Archive for July, 2007
Monday, July 30th, 2007 by Tim Karr
While no questions about Big Media made it onto the air in last week’s CNN/YouTube Democratic Presidential Debate, the great videos created by media reformers are still generating responses.
Not long after the debate, Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) responded to Alan Lastufka’s video, titled “What will YOU do to protect independent voices in the media?”
Dodd pledged that if elected president he will have his antitrust division look “very carefully” at media consolidation in major media markets. He also promises to “make sure Net Neutrality is there” and emphasizes the importance of broadband access for all.
Be sure to check out both videos. As more candidates weigh in on these crucial issues, we’ll be sure to highlight their activities here.
Prospects for the upcoming GOP YouTube debate are looking grim after several Republican candidates have gotten cold feet. Join a facebook community to “Save the Debate” to pressure all candidates to come face to face with the YouTube nation.
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Wednesday, July 25th, 2007 by Tim Karr
In the fight against infotainment, news anchors are starting to take the lead.
Tired of having their work watered down by celebrity scandals and other gossip being passed off as legitimate news, these reporters are pushing back against the bland “infotainment” that fills our airwaves.
First it was Mika Brzezinski of MSNBC, who tried to burn her producer’s notes on Paris Hilton on live television, and then when she was told to lead with the story again, fed the notes through a shredder. As of this writing, just under a month later, the YouTube video of Brzezinski’s protest has been viewed 2,942,320 times.
A few weeks later, Jack Cafferty refused to lead with a story on Lindsay Lohan, telling his staff to take the story out of the teleprompter and put his script in. In just one day since this video was posted it has been viewed more than 173,000 times.
People from across the country are increasingly concerned about the ways consolidation hurts journalism. As multinational companies buy up television, radio, print and web properties, they cut staff and focus less on journalism and more on “synergy” between their various outlets.
In depth stories are replaced by boilerplate infotainment to be spread ad nauseum across every platform.
Instead of investigative reporting that would give citizens the information they need to participate actively in democratic life, we get endless updates on Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.
The comments posted in response to both these videos have been overwhelmingly positive. One representative commenter wrote, “Kick ass! It’s so refreshing to see someone in the media taking a stand, we are ALL tired of hearing about that crap. ON with the news.”
If information is the lifeblood of the democracy, these videos remind us that Big Media is making us ill. We need to keep demanding real journalism, and refusing to settle for fake news and celebrity fluff.
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Tuesday, July 24th, 2007 by Jen Howard
The Federal Communications Commission will hold its fifth hearing on media ownership in Chicago on Sept. 20. At the previous ownership hearings in Los Angeles, Nashville, Harrisburg, Pa. and Tampa, Fla., the public overwhelmingly opposed media consolidation and urged the FCC to uphold cross-ownership rules.
In Chicago, media cross-ownership is a hot topic as the FCC considers whether to allow Sam Zell, the new owner of Tribune Co., to own both the Chicago Tribune as well as WGN-TV and WGN-AM. When the cross-ownership ban was instituted in 1975, the FCC “grandfathered” the Tribune’s ownership of these outlets.
Tribune also operates both TV stations and newspapers in New York, Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Hartford, Conn., under “temporary” FCC waivers issued in 2000. But neither the waivers nor the grandfather protections apply to the new owner.
The FCC should expect to hear strong opinion from Chicago residents on the Tribune cross-ownership, along with issues of media diversity.
Stay tuned for more information on the Chicago hearing at www.stopbigmedia.com/=chicago.
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Tuesday, July 17th, 2007 by Josh Stearns
This morning the Wall Street Journal reported that News Corp. has reached a tentative deal to buy Dow Jones. News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch has led the media consolidation charge, buying up prime media properties, homogenizing content, and spinning the news to serve his business interests and personal ideology. Now one of America’s most widely read and respected financial journals may be about to get the Murdoch treatment.
Free Press founder Robert W. McChesney issued a statement in response to the latest news:
“Rupert Murdoch’s takeover of the Wall Street Journal may not be illegal, but it’s certainly wrong. The cost of giving one company — and one man — this much media power is simply too high.”
The $5 billion deal would give Murdoch control of three of the main outlets that shape the nation’s news agenda: the Fox network, Fox News Channel and the Journal. And this tentative agreement comes on the heels of another big announcement from News Corp. Just last week the company heralded their forthcoming Fox Business Network – with which Murdoch hopes to challenge CNBC.
One can only imagine how the Fox News model might be translated into a business news channel – and even worse to think about how the “Fox Effect” might creep onto the Journal’s news pages. Synergy may make money, but it’s no substitute for serious reporting.
So far, nothing is set in stone. The proposed deal will be presented to the full Dow Jones board later tonight, before going before the Bancroft family for a final vote in the next week or so. McChesney says:
“If they want to protect the editorial integrity of the institution they built, the Bancroft family can still stop this deal from going through. But even if Murdoch’s Journal takeover is derailed at the 11th hour, it should be a wake-up call to anyone who cares about media and democracy. We’re at a critical juncture. We have to understand that our democracy is premised on the existence of an informed citizenry. As the framers understood, that requires a media system that produces quality journalism. We cannot abandon our noble tradition and allow the Murdochs of the world to run the Republic into the ground in their quest for endless profits.”
News Corp.’s bid to acquire Dow Jones Co., whether it is successful or not, reminds us that the battle to Stop Big Media has to continue. We may not be able to change the outcome of this merger, but we can change the policies that allow mergers like this to occur.
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Monday, July 9th, 2007 by Jen Howard
Once again, the Seattle Times has proven to be a vocal opponent of media consolidation. In a Sunday editorial, “Save the Airwaves for Democracy,” the Times writes:
America’s airwaves have been damaged by a series of rule changes the past two decades that have ushered in an era of bland commercial radio and television. The time has come for the Federal Communications Commission to use its power to work in the public’s interest and improve broadcasting so communities are better served.
Click here to read the Seattle Times editorial
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