June 2009

Verizon's Tom Tauke says he still thinks a fifth Federal Communications Commission principle on broadband network nondiscrimination is unnecessary, but he also recognizes the political reality that there was an election and there appears to be some momentum for movement on the nondiscrimination front in the administration, in Congress, and at the FCC. Tauke pointed out that the company's positions have previously evolved. "We were wary of some of the past activities that have been proposed at the FCC and didn't always embrace the notion upfront but gradually got to the point where we'd say, 'OK, these four principles we think we can live with these.'" He said he expects that is the kind of dialog that will be going on in the future. Tauke also tried to make the case for why such a principle was unnecessary, which is that increasing broadband competition has already driven the market to more openness. "We generally support the notion of open Internet. We are trying to give customers access to products and services they want. We believe the market and the forces of history and technology push you in the direction of opening and not blocking and denying and restricting." He said that is consistent with what the new administration wants, "so, it seems to me there should be a way to get some policy."

Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy on Thursday reaffirmed his commitment to moving forward on several technology-related measures this summer. High on the list of priorities is the Performance Rights Act which would end a long-standing copyright royalty exemption afforded to AM and FM radio stations that has been backed by the music business but panned by broadcasters. The Committee will also consider provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act that are slated to sunset on Dec. 31. The expiring sections include a "roving wiretap" provision that allowed government bugs on a phone used by a person being tapped as well as language broadening law enforcement access to library and bookstore patrons' records. Waiting in the wings is the Satellite Home Viewer Act which would permit satellite systems to retransmit local and distant TV signals into markets across the country.

In an order released Thursday, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals asked for new briefs in the Janet Jackson/broadcast indecency case. The call for input comes a month after the Supreme Court's May 4 decision to vacate the Third Circuit's ruling that the fine was arbitrary and capricious, (the Court remanded the case back to that circuit for reconsideration in light of the Supreme Court's earlier decision in FCC vs. Fox ). The Third Circuit had thrown out the FCC fine, concluding that its defense of pursuing fleeting nudity had been arbitrary and capricious. With the Supreme Court's Fox decision for guidance, the court has been asked to rethink that. The court set deadlines of 60 days from the release of the order for appellant briefs, 40 days after those briefs are filed for responses by the other side, and replies to those responses 14 days after that.

Since 1996, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Benton Foundation have collaborated on Sound partners for Community Health. Robert Wood Johnson's communications department funded the initiative, while Benton managed it. Benton brought considerable expertise in media and communications to the project and "wanted to learn about the use of community media." For ten years, Sound Partners projects in cities around the country enabled community organizations to collaborate with public broadcasters to raise awareness of health issues. "In the early days, it was little more than public service announcements, with aggressive outreach," explains Benton's program liaison Karen Menichelli. "Over time, it became much more tune-in kinds of programming — talk shows, telenovelas [Spanish-language soap operas], and so on."