GAO shocker: local broadcasters offer more local news

[Commentary] A government report on broadcast media ownership released Friday concludes that television stations broadcasting in specific markets tend to offer more local news for those areas than the national networks. "With cable and satellite service, the public can receive programming from nationwide outlets, such as CNN and FOX News, and television stations in adjacent markets," concludes the Government and Accountability Office's new study. "However, media outlets located in a market are more likely to provide local news, public affairs, and political programming addressing the needs of residents in that market, such as coverage of local political campaigns, compared to nationwide and adjacent-market outlets." The GAO's Report to House of Representatives' Commerce subcommittee on the Internet bolsters the findings of several controversial economic surveys that the Federal Communications Commission produced. Critics charge that the agency later suppressed these reports -- most notably a 2003 study suggesting that locally-owned TV stations produce more local news than non-locally-owned broadcasters. The FCC is currently under investigation by Energy and Commerce for its handling of those studies, among others. This GAO release, submitted to the Committee in March, can only intensify that probe.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080413-gao-shocker-local-broadcas...