FCC Chief faces hard Fight on Media Mergers

FCC CHIEF FACES HARD FIGHT ON MEDIA MERGERS
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Stephanie Kirchgaessner]
[Commentary] In an unusually polarized era for American politics, few have framed positions on issues as adeptly as FCC Chairman Kevin Martin. But his political talents are about to be tested as never before. In less than two weeks he is expected to revive a debate over media ownership rules that has dogged the agency for nearly a decade. At stake is whether the rules that curb the ambitions of groups such as Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation should be loosened to allow unfettered expansion of the biggest media companies in the US. Millions of dollars worth of potential takeovers of local television stations by newspaper groups such as Gannett and Tribune rest on the outcome. But the proposal has prompted a backlash from consumers who fear that, in place of local coverage, they will be served up a homogenized diet of national news. Unlike obscure telecoms regulations, the media ownership debate will reverberate far beyond Washington’s Beltway, arousing opposition from communities across the country who fear their access to local news could be diluted if big newspaper groups are allowed to take over small TV stations. “There is a firestorm that is about to confront Mr Martin and I don't think he’s aware of it,” says Jeffrey Chester, executive director at the Center for Digital Democracy. “I think there is growing unease by the public about the media in general. There is no way he is going to emerge from the media ownership issue without a black eye.” Another critic of deregulation, Gene Kimmelman at the Consumers Union, says he is fighting to ensure that “what consumers read in the morning isn't verbatim what they see on the six o’clock news”. But Chairman Martin says newspaper companies are struggling for survival, amid falling circulation and stock prices. Allowing companies to consolidate with broadcasters in the same market would allow companies to cut costs. Wall Street analysts agree that a relaxation of the rules would generally benefit media companies, particularly Gannett and Tribune. The problem, as Chairman Martin accepts, is that the public “has not been convinced of the need for change”. In fact, according to Mr Chester, the public outcry against changes to media rules will be even more intense than the last time the FCC tried to overhaul the limits, because campaigning groups such as Moveon.org are better organized.
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/34f406fa-f71b-11da-a566-0000779e2340.html
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