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_...
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Thanks for making the switch with us. Have a great weekend -- see you Tuesday.
...we are outta here.
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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.
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