADBAND
BIG TECH COMPANIES BACK GLOBAL PLAN TO SHIELD ONLINE SPEECH
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Miguel Helft, John Markoff]
Google, Microsoft and Yahoo and a group of human rights and public interest organizations plan to introduce Wednesday a global code of conduct that they say will better protect online free speech and privacy against government intrusion. The principles are the starting point for a new effort, called the Global Network Initiative, which commits the companies to "avoid or minimize the impact of government restrictions on freedom of expression." Stating that privacy is "a human right and guarantor of human dignity," the initiative commits the companies to try to resist overly broad demands for restrictions on freedom of speech and overly broad demands that could compromise the privacy of their users. The initiative was begun after human rights groups and Congress criticized the Internet companies for cooperating with Chinese government censorship and demands for information on dissidents. In addition to laying out the code of conduct, the initiative will provide a non-governmental forum for the companies and human rights groups to jointly resist demands for censorship. It will also establish a system of independent auditors to rate the companies' conduct.
http://benton.org/node/18237
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MEDIA & ELECTIONS
IS YOUR LOCAL TV NEWS PROVIDING ENOUGH LOCAL ELECTION COVERAGE?
[SOURCE: Common Cause, AUTHOR: Jon Bartholomew]
[Commentary] This is a big election year. There will be records broken all over the United States for voter turnout, individual campaign contributions and campaign volunteer hours. The public has gotten involved at levels never seen before. But the way it seems on television, you wouldn't know there is much more than a Presidential race and a question about the balance of power in Congress. Unfortunately, while there are thousands of races for city council, state legislative seats, ballot measures and school board all across our country, the local TV stations have given them short shrift. When you consider that it is your school board, your city council and your state legislature that is going to impact your day to day life more than who is in the White House, it's a real shame that so little attention is devoted to local issues.
http://benton.org/node/18225
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LANDSLIDE FOR TV
[SOURCE: TVWeek, AUTHOR: Ira Teinowitz]
The 2008 race for the presidency has been memorable for many reasons, not the least of which is the jaw-dropping effect it has had on the television industry. The campaign brought to media companies a record $750 million in advertising revenue -- of which local stations and the broadcast and cable networks reaped 90%, helping offset a precipitous drop in other types of TV ad buys as the economy stumbled toward recession. And it also reinvigorated cable news channels, helped fuel ratings records for politically incorrect comedy shows and dramatically raised the profile of some TV stars. While the fat lady has not even begun to sing yet, what soon may get dubbed "The Great Campaign of 2008" can be summed up as a race of record-smashing, eye-popping impact. Political ads appeared in places not seen in recent years: the Olympics, soap operas and NFL games. For the first time, cable systems were used extensively as ad vehicles for the primaries as well as the general election. The national broadcast TV networks, which hadn't seen presidential campaign ads in 12 years, sold time to the campaigns of both Sen Barack Obama (D-IL) and the Sen John McCain (R-AZ). Local stations generated unexpected revenue twice -- first because the tightness of the Democratic race forced the contenders to extend spending to more states, then because the Obama campaign's decision to skip federal financing allowed it to spend far more than the $84 million the government gave the McCain campaign. Cable networks also attracted more political advertising than ever before. Also, ratings generally rose for presidential campaign programming, whether it was straight news coverage or comedy material about the campaign.
http://benton.org/node/18223
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AND HERE THEY COME AROUND THE FINAL TURN
[SOURCE: Project for Excellence in Journalism, AUTHOR: Mark Jurkowitz]
According to the Campaign Coverage Index from the Pew Research Center's Project For Excellence in Journalism, in the final days of the race for president, seemingly nothing but the algebra of the electoral map appears to have staying power. For the week Oct 20-26, the top storyline was the fight over battleground states, accounting for 10% of the campaign newshole. In a campaign and media environment now focused strongly on the shape of the race, one staple of weekly coverage is the attention to strategy and tactics. Coverage of swing state battles (10% of the newshole), polls (6%), and fundraising (5%), and some other related storylines accounted for about one-quarter of last week's newshole. Add in Gen Colin Powell's endorsement of Sen Obama (at 6%), which was frequently discussed in terms of its political potency, and that broad theme fills almost 30% of the coverage. Last week, policy debates and issues accounted for another 17% of the coverage. The broader U.S economy—including differences in tax policy and McCain's sharpened line of attack that Obama favors redistributing wealth—was the top storyline in that category (at 8%). At the same time, coverage of the candidates' reactions to the financial crisis that struck with hurricane force in mid-September dropped all the way to 2%.
http://benton.org/node/18236
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COVERAGE OF ELECTION NOW LACKS SUSPENSE
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Alessandra Stanley]
Cable news and network anchors are not saying point-blank that the election is over. Instead they are saying, "We're not saying it's over ..." with a "but" that speaks volumes. One week away from the election news anchors and commentators have the taut, self-conscious demeanor they don on election nights when the exit polls are in, but when they are duty-bound not to declare a winner. Sometimes, however, they can't quite stifle the blue-stained maps in their minds. It's not over, but terms like "highly favored," "touchdown favorite," "comfortable lead" and even "a near-insurmountable lead" are bouncing all over television these days. They fill many viewers, regardless of their party affiliation, with opposite but parallel forms of dread: inevitability, or the illusion of it, breeds complacency on one side, and defeatism on the other.
http://benton.org/node/18235
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IN SENATE BATTLEGROUNDS, FUSILLADES OF TV ADS
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Robert Kaiser]
In the 11 states with the closest Senate races this year, record amounts of money are being spent on TV commercials that carry common messages. For the Democrats, it is the venerable mantra that it is "time for a change," epitomized cleverly by the codgers spot. Attacking long tenures in Washington is popular, and linking Republicans to President Bush, Big Oil and tax cuts for large corporations seems to be obligatory. For Republicans and their supporters, all confronting a hostile political environment, it is presenting Democratic opponents as profligate taxers and spenders. Candidates themselves are spending less money on TV ads than outsiders and party committees.
http://benton.org/node/18234
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ABC JUMPS TOO LATE ON OBAMA'S 'BUY'
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Lisa de Moraes]
ABC finally offered Sen Barack Obama's camp the 8 p.m. half-hour in its Wednesday lineup for his campaign-related program -- which will air at that time on the other major broadcast networks. But, in an ironic twist, the Democratic presidential candidate's campaign passed on ABC's offer, saying it has allocated the funds elsewhere. ABC, which has spent the gross national product of a Third World country trying to relaunch its three struggling Wednesday sophomore dramas, originally offered to sell Obama's campaign other time slots on other nights. That way it wouldn't have to preempt one of its hour-long shows to make room for Obama's 30-minute telecast. But the Obama camp passed, hoping to create what's called a "roadblock" across broadcast TV. A viewing roadblock occurs when all the broadcast networks air the same program simultaneously.
http://benton.org/node/18233
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OBAMA ADS OVERWHELM TV PRESENCE OF MCCAIN
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Fredreka Schouten]
Sen Barack Obama's ad spending will easily surpass the record $188 million President George Bush (R) spent in 2004, according to Evan Tracey of the Campaign Media Analysis Group, which tracks political ads. "Obama has rewritten the playbook on running a presidential campaign," he said. "There's nothing he can't afford to do." Sen John McCain (R-AZ), who is limited to spending $84.1 million because he accepted taxpayer funds for the general election, has teamed up with the Republican National Committee to share advertising costs. They are likely to hit $130 million in TV ads by Election Day, Tracey said. Last week alone, Sen Obama (D-IL) outspent McCain by 3-to-1 in TV ads. Both are spending in traditional battlegrounds such as Pennsylvania and GOP strongholds such as North Carolina.
http://benton.org/node/18232
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'SNL' PLAYING A ROLE IN 2008 ELECTION?
[SOURCE: TVWeek, AUTHOR: Ira Teinowitz]
Does the McCain campaign have a Tina Fey problem? Pollster Dick Bennett, head of Manchester, American Research Group, said Fey's portrayal of Gov Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) on Saturday Night Live "made a joke of the criticisms about Palin and made them real to people." Bennett said he was stunned that Gov. Palin, in appearing on "Saturday Night Live" Oct. 18, didn't humorously respond to the portrayal with some comment on the Obama campaign but instead played along. "She was the reason for the increased ratings," he said. "She could have demanded a lot." He pointed especially to an opening skit in which Gov Palin appeared with Lorne Michaels and Alec Baldwin, then replaced Ms. Fey's fake Sarah Palin at a news conference. "At the end, she said, 'I'm not going to answer any of your questions' [before doing the 'Live from New York' introduction]. What a dumb thing to say. It supports all the criticism [of her] in the media."
http://benton.org/node/18222
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WHITE SPACES
WHITE SPACES DEBATE IS WHITE HOT
[SOURCE: tvnewsday, AUTHOR: ]
On Monday, more than 20 groups sent a pair of letters to the Federal Communications Commission urging the agency to postpone a scheduled Nov 4 vote to adopt rules affecting television white spaces. Among the organizations signing the letters include the Government Accountability Project, Media Freedom Project, Americans for Tax Reform and the Liberty Coalition. Addressed to Chairman Kevin Martin, the letters urge the FCC to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and open the proposed rules for public scrutiny and comment. The organizations are not taking a position on the final disposition of the white spaces, instead, they say they are concerned regarding various media reports that the FCC has abandoned a public comment period for proposed rules and will go straight to rulemaking. The first letter, which addresses sound and responsible regulatory governance states: "Federal regulatory agencies, such as the FCC, should be completely transparent in consideration of new rules, particularly those that impact every household in America that owns a television set." The second letter addresses the process by which the FCC intends to make spectrum available for use. It notes: "To depart from the government's 15-year old practice of electromagnetic spectrum auctions, particularly in light of the current economic climate, is irresponsible." The National Cable and Telecommunication Association also urged the FCC to issue a public notice seeking review of the recently released Office of Engineering and Technology report detailing the results of testing devices that are designed to use the TV band white spaces.
http://benton.org/node/18221
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ET TU, BRUTE?
[SOURCE: RCR Wireless News, AUTHOR: Jeffrey Silva]
He is one of the most respected, accomplished and well-liked public servants ever to grace the Federal Communications Commission. Now, mobile phone carriers, TV network moguls and others want his head. Julius Knapp, chief of the agency's Office of Engineering and Technology, has a big target on his back. There is nothing subtle about the disdain gushing his way. Knapp is running interference so to speak for FCC Chairman Kevin Martin regarding controversial white spaces and advanced wireless services-3 initiatives. The floodgates opened after the OET issued testing reports that concluded unlicensed devices can operate without disruption to others in TV airwaves and that a new national wireless broadband service can coexist in frequencies next to those purchased for billions of dollars by wireless carriers at a 2006 auction. Broadcasters and their ilk contend the OET's analysis of white spaces interference testing is flawed.
http://benton.org/node/18228
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FCC DECISION COULD HELP VERMONT
[SOURCE: Rutland Herald, AUTHOR: Daniel Barlow]
A decision expected early next week by the Federal Communications Commission could result in a major boost for Vermont's efforts to bring high-speed Internet service to the entire state by the year 2010. The FCC is scheduled to vote Nov. 4 on a proposal to open up the so-called television white spaces -- unused radio frequencies between TV stations -- for use as wireless broadband spectrums. That change could be a boon for rural states such as Vermont, where these white spaces are abundant due to the lack of in-state television broadcasters. But the proposal still faces an uphill battle as several key lawmakers urge the FCC to delay next week's vote. On Monday, the Vermont Telecommunications Authority, the division set up last year to bring universal Internet and cellular coverage to the state by the end of 2010, sent e-mails to supporters asking them to encourage the FCC to open up the spectrum.
http://benton.org/node/18220
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THE ECONOMY
TV QUICKLY SPREADS FINANCIAL CRISIS
[SOURCE: Chicago Tribune, AUTHOR: Andrew Leckey]
Has television coverage made the financial crisis worse? The question is based on this premise: Because so many people view market movements and worrisome economic events as they happen, they may panic, sell their investments and drive markets down further. All news comes faster these days through television and the Internet. But immediacy works both ways. Markets can rebound quickly whenever good news comes out. After the technology bubble burst, television was blamed for having been a cheerleader about the stock market's historic march upward, contributing to what former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan had called "irrational exuberance." One problem television has had in covering the recent financial meltdown is that so much is changing minute by minute. Our financial system has undergone a quick, dramatic transformation. Live coverage makes the grim seem grimmer and the upbeat more upbeat.
http://benton.org/node/18219
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PUBLIC MIGHT CUT CORD ON LANDLINES, CABLE TV
[SOURCE: AdAge, AUTHOR: Jack Neff]
For years, it's been one of those speculative staple questions of consumer-media research: If you could only keep one thing out of a list that included your phone, your TV or your computer and Internet connection, what would it be? But with the recession looming, it's no longer such an academic question. Agencies, media, telecoms and other marketers are pondering the implications of an impending shakeout where, after years of piling on one subscription fee after another, consumers take a harder look at what they really need. Their decisions in what look to be lean years ahead could play a substantial role in reshaping almost every aspect of marketing -- from determining whether DVRs or streaming video win the battle for the eyeballs of time-shifters to making it harder than ever for marketers to survey consumers by snipping the landlines by which much of survey research tenuously dangles.
http://benton.org/node/18218
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NEWSPAPERS' CIRCULATION DROPS 4.6 PERCENT
[SOURCE: Associated Press, AUTHOR: Anick Jesdanun]
The nation's daily newspapers, already finding advertising revenue fall sharply because of the weak economy, saw circulation decline more steeply than last year in the latest reporting period, an auditing agency said today. Average weekday circulation was 38,165,848 in the six-months ending in September, a 4.6 percent decline from 40,022,356 in the same period a year earlier at the 507 papers that reported circulation totals in both periods. The drop was only 2.6 percent in the September 2007 period, compared with September 2006. In the six-month period that ended in March 2008, the decline was 3.6 percent over a year earlier, according to circulation figures that newspapers submitted to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. Sunday circulation fell even more, 4.8 percent, to 43,631,646 in the latest period at the 571 papers with comparable totals. The drop was 3.5 percent a year ago and 4.6 percent in the period ending in March. Newspaper circulations are declining largely because of the ongoing migration of readers to the Internet. Despite the drops, newspapers are currently more worried about even steeper, double-digit reductions in advertising revenue caused largely by the weak economy. The Los Angeles Times plans to cut 75 jobs, or 10 percent of its news staff. The cuts are comparable in scale to some that the Times made on the business side of its operations last week.
http://benton.org/node/18217
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BROADCASTING
SOME CONSUMERS KEEP OLD TVS DESPITE SWITCH TO DIGITAL SIGNALS
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Miguel Bustillo, Christopher Lawton]
Sales of inexpensive converter boxes that allow older televisions to receive digital signals have been strong this year -- a bad omen for sales of new televisions heading into the holidays. Retailers and manufacturers were counting on stronger television sales this year, partly because of the digital changeover, and partly due to the ongoing shift to high-definition sets. But so far, surprising numbers of Americans are sticking with their old TVs and buying converters, which retail for $50 to $75, instead of paying hundreds more for a new television. Analysts say there is growing evidence of oversupply in the U.S. television market, mainly because manufacturers produced a glut of flat-panel sets, but also because nearly every big retailer -- from Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to Sears Holdings Corp. to Circuit City Stores Inc. -- stocked up on them before the economy soured.
http://benton.org/node/18230
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BROADCASTERS: IT'S THE ACCESS, NOT THE SCREEN
[SOURCE: MediaPost, AUTHOR: Diane Mermigas]
[Commentary] When the government yanks analog from broadcasters, forcing them to go digital amid a prolonged recession, it will give consumers the best reason to chuck their TV sets in favor of watching the same programs on the Web. Broadcasters who remain in denial face a certain death spiral. Dramatic as that sounds, there is mounting evidence that consumers are happy to access their content of choice as streaming video on the Internet, an iTunes download or cable video on demand. There is the real prospect that many of the 9% of U.S. households whose TV sets go dark Feb. 17 because they are not equipped to receive digital signals will stay dark. The way to avoid that calamity is to play to the universal screenwhether it is a home TV monitor, a computer, a smart phone or other portable device. It is the consumer accessnot the screenthat is important. Create timely, innovative, artful content that entertains and informs anywhere, anytime. A broadcast network schedule is just one increasingly uncommon place where liberated consumers watch what they want. You have already lost younger generations from prime-time regimentation; older consumers are not far behind.
http://benton.org/node/18216
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THE BROADCAST AD MODEL IS BROKEN. NOW WHAT?
[SOURCE: AdAge, AUTHOR: Brian Steinberg]
If today's TV buying is the model for the future, advertisers are in trouble. Virtually all parties involved -- marketers, media buyers and the media themselves -- agree that in a video-on-demand world in which consumers control what they watch and when, the current broadcast advertising model is broken, or at the very least inadequate. What they don't yet agree on is the solution, leading to mass confusion as networks scramble to create their own measurements in a race to develop a standard for counting those precious eyeballs. The trouble is, they should be working together, not apart.
http://benton.org/node/18215
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TELECOM
CRITICS URGE FCC TO DELAY ACTION ON PHONE RATES
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Amy Schatz, Andrew LaVallee]
The Federal Communications Commission's scheduled Nov. 4 vote to change how phone companies charge each other to deliver traffic is facing growing opposition from companies concerned about losing revenue and consumer advocates worried that the plan will cause phone bills to rise. The idea is to simplify the way phone companies compensate each other for delivering calls, so that all providers -- traditional land line, wireless and Internet-based -- would pay the same rate. Currently, rates vary depending on the type of call and where it travels. Changing the rates would result in some phone companies receiving less revenue -- an estimated $4 billion total. To help those companies recoup some of that lost money, the FCC has proposed raising fees on consumers. Phone companies now charge consumers as much as $6.50 a month in a subscriber-line charge for traditional, wired phone service. Under the new plan, that rate would jump to as much as $8 a month. FCC officials can't say how many subscribers would pay a higher upfront fee for service, or when a price increase would occur. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin proposed the plan in mid-October and scheduled a vote on Election Day, prompting some opponents to suggest that he is trying to sneak the plan by when the public isn't watching.
http://benton.org/node/18231
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CENTURYTEL ACQUIRES EMBARQ FOR $11.6B
[SOURCE: TheDeal.com, AUTHOR: Baz Hiralal]
Telephone and Internet service provider CenturyTel is acquiring Embarq for $11.6 billion, including $5.8 billion in debt. The deal comes as more customers continue to ditch landlines for cell phones. The stock portion of the deal -- 1.37 CenturyTel shares for each share of Embarq common stock -- represents a 36% premium to Embarq's Friday close. Embarq, which is larger than CenturyTel, is the local telecom division that spun off from Sprint Nextel Corp. in 2006. CenturyTel will own 34% of the combined company. CenturyTel is mostly rural market networks and Embarq's properties are in more urban, but still relatively rural, markets.
http://benton.org/node/18214
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VERIZON WIRELESS: WHO NEEDS THE IPHONE?
[SOURCE: TelephonyOnline, AUTHOR: Kevin Fitchard]
Verizon Wireless may not have had the iPhone, but it managed to pull off an impressive quarter in terms of subscriber additions. The operator added 1.5 million new post-paid subscribers, while prepaid, wholesale and acquisitions chipped in another 600,000. And like AT&T, much of Verizon Wireless' growth was in the high-end smartphone line, where data revenues and high-dollar contracts helped boost average revenue per user.
http://benton.org/node/18213
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QUICKLY
MUSIC EXEC: INDUSTRY CAN'T WAIT FOR CONGRESS TO ACT
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: Andrew Noyes]
BMI CEO Del Bryant said Monday that stakeholders in the digital-age copyright conversation "cannot wait until the next round of congressional hearings or rate proceedings to draft the next big idea." IP experts as well as technology and content creators must "chip away at the inertia" and "blend the best thinking across all minds" on the topic and find solutions that work for all parties, he said. Bryant advocated for "solutions that foster strong, progressive public policy for copyright" in the United States and across the globe.
http://benton.org/node/18212
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SOCIAL NETWORKS EXPLODING, MAY APPEAR IN GOVERNMENT
[SOURCE: ars technica, AUTHOR: David Chartier]
Considering the explosive social networking growth revealed by a survey Nielsen just published, now may be a great time to begin transitioning some government operations to social media tools. Neilsen's study focuses on the social networks that had the highest year-over-year growth in the US from September 2007 to 2008. The reigning champions among social networks are no surprise: MySpace tops out with 59 million users, Facebook has 39 million, and Classmates Online comes in third (no, seriously) with 17 million. Facebook's gaining, though, as its growth came in at 116 percent, while MySpace grew just one percent.
http://benton.org/node/18211
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COMMERCE COMMITTEE CHAIR STEVENS FOUND GUILTY OF MAKING FALSE STATEMENTS
[SOURCE: TVWeek, AUTHOR: Ira Teinowitz]
On Monday, a federal jury found former Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) guilty of making false statements on Senate disclosure forms, a verdict likely to devastate the Republican's already difficult re-election hopes. Sen Stevens, 84, remains the ranking Republican on the Commerce Committee, which considers virtually all broadcasting legislation. His departure likely would make Sen Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX) the panel's ranking Republican.
http://benton.org/node/18210
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TESTING FOR TECH LITERACY
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: Douglas MacMillan]
Technology classes are entering the curriculum in schools around the country, but they're not common enough, say educators, company executives, and policymakers. In a bid to make technology literacy more widespread, the National Assessment Governing Board this month announced plans to develop the first nationwide assessment of technological learning in U.S. schools. NAGB, a government-commissioned independent council, awarded nonprofit WestEd, a 40-year-old educational research and service group, a $1.86 million contract to work with educators, school officials, the business community, and the public on constructing the test, set to hit schools in 2012.
http://benton.org/node/18229
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