Communications-related Headlines for 9/22/97

Journalism
NYT: In a Company Town, Some People Claim Right to Know
NYT: Small Daily Tries to Take College Paper to School

Internet Issues
NYT: An Electronic Sheriff to Battle Book Rustling
NYT: The Conservative as Techno-Libertarian
NYT: A New On-Line Publisher Promotes Nonfiction on a Pay-Per-Read
Basis

Television
NYT: Media: A New TV Season
FCC: Kids TV: The Impossible Has Become Inevitable
FCC: Hundt on Digital TV
NTIA: Irving on Digital TV

Mergers and Ownership
WSJ: Westinghouse to Buy American Radio
NTIA: The Big Chill

Competition
WSJ: Eyeball to Eyeball: It's the Phone Man At the Door --
and He Has a deal on Cable TV
FCC: The 1996 Telecommunications Act: An Anti-trust Perspective

Privacy
NYT: U.S. Inaugurating A Vast Database Of All New Hires
NYT: On the Office PC, Bosses Opt For All Work, and No Play

Education Technology
WP: Creative Tools Or Electronic Flashcards?

Philanthropy
WSJ: How Turner Decided to Give Away $1 Billion

At the FCC
Commissioner Chong Challenges Radio Broadcasters to
Fight for First Amendment Freedom
Chairman Reed Hundt on Need for Law to Guarantee that
FCC Can Reclaim and Reauction Spectrum Licenses From
Licensees Who Default

At the NTIA
Networks for People: TIIAP at Work

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* Journalism *
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Title: In a Company Town, Some People Claim Right to Know
Source: New York Times (A27)
http://search.nytimes.com/search/daily/bin/fastweb?getdoc+site+iib-site+66+
0++%28corning%29%20AND%20%28leader%29%20AND%20%28newspaper%29
Author: William Glaberson
Issue: Journalism
Description: In Corning, New York, the local newspaper, The Leader, reported
that the town's major company, Corning, was in a "state of emergency" due to
bad performance of one of it's main businesses. CNBC picked up the story and
stock tumbled. Corning told employees that the story was "inaccurate and
irresponsible" and removed all The Leader's coin operated machines off its
property. A couple of days later, Corning reported less than expected
earnings and the stock tumbled again. The town is still fighting over the
role of The Leader. "There are some people who are very, very angry with the
newspaper. As in any small community, people see the newspaper as he voice
of the community. When the voice harms the community, you become angry at
the voice."

Title: Small Daily Tries to Take College Paper to School
Source: New York Times (D1)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/iowa-newspapers-media.html
Author: Iver Peterson
Issue: Journalism
Description: The Daily Tribune of Ames claims that The Iowa State Daily is
using its tax-free status, its subsidized circulation, and a
professionalized, nonstudent business staff to compete unfairly for local
subscribers and advertisers. The college daily claims it would have to fold
if it did not expand off-campus.

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* Internet Issues *
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Title: An Electronic Sheriff to Battle Book Rustling
Source: New York Times (D1)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/092297tags.html
Author: Doreen Carvajal
Issue: Copyrights
Description: The Association of American Publishers
http://www.publishers.org/ will announce today a new digital system for
tagging electronic publications. "Digital Object Identifier" or "DOI" will
allow electronic publishers to organize and track material, charge for
purchases, and secure copyrighted materials. With these protections, the
music and film industries may start taking advantage of the Internet as a
delivery system.

Title: The Conservative as Techno-Libertarian
Source: New York Times (D4)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/092297gilder.html
Author: John Markoff
Issue: Regulation
Description: Conservative author George Gilder told attendees of the first
Telecosm Conference to watch for emperors -- like Microsoft's Bill Gates --
and morons -- like FCC Chairman Reed Hundt. Both will try to hold back the
technological advancements that will revolutionalize business, Mr. Gilder
says. Mr. Gilder's version of "It Takes A Village," "Telcosm" will be
released next year.

Title: A New On-Line Publisher Promotes Nonfiction on a Pay-Per-Read Basis
Source: New York Times (D9)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/092297byline.html
Author: Jon Christensen
Issue: Publishing
Description: Jon Franklin, a "midlist" writer, has set up a Web site
http://www.bylines.org to sell writing directly to readers. Works are
offered from $0.20 to $2.50. Mr. Franklin does not think he's competing to
books available in print, "We're competing with the book that isn't there.
You can't get it" because publishers today are not backing "midlist" books.
The site is a joint effort of Mr. Franklin, his wife, Investigative
Reporters and Editors at the University of Missouri, and News Engin Inc,
which programs computer systems for newsrooms.

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* Television *
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Title: Media: A New TV Season
Source: New York Times (D9)
http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/financial/tv-season-media.html
Author: Bill Carter
Issue: Television Economics
Description: Television executives are both excited and nervous about the
new TV season which begins tonight. With pressure from cable, syndicated
shows, and the Internet, the networks are changing strategies. 1) Networks
have decided to pit their biggest hits against each other. Wednesday nights,
for example, will see five networks program some of their best shows at the
same time ("No one has that many VCRs," one network exec says.) 2) Networks
will produce more of the programming that works best for them: for example,
NBC will churn out more "young adult comedies." 3) Networks will be more
concerned with beating other networks that cable stations since many have
interests in cable TV.

FCC Chairman Reed Hundt Encourages Parents and Activists to Watch, Critique,
and Report on New Kids TV Shows
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Hundt/spreh751.html

Statement of FCC Chairman Reed Hundt on Digital Television Before the U.S.
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Hundt/spreh749.html

Assistant Secretary Larry Irving testified before the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Science and Transportation on the views of the Administration on
the transition to digital television
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/congress/91797dtvtest.htm

[For more on the Debate on the Future of Television see
http://www.benton.org/Policy/TV/]

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* Mergers and Ownership *
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Title: Westinghouse to Buy American Radio
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/ (A3)
Author: Timothy Aeppel & William Bulkeley
Issue: Mergers
Description: Westinghouse will buy American Radio Systems for $1.6 billion
and assumption of $1 billion in debt. The deal adds 98 stations into the
Westinghouse fold that now totals 175 stations. In the past 20 months, more
than one quarter of the nation's radio stations have changed hands.

Assistant Secretary Larry Irving spoke at the September 11 National
Association of Black Owned Broadcasters' Annual Meeting on "The Big Chill:
Has Minority Ownership Been Put on Ice?"
http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/speeches/91197nabob.htm

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* Competition *
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Title: Eyeball to Eyeball: It's the Phone Man At the Door --
and He Has a deal on Cable TV
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/ (A1)
Author: Bryan Gruley
Issue: Competition
Description: In the suburbs of Detroit, Baby Bell Ameritech is starting to
build cable TV systems to compete with TCI. Customer love it as they can now
demand better service or take their business somewhere else. 87% of the
"multichannel video market" is controlled by local cable monopolies. The
Telecommunications Act of 1996 was supposed to end that, but the phone
companies that were supposed to provide the competition decided to
concentrate on their core businesses instead.

Testimony of FCC Chairman Reed Hundt on The 1996 Telecommunications Act: An
Anti-trust Perspective Before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary,
Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights and Competition.
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Hundt/spreh750.html

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* Privacy *
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Title: U.S. Inaugurating A Vast Database Of All New Hires
Source: New York Times (A1)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/092297child-support.html
Author: Robert Pear
Issue: Privacy
Description: As part of the 1996 welfare reform law, the Federal Government
will attempt to track parents who owe child support through a vast
computerized directory of new hires. Starting October 1, the Government will
collect names, addresses, Social Security numbers and wage information for
all people new to full- and part-time jobs with employers of every size.
Wage information will be updated every three months. The National Directory
of New Hires will be one of the largest, most up-to-date files of personal
information kept by the Government.

Title: On the Office PC, Bosses Opt For All Work, and No Play
Source: New York Times (A1)
http://www.nytimes.com/library/cyber/week/092297game.html
Author: Amy Harmon
Issue: Info Tech
Description: Those personal computers shouldn't be too personal, insist
employers. Both the Federal Government and the private sector are beginning
to crack down on computer games, recreational Web surfing, and personal
electronic mail. Employers worry that these activities will undermine the
productivity gains that PCs are supposed to bring to the office. Guess we're
back to Solitaire, magazine reading, and long distance calls during our
breaks. Critics worry that the information could be misused.

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* Education Technology *
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Title: Creative Tools Or Electronic Flashcards?
Source: Washington Post (WashTech p.19)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1997-09/22/014l-092297-idx.html
Author: Robert O'Harrow Jr. oharrowr( at )twp.com
Issue: Education Technology
Description: Parents asking educators for help picking education software
get many different answers. Some suggest packages that drill youngsters
endlessly on spelling, phonics, and math -- "drill and kill" software.
Others think computers should be used as tools for writing, Internet
research, and presentation. The debate on computer technology mirrors a
debate on the approach to education. O'Harrow concludes, "Until computers
become as smart and intuitive as teachers and parents -- or the children
themselves -- they can only supplement an education. [For more on
introducing computers to classrooms, see The Learning Connection at
http://www.benton.org/Library/Schools/]

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* Philanthropy *
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Title: How Turner Decided to Give Away $1 Billion
Source: Wall Street Journal
http://wsj.com/ (B1)
Author: Monica Langley
Issue: Philanthropy
Description: Media giant Ted Turner will give $1 billion -- about one third
of his "net worth" -- to the United nations. Its not clear which UN programs
will benefit or how exactly Mr. Turner will get the resources to the
beleaguered organization as he wants to preserve his 10% stake in Time
Warner: 95% of Turner's wealth is tied up in the company. Mr. Turner will
also turn to other super-rich executives to give as well: "I'm putting every
rich person in the world on notice that they're going to be hearing from me
about giving money."

At the FCC http://www.fcc.gov
Commissioner Chong Challenges Radio Broadcasters to Fight for First
Amendment Freedom http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Chong/sprbc712.html

Statement by FCC Chairman Reed Hundt on Need for Law to Guarantee that FCC
Can Reclaim and Reauction Spectrum Licenses From Licensees Who Default
http://www.fcc.gov/Speeches/Hundt/st970917.html

At the NTIA http://www.ntia.doc.gov
The Telecommunications and Information Infrastructure Assistance Program
(TIIAP) announces an important conference -- Networks for People: TIIAP at
Work. This conference is an opportunity to discuss, in person, the work
TIIAP has been doing in turning the dream of an information society into a
reality. Conference date: Tuesday, October 28, 1997 at 9:00 A.M. at the
Department of Commerce. http://www.ntia.doc.gov/otiahome/tiiap/event.html
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