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FCC deregulates the US Media...

netbanshee

15:18 / 02.06.03

Either I'm blind, or there hasn't been an mention of this here. Today the FCC is set to vote on "relaxing" Media Ownership Rules in the US, as the 5 panel board (3 reps / 2 dems) will vote along party lines and as you guess it, deregulate media restrictions.

There's coverage of it at WaPo as well as some other sources.

So what does everyone think? Basically, the media will be able to consolidate more closely it's newspaper and broadcasting creating a less diverse playing field and the continued shrinking options for different points of view. And since the average person isn't quite the newshound, do you think one or two sources of info can be a good way of generating a balanced opinion?

grant

16:27 / 02.06.03

I posted some (overwordy) stuff about it here.

It's a bit scary, yes, in that it'll radically change the way news is produced, and possibly affect the way opinions are generated.

- g

Kit-Cat Club

17:35 / 02.06.03

We seem to have a furore brewing over here in a similar field, as the govt prepares to (or has it actually already done so? I am out of the loop) relax the laws preventing newspaper owners from owning terrestrial channels so that Rupert Murdoch can buy up Channel Five - very dubious, given the Murdoch press's disproportionate political influence.

bjacques

00:39 / 03.06.03

Or the way Blair kisses Murdoch's ass (like we Americans should talk). CNN ran the story and the first one or two times they showed a commercial against the new rules. In it a guy sits down to watch TV and every channels is Murdoch's face.

SMS

01:24 / 03.06.03

Although the three Republicans on the committee voted for changing the regulation rules, Trent Lott said he opposed this decision and "probably most" Republicans in the Senate did as well. The senate might even veto the decision.

I don't know how I feel about it. I think I'd need to read quite a bit more about it.

netbanshee

02:44 / 03.06.03

From what I gather, it seems that the legislature may ring in on this issue a bit. They could possibly freeze the current status of the system so it remains the same as it is currently. Both parties seem to note that it may be a great disservice to the public if the FCC ruling holds.

This is also shaping up to be an issue that will garner debate/sides in the oncoming elections...

zarathustra_k

12:35 / 03.06.03

First off the issue seems to have gotten much more media attention that I thought it would. The media are probably concerned about how this would look if the coverage was slim or nil. Secondly the media is already quite concentrated, at least in terms of newspapers and television media. The question must be raised how much concentration should be allowed. Another reason for the decision is that business has free speech. The question then is to what extent freedoms need to be extended to businesses.

Hieronymus

14:29 / 23.07.03

Fucking hell I hate waking up to Bush shenanigans.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Bush administration said on Tuesday it would veto a large government-spending bill if it reimposed media-ownership caps that were recently relaxed by the Federal Communications Commission.

The Bush administration said any move to roll back the changes would scuttle the $37.9 billion appropriations bill, which also sets spending levels for the Justice, State and Commerce departments.

"The Administration believes that the new FCC media ownership rules more accurately reflect the changing media landscape and the current state of network station ownership, while still guarding against undue concentration in the marketplace," the Office of Management and Budget said in a statement.

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