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For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm

*** Enjoy the holiday weekend... see you again Tuesday, July 5. ***

GOVERNMENT AND MEDIA
House Passes Measure Targeting Covert PR
CPB Liberal Bias Study Flawed, Critics Say
Abernathy: Media Ownership Proceeding Could Take a Year
The Cost of Indecency
U.S. Will Retain Its Control of Internet Oversight
Self-Censorship Shifts Hong Kong Media Role

LEGISLATION
Senate DTV Bill Slowed
Franchising Requirements Would be Eased in House, Senate Bills
That Pesky Excise Tax on your Phone Bill may be on Way Out

QUICKLY -- Feds Sweep Down on Internet Pirates; BuzzFlash interview:
Jonathan Adelstein; What You Need to Know About the DTV Transition; Fax
Rules Delayed; Keep that Spam away from Children!; Your brain doesn't work
like a computer

GOVERNMENT AND MEDIA

HOUSE PASSES MEASURE TARGETING COVERT PR
The House of Representatives approved an amendment Thursday by Rep. Maurice
Hinchey (D-NY) to bar federal agencies from hiring media representatives,
public relations firms and other contractors to covertly promote "publicity
or propaganda." The measure, included in a major appropriations bill, is
intended to end efforts by the White House and other government agencies to
secretly commission favorable reports on administration causes and then
pass those off as legitimate news.
[SOURCE: TVWeek, AUTHOR: Doug Halonen]
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=8093

CPB LIBERAL BIAS STUDY FLAWED, CRITICS SAY
A consultant who monitored news and talk programs on public radio and TV
found that liberal and anti-administration views were widespread, but
critics said the consultant's work was itself biased and riddled with
errors. The consultant, Frederick W. Mann, was secretly hired last year by
Kenneth Y. Tomlinson, chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
CPB hasn't released Mann's $14,000 study, which is the subject of an
investigation by the CPB's inspector general as a possible abuse of
taxpayer funds. Mann's work was released yesterday by Sen. Byron Dorgan
(D-N.D.), who had requested a copy from the CPB. It details the views of
guests on four public radio and TV programs -- "Now With Bill Moyers" and
"Tucker Carlson: Unfiltered" on PBS, "The Diane Rehm Show" and "The Tavis
Smiley Show" on NPR -- that aired between October 2003 and June last year.
The report labels guests on these programs "liberal," "conservative" or
"neutral," or categorizes them by such descriptions as "pro-Bush,"
"anti-Bush," "support administration," "oppose administration." Mann never
explains his labeling criteria or indicates in any detail which specific
comment or comments earned a guest a particular characterization. Sen
Dorgan pointed out that "red-blooded" conservatives such as Sen. Chuck
Hagel (R-Neb.) and former congressman Bob Barr (R-Ga.) were classified as
"liberal" and "anti-administration" apparently for briefly expressing views
that differed from administration policy. Dorgan called the report "kind of
a nutty project" and an "amateurish attempt to prove a liberal bias."
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Paul Farhi]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/30/AR200506...
(requires registration)
* CPB Bias Inquiry 'Nutty,' Says Dorgan
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA622584?display=Breaking+News&...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* Details of Secret Public Broadcasting Study
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-et-cpb1jul01,1,3440...
(requires registration)
* See coverage of the Mann report from NPR and view the report for yourself at:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4724317

ABERNATHY: MEDIA OWNERSHIP PROCEEDING COULD TAKE A YEAR
The FCC is set to seek more comments on media ownership rules remanded by
the 3rd U.S. Appeals Court, Philadelphia, at a July 14 meeting and FCC
Commissioner Abernathy, for one, thinks it might be better to try rewriting
the rules piece-by-piece. "If you peel off sections and you can do a
partial order on reconsideration. These are all very difficult
controversial issues. Perhaps it would have been wiser on our part to take
brief sections at a time [in the past]. But there is very real logic for
doing it all at once," she said Thursday. She noted the newspaper rule
warrants attention because some companies, such as The Tribune Co. and
Media General, have merged newspapers with broadcast stations, anticipating
deregulation. But there will be a delay in mergers until the new rules are
in place -- which could take up to one year.
Commissioner Abernathy's term expired in 2004 and she hopes the White House
will fill her job and another vacancy by the end of summer. She said the
Administration
understands the need to fill the vacancies, saying "it's to everyone's
benefit" to have a complete Commission.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Tania Panczyk-Collins, Jonathan Make]
(Not available online)
* No Short-Term Fix On Ownership Conflicts
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA622743?display=Breaking+News&...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

THE COST OF INDECENCY
After a record 2004, the Federal Communications Commission has yet to issue
a fine for indecent broadcasting this year, the longest pause in activity
since 2001, according to records gathered by the Center for Public
Integrity. The last fine issued was Dec. 22, 2004, capping off a record
year in broadcast indecency enforcement in every major category. The pause
is no doubt related to regime change and two vacancies on the Federal
Communications Commission. But a far more likely cause is the impact of
record settlement agreements reached in 2004 between the FCC and two giant
media companies. The agreements promise dire consequences for on-air talent
and other employees who participate in the airing of any future indecent
broadcasts. In 2004, the FCC signed a $3.5 million settlement agreement
with Viacom Inc. and a $1.75 million agreement with Clear Channel
Communications Inc., the largest payments for broadcast indecency in FCC
history. Those two companies were responsible for 61 percent of all
proposed fines since 2000, the Center found. Viacom, owner of CBS
Broadcasting Inc. and Infinity Broadcasting Corp., is the second-largest
television station owner and second-largest radio broadcaster in the
country. Clear Channel is the No. 1 radio broadcaster with about 1,200
radio stations. By agreeing to pay, the broadcasters avoided legal fees and
a potentially lengthy administrative appeals process. But they also signed
compliance agreements that, according to performers and First Amendment
advocates, have chilled speech on the airwaves and prompted disc jockeys
and producers to think twice before airing potentially controversial
broadcasts.
[SOURCE: Center for Public Integrity]
http://www.publicintegrity.org/telecom/report.aspx?aid=716&sid=200

US WILL RETAIN ITS CONTROL OF INTERNET OVERSIGHT
The U.S. government will indefinitely retain oversight of the main
computers that control traffic on the Internet, ignoring calls by some
countries to turn the function over to an international body, said Michael
D. Gallagher, assistant secretary for communications and information at the
Commerce Department. The announcement marked a departure from previously
stated U.S. policy. Gallagher shied away from terming the declaration a
reversal, calling it instead "the foundation of U.S. policy going forward."
He said the declaration, officially made in a four-paragraph statement
posted online, was in response to growing security threats and increased
reliance on the Internet globally for communications and commerce. The
posted U.S. principles on the Internet's Domain Name and Addressing System are:
1. The United States Government intends to preserve the security and
stability of the Internet's Domain Name and Addressing System (DNS).
2. Governments have legitimate interest in the management of their country
code top level domains
3. ICANN is the appropriate technical manager of the Internet DNS
4. Dialogue related to Internet governance should continue in relevant
multiple fora
[SOURCE: Associated Press]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB112018089500074992,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
A summary of Gallagher's remarks are available at
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/speeches/2005/WCA_06302005.htm
U.S. principles on the Internet's Domain Name and Addressing System:
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/domainname/USDNSprinciples_06302005.htm
* U.S. to Keep Control of Internet Traffic
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/30/AR200506...

SELF-CENSORSHIP SHIFTS HONG KONG MEDIA ROLE
As Hong Kong marks the eighth anniversary today of its return to Chinese
rule, its news media are struggling to preserve the independence that set
them apart from the mainland's tightly controlled government presses.
Critics say that Beijing has been curbing the media's freedom so gradually
that it's easy to miss and that Hong Kong's fears of losing its identity
are starting to be realized. Perhaps more than anything else, the erosion
of media independence is a sign of how much the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region, or SAR, has changed despite the pledge that under
the "one-country, two-systems" formula, it would retain broad autonomy.
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Ching-Ching Ni]
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-fg-hongkong1jul01,1...
(requires registration)

LEGISLATION

SENATE DTV BILL SLOWED
CD reports that drafting of a Senate digital television transition bill has
slowed mainly over debate on the size of a subsidy proposed for converter
boxes once analog TV signals end. One possible scenario now is a minimalist
DTV bill, with only a hard transition date. This would be worked into the
budget reconciliation, which must clear the Senate Commerce Committee by
mid-September.. The date is the only piece budget rules demand for the
government to proceed. Later, in a more comprehensive bill, the committee
could take on subsidies and similarly knotty issues.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily]
(Not available online)

FRANCHISE REQUIREMENTS WOULD BE EASED IN HOUSE, SENATE BILLS
Companies with public right-of-way access would not need a franchise to
provide video services under two bipartisan bills introduced Thursday in
the House and Senate. The House bill, introduced by Reps. Blackburn (R-TN)
and Wynn (D-MD), is similar to but not a companion of the Senate bill,
introduced by Sens. Rockefeller (D-WV) and Smith (R-OR). Both would have
new entrants such as telecom companies pay the same fees as incumbent cable
operators and make government and education channels available. The
National League of Cities (NLC) commended lawmakers for tackling the
franchising issue, but the bills "haven't quite hit the mark," said Cheryl
Leanza, NLC principal legislative counsel. "We're gratified that members of
Congress recognize the importance of franchise fees and it appears they
intend to protect cities' control of rights of way, but we're concerned
that the elimination of the franchising requirement is going to make it
more difficult to manage the right of way," she said. The alternative is a
more lenient regulatory mechanism such as permitting or licensing rules,
which might not let cities collect as much data from firms as they do under
the franchising agreements, she said. The advocacy group Consumers for
Cable Choice said the bills would give consumers more control over what
they watch, access to higher quality service and better pricing and
options. "Elected officials will spend a good part of Independence Day
weekend with their constituents. They should take that opportunity to ask
the American public what it wants from its cable company," said Robert K.
Johnson, the group's executive director. "I'll bet a package of
firecrackers that Americans will say they want freedom to choose their
provider. They want more choices."
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Anne Veigle]
(Not available online)
* Bills Free Bells from Video Franchise
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA622755.html?display=Breaking+News
* Groups Urge Greater Freedom for Cable Viewers
http://www.hearusnow.org/other/newsroom/cablealacarte/

THAT PESKY EXCISE TAX ON YOUR PHONE BILL MAY BE ON WAY OUT
Rep. Gary Miller (R-CA) recently introduced legislation in the House --
supported by 98 co-sponsors -- aimed at repealing the excise tax on phone
service, which was imposed in 1898 to help pay for the Spanish-American
War. The general excise tax has so far cost consumers about $300 billion,
says the Congressional Research Service. The entire Spanish-American War
cost only about $6 billion, adjusted for inflation.It was originally a tax
on the affluent because phone service was a luxury in 1898. Now, general
excise taxes show up each month as a line item on phone bills. Businesses
and consumers pay the same: 3% of the total. Over the years, the excise tax
has shot up to as high as 25%. During the inflation-driven 1970s, the tax
hovered in the 10% range. Because the tax is applied evenly, with no regard
for income, poorer consumers are hit hardest. Seven federal courts have so
far declared the tax to be illegal.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR:Leslie Cauley]
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/money/20050701/taxes01.art.htm
* Senators want to nix 1898 telecom tax
http://news.com.com/Senators+want+to+nix+1898+telecom+tax/2100-1036_3-57...

QUICKLY

FEDS SWEEP DOWN ON INTERNET PIRATES
The government announced an 11-nation crackdown Thursday on Internet piracy
organizations responsible for stealing copies of the latest Star Wars film
and other movies, games and software programs worth at least $50 million.
FBI agents and investigators in the other nations conducted 90 searches
starting Wednesday, arresting four people, seizing hundreds of computers
and shutting down at least eight major online distribution servers for
pirated works.
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News]
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/business/technology/12025718.htm
* Government Launches Internet Piracy Offensive
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/30/AR200506...
* Digital Piracy Raids Net Arrests
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-piracy1jul01,1,412112...
* Suspected file-swappers arrested in global raid
http://today.reuters.com/news/NewsArticle.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID...

BUZZFLASH INTERVIEW: JONATHAN ADELSTEIN
FCC commissioner needs your help in the fight against media consolidation
[SOURCE: Working for Change]
http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?ItemID=19281

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE DTV TRANSITION
The Consumer Electronics Retailers Coalition (CERC) this week released a
3-page Consumer Guide entitled, "What You Need To Know About The 'DTV
Transition' - A Dozen Questions & Answers."
[SOURCE: Consumer Electronics Retailers Coalition Press Release]
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news...
Guide available at: http://www.ceretailers.org/dtv/DTVGuidelines-final.pdf

FCC DELAYS EFFECTIVE DATE FOR RULES CONCERNING UNSOLICITED FAX ADVERTISEMENTS
The Commission has delayed until January 9, 2006, the effective date of the
Commission's July 2003 determination that anyone sending an unsolicited
advertising fax obtain a prior signed, written statement as evidence of the
recipient's permission to receive the fax. Until January 9, 2006, such
faxes may be sent without prior written consent to people with whom the
advertiser has an existing business relationship.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-259689A1.doc
See order at:
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-05-132A1.doc

MICHIGAN E-MAIL LAW AIMS TO PROTECT CHILDREN
Starting today, parents can sign up for what Michigan officials say is the
nation's first registry aimed at keeping spammers from sending children
inappropriate e-mail. The new law bans sending messages to children related
to such things as pornography, illegal or prescription drugs, alcohol,
tobacco, gambling, firearms or fireworks. Parents and schools will be able
to register children's e-mail addresses.
[SOURCE: Associated Press]
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-email1jul01,1,30...
(requires registration)

New research shows human brain doesn't work like a computer
Well, duh, not until you give it caffeine!
http://news.com.com/Your+brain+Search+engine%2C+or+calculator/2100-1008_...
--------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks for making the switch with us. Have a great weekend -- see you Tuesday.
...we are outta here.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Communications-related Headlines is a free online news summary service
provided by the Benton Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday through
Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments,
policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are
factually accurate, their often informal tone does not always represent the
tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang
(headlines( at )benton.org) -- we welcome your comments.
--------------------------------------------------------------

For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm

LOBBYING
Washington

For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm

THE BATTLE OVER PUBLIC BROADCASTING
Public Broadcasters Face 'the Fight of Our Lives'
Opponents On Different Wavelengths
House Commerce Dems Back Noncoms
Republicans Say Restore CPB Funds
Pubcasters Say Funding Cuts Could 'Cripple' Digital Transition
Public Broadcasters' Tightrope Over Funds
Public Broadcasting Under Pressure
Bush's Broadcast Barbarians
Biden's Broadcast Connection

MEDIA
Back to the Drawing Board
Media Industry Poised to Grow
Red and Blue Media

DIGITAL TELEVISION
Generous Converter Box Subsidy Key To Broadcasters' 'Hard Date' Support
Stevens Postpones Hearing On DTV Transition

CABLE
Ending Cable Rate Regulation Top Priority for NCTA
McSlarrow Defends Private Cable Networks
Property-Tax Revision Would Soak Mass. Subs

MUNICIPAL NETWORKS
Phone Giants Are Lobbying Hard To Block Towns' Wireless Plans
Municipal Networks Find Opposition at Chamber Event

QUICKLY -- Martin Announces Staff Chances; Student testing is causing a
shift in ed-tech spending; Too few women and minorities in tech; Brain sees
violent video games as real; How the Web changes your reading habits; Union
launches 'Super-service' campaign; The Movie Theater in Your Pocket; APC
Betinho Prize

THE BATTLE OVER PUBLIC BROADCASTING

PUBLIC BROADCASTERS FACE 'THE FIGHT OF OUR LIVES'
On the eve of a vote crucial to its financial health, the public television
system is being buffeted by political and economic forces that have pushed
it into a situation many say is one of the most precarious in its 38-year
history. "In my opinion, this is probably the most tumultuous time that we
have had," said David Hosley, general manager of KVIE, Sacramento's public
television station, who has worked in the field for 18 years. "This is much
more serious, much more divisive, and I'm fearful that it may be more
successful in harming America's public broadcasting system." The House of
Representatives is considering a measure today that would nearly halve
federal funding for public television -- a move that broadcasters predict
would force the closure of small, rural stations and curtail production
money for programming. At the same time, the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting, the private agency that distributes federal funds, is
embroiled in a highly unusual partisan struggle involving allegations of
secret contracts with Republican lobbyists and a consultant who graded
former "Now" host Bill Moyers on political bias. Meanwhile, PBS faces
increased competition from the expanding world of cable, which offers the
very history, arts and children's programs that were once its sole domain.
And its own prime-time audience, at an average age of 61, is nearing
retirement.
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Matea Gold]
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-et-pbs23jun23,1,508454...
(requires registration)

OPPONENTS ON DIFFERENT WAVELENGTHS
People who work in public television and radio bristle whenever they're
accused of favoring liberal ideas and views over conservative ones. Public
broadcasting, they say, is committed to presenting diverse opinions. Yet as
the House of Representatives prepares to vote on the biggest federal
cutback ever for public broadcasting, there isn't much diversity to be
found among the people on either side. The battle lines over public
broadcasting have been drawn in sharply partisan fashion: Democrats in
Congress and liberal organizations have emerged as public broadcasting's
most visible and vocal supporters, while Republicans and conservatives have
stayed mostly silent. Public broadcasters point out that such nonpartisan
organizations as the National PTA, the American Academy of Pediatrics and
the American Psychological Association have recently joined the fight on
their side. But the inability to find many friends across the aisle has
been a source of frustration to broadcasters because they say it obscures
the breadth of public backing and hardens the partisan lines. "We know
there's Republican support out there, and we, too, are surprised that it
hasn't been more vocal," said Lea Sloan, a spokeswoman for PBS. In a column
in the Wall Street Journal, former Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan wrote
that "arguing over whether PBS is and has long been politically liberal is
like arguing over whether the ocean is and has long been wet. Of course it
is, and everyone knows it." Noonan advocated that Washington support public
broadcasting -- but only if it drops its current-affairs programs and
sticks to history and cultural fare. Another Republican, a House aide, said
yesterday that "NPR's liberal bent is obvious. There's a general lack of
sympathy [among Republicans] for that reason." This aide, who asked not to
be identified because his boss is trying to avoid publicly criticizing
public broadcasting, recounted traveling through the South recently and
hearing "six Christian radio stations and NPR. The contrast was obvious.
There's a real cultural dissonance there."
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Paul Farhi]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/22/AR200506...
(requires registration)

HOUSE COMMERCE DEMS BACK NONCOMS
The latest salvo in the battle over the future of public broadcasting, the
Democrats on the House Commerce Committee have sent a letter to the
chairman and ranking member of the Appropriations Committee, California
Republican Jerry Lewis and Democrat David Obey, asking that full funding be
restored to Public TV and radio. Republican members were not approached
about joining the effort, according to a committee staffer. The Democrats
argue that zeroing out some programs and reducing funds for others will
devastate local stations and communities.
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA610110?display=Breaking+News&...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

REPUBLICANS SAY RESTORE CPB FUNDS
Ouch! Who touched the 3rd rail? Iowa Republican Jim Leach has officially
joined the Democrat-led push to restore funds to the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting, according to a Democratic appropriations committee staffer.
Another Republican House member, Chris Shays of Connecticut, also supports
restoring the funds and, according to a staffer, expects to support the
amendment, depending on what the offsets will be (to give the money to CPB,
it must be taken from somewhere else in the budget). Wisconsin Democrat
David Obey, whose amendment to the appropriations bill restored CPB funding
for 2008 last week, plans to introduce a second amendment to the bill
either Thursday or Friday to restore the $100 million cut from CPB's 2006
appropriation. The amendment does not call for restoring funds to the Ready
to Learn (RTL) kids programming grant, the digital transition funds, or the
interconnections monies, all of which were eliminated by the same
Republican committee majorities. Why not include those in the amendment?
"Money is just too tight," said the staffer. Restoring the 2008 funds was
relatively easy, since it did not have to offset. But the RTL and other
cuts are from 2006. "You can only add money to one program by taking it
away from another in the same bill. This bill is health, job training,
education, and such, and all the programs face steep cuts.There just isn't
the fat to cut."
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA610230?display=Breaking+News&...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

PUBCASTERS SAY FUNDING CUTS COULD 'CRIPPLE' DIGITAL TRANSITION
In a press conference on the eve of a House vote on public broadcasting
funding, PBS President Pat Mitchell highlighted the crisis public TV and
radio face if the House approves cuts of nearly 50% proposed by the
Appropriations Committee. Ms. Mitchell called it a "critical moment" for
public broadcasting, whose future would be "weakened" if the House votes
deep cuts, she said. The cuts would mean 50% operating budget drops for
some small and rural stations, she said, with some going dark. And there
would be no new funding for shows like Sesame Street, she added. Public
broadcasters also warned members of Congress that the cuts would also
"cripple" public TV's digital conversion. That would, in turn, delay the
digital transition, pushing back a spectrum auction generating billions in
proceeds for the government.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Dinesh Kumar]
(Not available online)

PUBLIC BROADCASTERS' TIGHTROPE OVER FUNDS
Public radio stations are airing both promotional spots asking for
listeners to oppose cuts in federal support and news coverage/discussions
of those same cuts. That jarring juxtaposition of news programming and
self-interested promotion exemplifies the fine line that public
broadcasters are walking as they mobilize to combat threats to their
financing. It is always a delicate task for a news organization to cover
itself. But when the organization in question is financed in part by the
government, when the news centers on the prospects for that money and when
a station floods its airwaves with spots urging viewers or listeners to
contact their Congressional representatives, the undertaking becomes much
more challenging.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Lorne Manly]
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/23/arts/television/23publ.html
(requires registration)

PUBLIC BROADCASTING UNDER PRESSURE
The House of Representatives is expected to vote by the end of the week on
an appropriations bill that includes a 45 percent cut in federal funding of
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting's. The funding fight is just the
latest in a string of debates that have erupted over the tenor and future
of public broadcasting.
[SOURCE: Online NewsHour]
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/media/jan-june05/cpb_6-21.html

BUSH'S BROADCAST BARBARIANS
[Commentary] It's time to defend public television again, but let's demand
something better in return.
[SOURCE: Seattle Weekly, AUTHOR: Knute Berger]
http://www.seattleweekly.com/features/0525/050622_news_mossback.php

BIDEN'S BROADCAST CONNECTION
[Commentary] Sen Joe Biden (D-MD) is holding up the nomination of Dina
Habib Powell as the State Department officer named to use public diplomacy
to improve U.S. relations in the Middle East. He wants to trade his hold
for the renomination of radio tycoon Norman Pattiz for the Broadcasting
Board of Governors (BBG). Pattiz, founder and chairman of the Westwood One
radio conglomerate, was a generous Democratic contributor in 2000 ($360,000
for that election cycle alone) and an overnight White House guest.
President Bill Clinton named him that year to the BBG, which oversees the
U.S. government's worldwide radio and television broadcasting services.
Bush reappointed Pattiz in 2002 as part of a conventional package deal to
get the Senate, then under Democratic control, to confirm a Republican
nominee to the board: conservative Kenneth Tomlinson, former editor of
Reader's Digest and the Reagan-era head of the Voice of America. Pattiz and
Tomlinson, now the BBG chairman, are no marriage made in heaven. According
to sources, Tomlinson viewed Pattiz as a Hollywood control freak (it takes
a Washington control freak to know one). Pattiz played a leading role in
establishing a radio music service to the Arab world, but associates say he
was not the dominant force.
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Robert D. Novak ]
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/)
(requires registration)

MEDIA

BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
The Newspaper Association of America vows to "fill the record with all of
the good data" if the Federal Communications Commission begins a new
proceeding on the newspaper-broadcast crossownership ban. That includes
studies and statistics showing that newspaper-owned television stations
produce more and better quality programs than stations owned by other
operators, says NAA President and Chief Executive Officer John F. Sturm.
Critics, who include interest groups on both sides of the political aisle,
argue that allowing a single entity to own a newspaper and a television
station or radio station in the same market would dangerously limit the
number of news options available to consumers and reduce the amount of
coverage. With the Supreme Court declining to review the case, sending the
media ownership rules back to the FCC, Chairman Kevin Martin has a number
of options before him, according to Howard Liberman, a partner in
communications law at Drinker Biddle's Washington office. Given the
likelihood that any future FCC decision on cross-ownership will be
appealed, Liberman says, Chairman Martin could open the issue up for public
comment, analyze the whole record and, when the matter goes back to the 3rd
Circuit, present further rationalization for the changes. Another option is
adopting a different measurement approach than the Diversity Index. The FCC
could also better articulate how the Internet is contributing to diversity,
and point out the new forms of news distribution -- such as blogging and
podcasting -- that have gained traction since 2003.
[SOURCE: Presstime Magazine, AUTHOR: ]
http://www.naa.org/Presstime/PTArtPage.cfm?AID=7065

MEDIA INDUSTRY POISED TO GROW
A new report by PricewaterhouseCoopers released Wednesday provides a broad
look at the media and entertainment industries -- covering everything from
film to newspapers to television to casino gambling, and including
advertising revenue as well as user fees. It predicts spending will rise to
$1.8 trillion in 2009 from $1.3 trillion last year. That would represent an
annual growth rate of 7.3 percent, down slightly from 7.8 percent last year
but up sharply from growth rates of 2.4 percent, 4.7 percent and 5.4
percent from 2001 through 2003, respectively. "The entertainment and media
industry continues to display an extraordinary ability to reinvent itself
and create new revenue streams through innovative offerings that hardly
existed as recently as 2000," said Wayne Jackson, head of
PricewaterhouseCoopers' entertainment and media practice. Indeed, the
report provides plenty of fodder for advocates of new media, predicting
that spending on Internet advertising and access charges will rise at an
annual rate of 16.9 percent globally over the next five years. For the "old
media," however, there are further reasons to fret: Spending on newspaper
subscriptions and advertising will rise at only a 3.3 percent annual rate,
the report predicts, with book publishing doing only slightly better at 3.4
percent.
[SOURCE: International Herald Tribune, AUTHOR: Eric Pfanner]
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/06/21/yourmoney/media.php

RED AND BLUE MEDIA
[Commentary] The New School's Carol Wilder offered a provocative
commencement address this year on "Red and Blue Media." -- If it is true
that,"facts do speak, but not for themselves," who is doing the talking?
We're all familiar with the "red and blue states" designation. Now it seems
we have red and blue "facts." Robert Kennedy Jr. wrote in response to this
that "the Democrats lost the presidential contest not because of a
philosophical chasm between red and blue states, but due to an information
deficit caused by a breakdown in our national media."
[SOURCE: MediaChannel.org, AUTHOR: Carol Wilder, New School University]
http://www.mediachannel.org/views/dissector/affalert398.shtml

DIGITAL TELEVISION

GENEROUS CONVERTER BOX SUMMARY KEY TO BROADCASTERS' 'HARD DATE' SUPPORT
Broadcasters have told members of Congress that the main obstacle hampering
their support for a measure to set a fixed date for the end of analog
television is the lack of a generous subsidy program for converter boxes.
Budgetary issues are clouding the debate on Capitol Hill over how and when
to approve draft legislation by House Energy and Commerce Committee
Chairman Joe Barton, R-Texas, setting Dec. 31, 2008, as the hard date for
the transition to digital television. Barton initially was reluctant to
allocate more than $500 million for converter boxes, far less than the $2.5
billion sought by committee Democrats. Viewers who do not subscribe to
cable or satellite will need either a new television set or a converter box
to receive digital signals on a traditional analog television set. Until
recently, Barton wanted to hold the subsidy at $500 million by limiting the
program to over-the-air households and to those at 200 percent of the
poverty line or lower. Sources close to the Energy and Commerce panel said
Barton is now prepared to accept a $900 million allocation for converter
boxes, which is seen as sufficient to provide a free or subsidized box to
every over-the-air household. Homes that currently receive cable and
satellite service would not be eligible. The Democrats' $2.5 billion figure
is designed to permit all viewers to receive subsidized boxes. The
Democrats say it would be unrealistically limited and unduly complicated to
administer a system that checks an individual's income or pay-television
subscription status in return for providing a converter box.
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: Drew Clark]
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-FPOC1119473307073.html

STEVENS POSTPONES HEARING ON DTV TRANSITION
Senate Commerce Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, has postponed a hearing
originally scheduled for next Wednesday, June 29 on proposals to expedite
the transition to digital television broadcasts, a Commerce Committee aide
said Tuesday. The aide said committee members want to hold a "listening
session" with consumer groups before hearing testimony on the DTV
transition. No new date has been set for that hearing, or for a hearing
originally scheduled for this week on proposed telecom industry mergers.
[SOURCE: CongressDaily, AUTHOR: Molly M. Peterson]
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-FUJP1119465581640.html

CABLE

ENDING CABLE RATE REGULATION TOP PRIORITY FOR NCTA
Cable operators, preparing for telecom and franchise law rewrites, have set
rate deregulation on basic cable
and equipment rates as a top legislative priority, NCTA President Kyle
McSlarrow said. Facing potential congressional
action on national franchising later this year, the industry doesn't need
to make concessions that would harm cable
operators to get what it wants, he said.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Jonathan Make]
(Not available online)

McSLARROW DEFENDS PRIVATE CABLE NETWORKS
In comments partly aimed at TV stations looking for a free ride on cable
systems, National Cable & Telecommunications Association president Kyle
McSlarrow said Wednesday that cable's inability to control access to its
facilities directly impacts investment and limits consumer choice. "Every
time someone thinks they can just take a slice of bandwidth here, or a
slice there -- whether it's dual carriage or multicasting or something else
-- you reduce the incentives to invest, you pick winners and losers for
carriage on a pipe that does not have unlimited bandwidth, and you reduce
the real freedom of the consumer," McSlarrow said in a speech to the Media
Institute, an industry-funded First Amendment organization.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA610241.html?display=Breaking+News&...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)
* See McSlarrow's comments, "Cable Freedom" (and who can stand against
freedom?):
http://www.ncta.com/press/press.cfm?PRid=606&showArticles=ok

PROPERTY-TAX REVISION WOULD SOAK MASS. SUBS
Massachusetts consumers could face a substantial increase in their cable
and other telecom bills if the state's legislature passes a property-tax
revision, business leaders testified yesterday. Telephone companies and
cable operators have partnered in an attempt to fight off House Bill 2408,
which would apply property taxes to infrastructure such as poles,
underground conduits and wires. Cities -- especially Boston -- have
spearheaded the proposal, because their revenues have declined as telephone
companies accelerated depreciation of equipment, or transferred ownership
titles out of state, to avoid taxes. The law is needed to close
"loopholes," according to municipal officials.
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Linda Haugsted]
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA610117.html?display=Breaking+News&...
(free access for Benton's Headlines subscribers)

MUNICIPAL NETWORKS

PHONE GIANTS ARE LOBBYING HARD TO BLOCK TOWNS' WIRELESS PLANS
SBC Communications and other big phone companies say that cities should not
be allowed to subsidize high-speed Internet connections -- even in areas
where the companies don't yet offer the service. Since January, lawmakers
in at least 14 states and the U.S. Congress have introduced bills to
restrict local governments' ability to fill the gap. On the other side of
the fight are cities, Intel, Dell, Texas Instruments and other tech
companies. They stand to gain from the sale of chips, wireless-enabled
laptops and other products that use fast Internet networks. Around the
country, governments are contracting with providers other than the local
telephone or cable companies to build or run the networks using Wi-Fi
technology or fiber-optic cables. Wi-Fi, short for wireless fidelity,
provides high-speed access to the Web. Traditional telecom providers view
such projects as a threat and are pushing for laws to curtail them. While
the phone and cable companies control the valuable "last mile" wired
connections into homes and offices, the wireless networks use antennas to
bypass those lines and can connect directly to the networks of
long-distance companies or fiber-optic providers. Plans for such
government-coordinated networks are spreading from rural America to larger
cities including Philadelphia and San Francisco, and big phone companies
have stepped up their efforts to stop them. The battle is increasingly
significant as telephone companies like SBC count on their high-speed Web
access businesses -- which generated roughly $5 billion in revenue last
year, nearly double the amount two years earlier -- to offset declines in
their traditional telephone operations. The telecom providers' main tool in
fighting competition from new wireless technologies is an old-fashioned
one: lobbying muscle. The nation's phone companies, which themselves
received more than $5 billion last year in federal subsidies, argue that
government partnerships with telecom providers represent unfair competition.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Jesse Drucker jesse.drucker( at )wsj.com
and Li Yuan li.yuan( at )wsj.com]
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111948429964367053,00.html?mod=todays...
(requires subscription)
* Should cities be ISPs?
http://news.com.com/Should+cities+be+ISPs/2100-1034_3-5758262.html?tag=n...
* Debate Flares Anew Over Muncipal Broadband Networks
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-LXUG1119473055651.html

MUNICIPAL NETWORKS FIND OPPOSITION AT CHAMBER EVENT
Municipalities should leave broadband networks to the private sector when
competition is healthy, said financial and regulatory consultant Michael
Balhoff in a debate at the Chamber of Commerce Wed. Although the Chamber
had speakers on both sides of the issue, many in the business audience
clearly seemed to oppose municipal networks. Introducing municipal networks
would take significant amounts of business away from telephone companies,
slowing or halting competition in the community, Mr. Balhoff said.
Supporters of the new networks, such as
attorney James Baller, say the issue isn't one of private versus public
sector, but rather a way to push lagging
regions forward. A ubiquitous broadband network would connect a large
percentage of the population unable
to afford Internet services.
[SOURCE: Communications Daily, AUTHOR: Tim Warren]
(Not available online)

QUICKLY

MARTIN ANNOUNCES STAFF CHANGES
On Wednesday, FCC Chairman Kevin J. Martin named Samuel Feder as Acting
General Counsel, Matthew Berry as Acting Deputy General Counsel and Emily
Willeford as Special Advisor for International Issues and Deputy Chief of
Staff. Sam Feder most recently served as the Chairman's Legal Advisor for
spectrum and international issues. He previously served as
then-Commissioner Martin's Legal Advisor for common carrier matters and as
a Legal Advisor to Commissioner Furchtgott-Roth. Before joining the
Commission, Mr. Feder worked at Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis, and at
Kellogg, Huber, Hansen, Todd & Evans, where he focused on
telecommunications and appellate litigation. He has also served as a trial
attorney in the Federal Programs Branch of the Department of Justice,
specializing in constitutional and administrative law, and as a law clerk
to the Honorable Edward R. Becker of the United States Court of Appeals for
the Third Circuit. Mr. Feder is a graduate of the College of William and
Mary and received his J.D, summa cum laude, from the University of Michigan
Law School. Matthew Berry most recently served as Counselor to the
Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy in the U.S.
Department of Justice, where he earned the Department's John Marshall Award
for providing legal advice related to counter-terrorism policy. Ms.
Willeford returns to the Commission after having most recently served as
the Special Assistant in the Office of the Senior Advisor at the White
House. She has previously served as Special Assistant to then-Commissioner
Martin, an Assistant to the Deputy Director of the White House National
Economic Council, and Legal Assistant on the Bush-Cheney 2000 campaign.
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission]
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-259512A1.doc

STUDENT TESTING CAUSES SHIFT IN TECH SPENDING
Public schools pressured to keep up with state and federal testing
requirements are spending millions on high-tech systems to track and
catalog their kids at the same time the federal government is cutting
funding for the very same technology. The result: Instead of buying laptops
for students or updating old hardware, school systems are raiding
technology budgets to pay for data systems that keep track of test scores.
The mammoth systems, which give teachers instant access to student
information and pinpoint weak academic areas, are fast becoming part of the
education landscape nationwide.
[SOURCE: San Antonio Express-News, AUTHOR: Jenny LaCoste-Caputo
jcaputo( at )express-news.net]
http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA062105.01A.hi-tech_cl...

STUDY FINDS TOO FEW WOMEN AND MINORITIES IN TECH
The percentage of women in the information technology work force declined
from a high of 41% in 1996 to 32.4% in 2004, according to a report
Wednesday by the Information Technology Association of America trade group.
The shrinking representation of women is due largely to the fact that one
out of every three women in the IT work force falls into administrative job
categories that have experienced significant overall declines in recent
years, the ITAA said. But even after excluding those administrative
categories -- such as "data entry keyer" -- from analysis, the report finds
that women's share of the IT work force has declined, from 32.4% to 24.9%.
The ITAA's study suggested programs to increase the participation of women
and minorities in the computer field are not making much, if any, headway.
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Ed Frauenheim]
http://news.com.com/Study+finds+too+few+women+and+minorities+in+tech/210...

STUDY: BRAIN SEES VIOLENT GAMES AS REAL
The brains of players of violent video games react as if the violence were
real, a study by Klaus Mathiak of the University of Aachen in Germany has
suggested.
[SOURCE: Reuters]
http://news.com.com/Study+Brain+sees+violent+video+games+as+real/2100-10...

HOW WEB CHANGES YOUR READING HABITS
Computers and the Internet are changing the way people read. Thus far,
search engines and hyperlinks, those underlined words or phrases that when
clicked take you to a new Web page, have turned the online literary voyage
into a kind of U-pick island-hop. Far more is in store. A group at the Palo
Alto Research Center (PARC) is developing what it calls ScentHighlights,
which uses artificial intelligence to go beyond highlighting your search
words in a text. It also highlights whole sections of text it determines
you should pay special attention to, as well as other words or phrases that
it predicts you'll be interested in. ScentHighlights gets its name from a
theory that proposes that people forage for information much in the same
way that animals forage in the wild. ScentHighlights uncovers the "scent"
that bits of information give off and attract readers to it.
[SOURCE: Christian Science Monitor , AUTHOR: Gregory M. Lamb]
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0623/p13s02-stin.html

'SUPER-SERVICE' CAMPAIGN STARTED BY TELUS UNION
More than 13,000 Telus unionized employees are escalating a work-to-rule
campaign, launching a so-called "super-service" tactic that means workers
will essentially take longer to do their jobs. Bruce Bell, president of the
Telecommunications Workers, said the "super-service" campaign means workers
will take extra time to make sure customers get great service. Workers will
also obey all safety procedures, including taking the safest but not
necessarily shortest route to a job site, Bell said in an interview. "The
company has been stepping up their job action on us so we've decided to
step some back on them," Bell said Monday. Drew McArthur, Telus
vice-president of corporate affairs, said he's concerned that customers may
be inconvenienced by the campaign if workers spend longer than they need
with some customers to the detriment of others.
[SOURCE: Vancouver Sun, AUTHOR: Fiona Anderson]
http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id...

THE MOVIE THEATER IN YOUR POCKET
The phone's small screen could perhaps become as big as the Big Screen some
day. With 2 billion subscribers worldwide, mobile phones represent a much
greater market for film than movie theaters or PCs. No wonder studios,
distributors, and independent animators and filmmakers are streaming into
this virtual film genre.
[SOURCE: BusinessWeek, AUTHOR: Olga Kharif]
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jun2005/tc20050622_9670_t...

THE APC BETINHO COMMUNICATIONS PRIZE IN 2005: Community connectivity for
economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean
In 2005, the APC Betinho Prize will be offered in recognition of community
initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean that use the Internet and
other networks to access markets, skills and opportunities to derive real
economic benefits.
APC is looking for ICT initiatives that:
* make a positive economic contribution to the community
* are driven and developed in Latin America and the Caribbean
* can demonstrate a sustainable use of technology
THE PRIZE IS OPEN TO: Civil society organizations, community-based groups,
networks, and social movements anywhere in LAC. Applications will be
accepted in Spanish, Portuguese and English.
THE PRIZE: USD$ 7,500.00 may be shared amongst up to three winning initiatives.
DEADLINE FOR NOMINATIONS: October 16, 2005
MORE ABOUT THE APC BETINHO PRIZE: http://www.apc.org/english/betinho or
write to betinho( at )apc.org
--------------------------------------------------------------
Communications-related Headlines is a free online news summary service
provided by the Benton Foundation (www.benton.org). Posted Monday through
Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments,
policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are
factually accurate, their often informal tone does not always represent the
tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang
(headlines( at )benton.org) -- we welcome your comments.
--------------------------------------------------------------

For upcoming media policy events, see http://www.benton.org/calendar.htm

THE BATTLE OVER PUBLIC BROADCASTING
Broadcasting Board Delays Vote on CEO
PBS Chairman Cites Partisan Pressure
CPB Chairman's Emails Cite White House Authority
Public Broadcasting Monitor Had Worked at Center
Founded by Conservatives
Slash & Burn
Public Broadcasters Air Ads Against Federal Cutback
Charren, Markey Re-Team to Fight Cuts