Bill to Block FCC’s Cross-Ownership Changes Hits House

BILL TO BLOCK FCC'S CROSS-OWNERSHIP CHANGES HITS HOUSE
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Reps. Jay Inslee (D-Wash) and Dave Reichert (R-Wash) introduced the Media Ownership Act of 2007 in the House. It is a companion to the Senate bill introduced by Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) that is tailored to block the Federal Communications Commission's move Tuesday to loosen newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership rules. The bill requires the FCC to collect data and hold separate inquiries into minority ownership, broadcast localism and the impacts of both on consolidation, and to do so before it passes any media-ownership-rule changes.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6514199.html?rssid=193

* Free Press Applauds House Media Ownership Act
"This crucial legislation would reverse the FCC’s actions, fix the broken policymaking process, and help ensure that the public airwaves reflect America’s diverse local communities. This bill should be at the top of the priority list when Congress returns in 2008."
http://www.freepress.net/press/release.php?id=324

* Track the bill's progress http://www.benton.org/node/8517