DIGITAL DIVIDE
Dept. of Commerce Announces $12.5 Million in Grants and TIIAP Name
Change (NTIA)
TELEVISION
NBC Agrees to Build Jobs for Minorities (NYT)
McCain Urged F.C.C. Action On Issue Involving Supporter (NYT)
AOL's new screen name ends in TV (USA)
INTERNET
Domain Names Revoked Over Extra Character (Cyber)
Excite At Home Is Expected To Offer Free Web Access (WSJ)
Homework Help Sites (NYT)
ECOMMERCE
IRS Allows Tax-Free Ad Swaps on Web To Prevent Strangling of
Development Companies (WSJ)
In Retailing, Bricks Beat Bytes(WSJ)
TELECOMMUTING
OSHA Reverses Its Advisory (SJM)
DIGITAL DIVIDE
DEPT. OF COMMERCE ANNOUNCES $12.5 MILLION IN GRANTS AND TIIAP NAME CHANGE
Issue: Digital Divide
The Commerce Department announced yesterday approximately $12.5 million in
grants distributed through the recently renamed TIIAP program. Completed
applications for funds must be received by the NTIA no later than 9 p.m.
March 16. Daley also announced that the grant program formerly known as the
Telecommunications and Information Infrastructure Assistance Program
(TIIAP), has been renamed the Technology Opportunities Program (TOP) to
better reflect opportunities the many new technologies provide for economic
advancement. TOP is a highly-competitive, merit-based program that provides
start-up money for innovative, practical projects that use advanced
telecommunications and information technology. The program, as TIIAP, has
provided more than $135 million in matching grants since its inception in
1994. This year, the program is specifically encouraging projects developed
by smaller, locally-based organizations that both serve and represent
technologically underserved communities; projects that enhance the quality
and efficiency of services delivered through non-profit entities; and
cross-cutting projects involving partnerships among its four application
areas--community networking and services; lifelong learning and the arts;
health; and public safety.
NTIA will hold a series of free regional Technical Assistance Workshops to
discuss the TOP funding priorities, application requirements. The Technical
Assistance Workshops will be held on January 31, in New York, New York;
February 2, in Houston, Texas; and February 4, in Los Angeles, California.
Online registration is available at the NTIA Website. Assistant Secretary
Rohde will hold a special briefing for interested parties in Washington,
D.C. on January 19, 2000, at the Department of Commerce, Room 4830, at 2:00
p.m. The press is invited to attend. For more information, call (202)
482-2048, or e-mail to: top( at )ntia.doc.gov, or access NTIA's website at
www.ntia.doc.gov.
[SOURCE: NTIA]
www.ntia.doc.gov
TELEVISION
NBC AGREES TO BUILD JOBS FOR MINORITIES
Issue: Television/Minorities
Bob Wright, president of NBC, announced an agreement yesterday with a
coalition led by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People intended to generate jobs for minorities both at the network and on
shows it broadcasts. The agreement, which ends the association's threat to
boycott NBC programs, provides for internships, scholarship programs and a
guarantee that the network will increase its purchases from minority-owned
suppliers. NBC has also agreed to pay for a minority writer to be added to
the staff of every new network show that is renewed for a second year. Asked
whether the agreement was an indication that the network had probably passed
up minority talent in the past, Mr. Wright said, "My guess is yes." He said
that "We have to get out there with more compelling, broad-based material."
[SOURCE: New York Times (A12), AUTHOR: Bill Carter]
(http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/national/nbc-jobs.html)
MCCAIN URGED F.C.C. ACTION ON ISSUE INVOLVING SUPPORTER
Issue: Political Discourse/ Television
Senator John McCain, a vocal advocate of campaign finance reform, has
recently demanded that the Federal Communications Commission take action in
a matter that ultimately benefited a major contributor. Mr. McCain wrote
letters to the FCC seeking a speedy vote on a television station license
swap in Pittsburgh that would enable Paxson Communications, a contributor to
McCain's presidential campaign, to buy a stations in the only big market
where it lacks one. The proposed transfers would eliminate one of the two
public television stations in Pittsburgh. Opponents of the station transfer
charged that, when it comes to the influence of money in politics, Mr.
McCain says one thing and does another. "I think he is hypocritical on the
issue of money and politics," said Jerold M. Starr, the co-chairman of the
Save Pittsburgh Public Television Campaign, which has been trying to block
the transfer of the public television station. "This is a clear case of him
responding to special pleadings of monied interests and it is harmful to the
public interests of this community," Mr. Starr said.
[SOURCE: New York Times (A1), AUTHOR: Stephen Labaton]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/politics/camp/010600wh-gop-mccain.html)
AOL'S NEW SCREEN NAME ENDS IN TV
Issue: Television/Internet
America Online is teaming with electronics maker Philips for a set-top box
that weaves the online service into TV signals. AOL's announcement follows
Microsoft decision to collaborate with Thomson/RCA on several projects,
including a personal digital video recorder. Microsoft already owns WebTV.
The first AOLTV device, due to hit the market in late spring or early
summer, will connect to an antenna, cable or satellite feed, a phone line
and a TV set. A setup procedure configures the AOL log-on process and an
on-screen programming guide. Users, armed with either a remote control or a
keyboard, will be able to send instant messages to other online users. The
Thomson/Microsoft set-top box will offer WebTV's service and Internet
access, plus an on-screen programming guide and a hard disk for storing and
replaying video. Microsoft and AOL are logical partners for electronics
companies "because you need a content provider," says Steve Booth of
industry newsletter Television Digest.
[SOURCE: USA Today (3D), AUTHOR: Mike Snider]
(http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20000106/1820908s.htm)
INTERNET
DOMAIN NAMES REVOKED OVER EXTRA CHARACTER
Issue: Internet
ICANN, the body that oversees the Internet's address system said it was
revoking hundreds of new domain names because a software bug had enabled
people to claim addresses nearly identical to already established Web sites.
The more than 800 revoked addresses all contained an added a dash at the end
of an already registered address, which resulted in domain names such as
"www.Microsoft-.com," "www.yahoo-.com." ICANN decided to revoke the names
because of a long-standing policy against names that begin or end in a
character other than a numeral or letter. ICANN's president, Mike Roberts,
said that a mistake in the software was responsible for the registrations.
"This was something that shouldn't have been possible." Registrars of the
revoked names believe they should be able to keep the address for those who
have already hired Web hosting services and begun spending money on
establishing a Web presence.
[SOURCE: CyberTimes, AUTHOR: Jeri Clausing]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/01/cyber/articles/06domain.html)
EXCITE AT HOME IS EXPECTED TO OFFER FREE WEB ACCESS
Issue: Internet
Excite At Home Corporation is expected to launch a free Web-access service
know as "FreeWorld" in which the company will give free Internet access to
users who connect over regular telephone lines. The dial-up service will be
paid for by revenue from banner ads, although it isn't expected to be
profitable at first. The giveaway will be restricted to Excite's
"narrowband" service, and the company will continue to charge about $40 a
month for its high-speed, cable broadband service, which it offers in
partnership with cable company owners. Excite At Home President George Bell
says the free service will attract more users, who might later move to the
more-lucrative broadband service. "The business model in the free ISP space
is definitely tough," he said. "But we think we have the most ability to
monetize that audience and also move them more quickly to broadband."
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Kara Swisher]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB94711238431638516.htm)
HOMEWORK HELP SITES (OR, THE DOG ATE MY URL)
Issue: EdTech
Students today still rely on one another and parents for homework help, but
now they also have a huge information superhighway they can turn to. For
many students, the library encyclopedia has been replaced by search engines
like Yahooligans and Searchopolis. There are now numerous sites on the Net
designed specifically to aid students with their homework assignments. Some
sites rely on experts who respond by e-mail or chat with students, while
others work as clearinghouses by providing links to child-friendly
educational sites on various subjects. Partaking in a week's worth of fifth
grade homework assignments, the author found that homework sites are
frequently trustworthy and accurate -- with some providing amazingly speedy
responses. One downside, for parents and teachers, is that sites providing
an e-mail exchange with teachers or an online chat room with subject area
experts give a child the opportunity to ask a question and get the correct
answer before trying to answer it without assistance. The online experts
cannot determine who needs the help and who just wants a shortcut.
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Alice Keim]
(http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/00/01/circuits/articles/06down.html)
ECOMMERCE
IRS ALLOWS TAX-FREE AD SWAPS ON WEB TO PREVENT STRANGLING OF DEVELOPMENT
COMPANIES
Issue: Internet
The Internal Revenue Service will allow companies to swap most Web-site ads
tax-free. These "barter exchanges," which arrange ad swaps where no cash
changes hands, won't have to report transactions with fair-market values of
less than $1. Most banner-ad swaps are believed to have a value lower than
$1. The move by the agency is intended to prevent long-standing rules of the
tax code from stanching the flow of electronic commerce. The IRS also
indicated that it may draft new reporting regulations for both barter
transactions and electronic commerce generally, and invites comment from
interested parties.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Fowler W. Martin]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB947116408323878695.htm)
IN RETAILING, BRICKS BEAT BYTES
Issue: E-commerce
[Op-Ed] Todd G. Buchholz, president of Victoria Capital LLC and author of
"Market Shock: 9 Economic and Social Upheavals That Will Shake Your
Financial Future--and What to Do About Them" comments on the persistence of
brick and mortar businesses despite the hype on online retailers. Shoppers
travel hundreds of miles to jam Potomac Mills, an outlet mall near Mount
Vernon. Wait a minute. And aren't old-fashioned retailers suffering because
of the Internet's largely tax-free status? Internet shopping makes up only
about 1% of retail purchases. Over the Christmas season, Internet sales
hardly dented those of brick-and-mortars. Moreover, the e-retailers fell
badly behind toward the end of the race. Around Dec. 13, when online
shoppers realized that some e-retailers couldn't deliver in time for
Christmas, they jumped in their cars. Online firms have forced their
fuddy-duddy competitors to cut costs and pass the savings on to the
consumer. Buchholz forecasts that retail establishments will split in two.
Remember the story of the three little pigs. The bricks held up when the
wolf came calling.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Todd G. Buchholz]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB947113718495773159.htm)
TELECOMMUTING
OSHA REVERSES ITS ADVISORY
Issue: Telecommuting
The federal Labor Department said Wednesday it needs to rethink how it will
apply federal safety standards to telecommuters' home offices. Yesterday,
Secretary of Labor Alexis M. Herman announced that OSHA is "withdrawing" the
advisory letter it sent to one company last November suggesting that
employers have wide-ranging responsibility for ensuring the safety of
telecommuters' homes. Many business groups had reacted with alarm to the
initial news of the OSHA advisory. Secretary Herman said she intends to
begin holding meetings with labor leaders and employers' groups to address
issues raised by employees working at home. She is also convening an
interagency working group, including the Department of Commerce and the
Small Business Administration, to examine the social and economic
implications of telecommuting.
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News, AUTHOR: Margaret Steen]
(http://www.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/indepth/docs/osha010600.htm)
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The Benton Foundation's Communications Policy and Practice (CPP)
(www.benton.org/cpphome.html) Communications-related Headline
Service is posted Monday through Friday. The Headlines are highlights
of news articles summarized by staff at the Benton Foundation. They
describe articles of interest to the work of the Foundation -- primarily
those covering long term trends and developments in communications,
technology, journalism, public service media, regulation and philanthropy.
While the summaries are factually accurate, their often informal tone does
not represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by
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Jamal Le Blanc (jamal( at )benton.org), and Stephanie Ingersoll
(stephanie( at )benton.org) -- we welcome your comments.
The Benton Foundation works to realize the social benefits made possible
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