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At least three Democratic senators said they were concerned about moving too fast on the 135-age bill unveiled May 1. “I'm much more interested in getting it right, than I am in speed,†said Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND). Sen Stevens said the panel had held 15 hearings before May 1. “On this bill?†shot back Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ). Chairman Stevens, whose nickname is "The Hulk," replied, "This senator’s going to see this bill gets to the floor and it passes the Senate this year."
http://www.benton.org/index.php?q=node/2417
NO NEUTRAL GROUND WITH NET NEUTRALITY
[SOURCE: Internetnews.com, AUTHOR: Roy Mark]
From a formal Senate hearing to backroom intrigue in the House to political theater starring musician Moby, the issue of network neutrality swirled around Capitol Hill Thursday. As National Cable & Telecommunications Association President Kyle McSlarrow said, "This [net neutrality] is now the number one issue." Speaking at a Senate Commerce Committee on telecom legislation, McSlarrow called it a tough issue. "It's a fundamentally stark choice of some regulation of the Internet or no regulation of the Internet." In both the Senate and House telecom reform efforts, the question of discriminatory handling of network traffic would be left to the Federal Communications Commission. "If we don't get this right, we're going to have a lot of people in the slow lane," said Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA). She and other Democrats on the panel are expected to add net neutrality amendments to the Senate bill when it comes up for a committee vote in June.
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3607371
* Rep. Markey, Moby Speak Out for Internet Freedom, Against Corporate Web Takeover
http://www.freepress.net/press/release.php?id=134
No Neutral Ground With Net Neutrality
HOUSE JUDICIARY PANEL IS DENIED REFERRAL
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: David Hatch]
The House Judiciary Committee has been denied a referral of a major telecommunications bill approved late last month by the House Commerce Committee. But apparently House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) is working on a plan to involve Judiciary Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) in the telecom bill process. There were indications that Rep Sensenbrenner would be granted one week to move his own telecom-related legislation through the Judiciary panel, which would then be given a chance to move either as an amendment to the Commerce Committee bill or as a stand-alone measure. But a Judiciary Committee source professed to be unaware of any such arrangement. Wednesday’s developments cap weeks of speculation over whether the Judiciary panel would be able to leave its imprimatur on the telecommunications legislation. The Energy and Commerce and Judiciary committees have a long history of turf battles; they also sparred a decade ago on jurisdiction of the legislation that eventually became the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Details of the House Parliamentarian's decision to deny referral to the Judiciary panel were expected to be published in Thursday’s Congressional Record. The House had originally planned to bring the telecom bill to the floor two weeks ago, but action was delayed as the Parliamentarian and Hastert’s office considered Sensenbrenner’s request for a referral. A congressional source said the Commerce Committee legislation, sponsored by Committee Chairman Joe Barton, R-Texas, and Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Ill., would not come to the floor next week. That means consideration by the full House will be bumped until at least the week of June 5, when Congress returns from a weeklong Memorial Day recess.
http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/lenya/telco/live/tb-FDEN1147958391830.html
House Judiciary Panel Is Denied Referral
SENSENBRENNER OFFERS NEUTRALITY BILL
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) introduced a bill Thursday that would apply antitrust sanctions against cable and other broadband-access providers that discriminate against Web-based providers of content, services and applications. The bill would amend the Clayton Act to require broadband-access providers to interconnect their facilities on reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms; to operate their networks in a nondiscriminatory manner so that unaffiliated content, service and applications have an equal opportunity to reach consumers; and to refrain from interfering with consumer access to lawful content, services and applications. Under the Clayton Act, passed in 1914, injured parties may sue in federal court to obtain an injunction, recover treble damages and collect attorneys’ fees.
"This legislation is a necessary step to protect consumers and other Internet users from possible anti-competitive and discriminatory conduct by broadband providers,†Rep Sensenbrenner said of the bill offered the bill with bipartisan support from his panel's ranking Democrat, John Conyers (Mich.), and Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.). Sensenbrenner’s statement said he came forward with his bill because the House Commerce bill (H.R. 5252) fell "well short of ensuring that broadband-network providers do not abuse their market power.†Amazon.com, eBay, Google, InterActiveCorp, Microsoft and Yahoo! issued a statement in support of the Judiciary bill (H.R. 5417).
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6336026.html?display=Breaking+News
* Sensenbrenner Intros Net Neutrality Bill
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6336035?display=Breaking+News
* Politicos propose new action on Net neutrality
http://news.com.com/Politicos+propose+new+action+on+Net+neutrality/2100-...
* Consumer Groups Applaud Bipartisan Bill on Network Neutrality
http://www.freepress.net/press/release.php?id=135
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6336026.html?display=Breaking%20News
STEVENS EASES PACE ON FRANCHISING BILL
[SOURCE: MediaWeek, AUTHOR: Todd Shields]
Facing Democrats worried about haste and cities concerned about losing privileges, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) delayed by nearly two weeks initial votes on his broad telecommunications bill. Still, Sen Stevens predicted passage, saying he expects to send a modified bill to the Senate floor “with the full support of this committee.†He pledged to work with cities and other localities toward meeting their concerns about video franchising, or the process of granting approval for TV service over landlines. At least three Democratic senators said they were concerned about moving too fast on the 135-age bill unveiled May 1. “I'm much more interested in getting it right, than I am in speed,†said Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND). Sen Stevens said the panel had held 15 hearings before May 1. “On this bill?†shot back Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ). Chairman Stevens, whose nickname is "The Hulk," replied, “This senator’s going to see this bill gets to the floor and it passes the Senate this year.â€
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=10025...
* Stevens sees US Senate passing communications bill
http://today.reuters.com/investing/FinanceArticle.aspx?type=bondsNews&st...
* Stevens Announces Revised Video Franchising Legislation
http://www.tvweek.com/news.cms?newsId=10034
* Senate Commerce Delays Telecom Markup
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6335963?display=Breaking+News
* Stevens: Senate Will Pass Telecom Bill
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6336053.html?display=Breaking+News
* Dorgan Plans Media Concentration Amendment
Sen Byron Dorgan (D-ND) said Thursday he would take aim at "big Media" in the telecom reform bill. He said that he planned to introduce an amendment on the already omnibus bill to slow the "orgy of concentration."
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6335898?display=Breaking+News
* Groups Testify for Choice and Access to Video and Internet
http://www.hearusnow.org/tvradiocable/16/
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002538874
LOCAL GOVERNMENT CONCERNS LEAD SENATE COMMITTEE TO RETHINK TELECOM BILL
[SOURCE: National League of Cities press release]
Dearborn (MI) Mayor Michael A. Guido told the Senate Committee Commerce Thursday that the bill it is currently considering will hurt consumers, cities and counties by nationalizing video franchising instead of encouraging local competition. Speaking on behalf of a number of national organizations representing city, town and county officials, Mayor Guido voiced his opposition to many of the provisions in the Communications, Consumer's Choice and Broadband Deployment Act of 2006 (S. 2686), introduced by Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska). According to Mayor Guido, S. 2686 would undermine local franchising enforcement and compliance authority, threaten local budgets, limit the benefit of broadband-video competition to a few well-to-do neighborhoods, weaken provisions that ensure video providers meet each community's needs and interests, and undermine the ability of local governments to protect their residents and/or respond to cable customer service complaints. In commenting on the measure, Guido said, "While this bill appears to preserve local video franchising, it in fact strips that authority from thousands of elected mayors, commissions and councils across the country and unfairly places it in the hands of five un-elected commissioners of the Federal Communications Commission here in Washington, D.C. Communities across the country have seen the telephone companies bypass poorer neighborhoods while upgrading services in more affluent areas," Guido said. "Indeed, it has been reported that AT&T informed its Wall Street investors that in Michigan, the company was going to provide its video product to ninety percent of its 'high value' residents, but to only five percent of its 'low value' residents -- those customers who buy less than $110 a month in telecommunications services. It's not hard to see how such a business plan on a national scale will deprive millions of Americans of the benefits of increased competition and technological advances." Mayor Guido noted that new providers of video into residential markets should not be given a "blank check" and said that local governments are more than willing to work with them to increase competition. Recently, more than 600 local communities in Michigan asked AT&T to enter into their video marketplaces. Guido said, "But AT&T remained silent, leading Michigan's towns and cities to publicly ask AT&T, 'Can you hear us now? We want competition!' It was not until the media was alerted that AT&T finally began to respond." Due to the concerns raised by Mayor Guido and others at today's hearing, US Senator Ted Stevens (Ala-R) announced that the bill would be redrafted over Memorial Day and new hearings would take place in early June. Guido said the coalition was eager to work with the Senate Committee on key provisions of the bill. Members of the coalition to support local video franchising include: The U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National League of Cities, the National Association of Counties, the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors, the Government Finance Officers Association, the International Municipal Lawyers Association and the National Conference of Black Mayors.
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=66053
* Senate Telecom Draft May Be "Too Tough" on Cities
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6335869?display=Breaking+News
http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=66053
SENATE VOTES TO SET ENGLISH AS NATIONAL LANGUAGE
[SOURCE: New York Times, AUTHOR: Carl Hulse]
The Senate voted on Thursday to designate English as the national language. In a charged debate, Republican backers of the proposal, which was added to the Senate's immigration measure on a 63-to-34 vote, said that it was equivalent to establishing a formal national anthem or motto and that it would simply affirm the pre-eminence of English without overturning laws or rules on bilingualism. Under the proposal, the federal government is directed to "preserve and enhance the role of English as the national language of the United States of America." It does not go as far as proposals to designate English the nation's official language, which would require all government publications and business to be in English. Instead, it says government services and publications now offered in other languages would be unaffected. But the proposal declares that no one has "a right, entitlement or claim to have the government of the United States or any of its officials or representatives act, communicate, perform or provide services or provide materials in any language other than English." The Senate also passed a weaker, less-binding alternative declaring English the "common and unifying" language of the nation, on a 58-to-39 vote. The question of which version survives would be decided in negotiations with the House. The House version of the bill relies on the traditional method of speaking louder and s l o w e r.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/19/washington/19immig.html
(requires registration)
* Senate Votes English as 'National Language'
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/18/AR200605...
Senate Votes to Set English as National Language
BELLSOUTH DEMANDS RETRACTION FROM USA TODAY ON NSA ARTICLE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Dionne Searcey dionne.searcey@wsj.com and Sarah Ellison]
BellSouth yesterday demanded that USA Today retract "the false and unsubstantiated statements" outlined in an article naming the company as having provided domestic calling records to the National Security Agency. In a letter to USA Today president and publisher Craig Moon, as well as to the general counsel of the newspaper's parent company, Gannett Co., the phone company asks for an immediate retraction of the article's characterization of BellSouth's relationship to the NSA.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB114797579880156768.html?mod=todays_us_pa...
(requires subscription)
* BellSouth Wants Story Retractions
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/18/AR200605...
* BellSouth calls for a retraction of report it gave records to NSA
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20060519/a_nsa19.art.htm
* Who Is Leslie Cauley, Whose 'USA Today' Bombshell on NSA Is Now Disputed?
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_con...
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB114797579880156768.html?mod=todays_us_page_one
A NATION OF SUSPECTS
[SOURCE: Center for American Progress, AUTHOR: Eric Alterman]
[Commentary] With the Democrats powerless to force Congress to respond, now, more than ever, the health of our political system depends on a media that holds power accountable, as the saying goes, “without fear or favor.†But fear is exactly what the administration seeks to sow in the minds of the media. With a president’s popularity plummeting, now is the time to find the courage to fight this fight as rights forfeited can rarely be reclaimed.
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=1695725
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=1695725
SENATE BACKS TEN FOLD HIKE IN INDECENCY FINES
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Jeremy Pelofsky]
The Senate late on Thursday approved boosting fines tenfold to $325,000 on television and radio broadcast stations that violate rules on airing profanity or sexually explicit material. The measure had languished for almost 16 months, drawing criticism from family groups and conservatives including Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), a likely 2008 contender for the Republican presidential nomination. Lawmakers demanded higher fines on broadcasters after pop singer Janet Jackson briefly exposed her breast during the 2004 Super Bowl football halftime show broadcast on national television. "Radio and television waves are public property and the companies who profit from using the public airwaves should face meaningful fines for broadcasting indecent material," said Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS), author of the bill. The Federal Communications Commission is the agency responsible for reviewing indecency complaints and the current maximum fine that can be imposed is $32,500 per violation. The House of Representatives more than a year ago passed a bill that would hike fines to as much as $500,000 per violation and require the FCC to consider revoking a station's license after three indecency violations. House and Senate negotiators will have to work out their differences before any increase can become law.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyID...
* Senate OKs Higher Fines for Indecency on Television
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-indecent19may19,1,130...
Senate Backs Ten Fold Hike in Indecency Fines