Media Reform Headlines for March 19, 2008 Date: Sat, 22 Mar 2008 14:33:09 -0500 (CDT) Media Reform Daily http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=9HxD81OhgkgmNJ5Xfa2LXw.. News of the movement for March 19, 2008 Please bear with our formatting issues as we transition to a new content management system. We're delivering the same great news content, but still working out the kinks with our new tools. Check out the redesigned freepress.net http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=9wgzW31yBk98vijJZVdcvA.. ---- SAVE THE INTERNET ---- FCC Debates Open Internet at April 17 Stanford Hearing Free Press http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=y_T-qJFksDhahZSW7bn6xA.. The FCC announced that it will hold a second public hearing on the future of the Internet on April 17 at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif. FCC's Do-Over Sam Gustin, Portfolio http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=o39LyQSX9iWXsJIZfxHc4A.. The commission schedules a second public hearing on network neutrality after a cable company stacked the first one.

Sam Gustin, Portfolio
FCC Plans Broadband Hearing at Stanford, After All Ann Broache, CNet http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=YySBukofrfsaqVmpAc6x7g.. Those zany regulators at the FCC sure like to keep us guessing. A few weeks ago, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin told reporters that he wasn't planning a follow-up hearing at Stanford University on "network management" issues raised in large part by Comcast's slowing of BitTorrent file-sharing traffic. Comcast: FCC Lacks Any Authority to Act on P2P Blocking Matthew Lasar, ars technica http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=JrjfofzjmIbbF-_XG4kgMw.. The man who spoke for Comcast at Harvard last month has told the FCC that the agency has no legal power to stop the cable giant from engaging in what it calls "network management practices" (critics call it peer-to-peer traffic blocking). Verizon Not Upfront on Contract Terms David Lazarus, Los Angeles Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=YIMuCp7Gh1kvVnzDpzNrHA.. For years, credit card issuers have gotten away with withholding contracts from customers until they actually have the plastic in their hands -- a practice that denies many people a fair chance to look under the hood for onerous terms and conditions. Now it looks like Verizon has adopted the same technique. Competition Fuels Broadband Use in Europe Stephen Castle, New York Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=B0TRwMTtrR8YTEFyYYlOwA.. Fierce competition from new providers has pushed the level of broadband subscriptions in eight European countries above the levels in the United States and Japan. Is the U.S. Really So Terribly Behind in Broadband? Anne Broache, CNet http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=U8_6mousS-KDNN9aQh_KmQ.. A truly accurate picture of the U.S. broadband marketplace -- and, in turn, the process of achieving "universal" coverage -- won't be possible until better data is available. Yet the FCC continues to work with data that deems 200 Kbps service "high speed" and to consider such access to be widely available even in ZIP codes that may, in reality, have only one connection. Support the Internet Freedom Preservation Act http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=WoMpm3_ydEkvCdQDjeFvZA.. ---- SAVE OUR SPECTRUM ---- FCC Raises Record $19.6 Billion In Auction of Wireless Airwaves Cecilia Kang, Washington Post http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=V3Ev04AMm5_8yJdvPqjpWw.. The FCC's auction of valuable wireless airwaves ended yesterday after raising a record $19.6 billion and setting the stage for the first nationwide network that would be open to all devices and software. Big Wireless Auction Ends, Winners Still Secret Peter Kaplan, Reuters http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=lwIY0GLkCWQCTCiRY-FVvw.. A U.S. government auction of wireless airwaves ended, raising a record $19.6 billion, but winners of the valuable spectrum were not immediately identified. Analysts view Verizon Wireless as the most likely winner of a nationwide piece of the airwaves called the "C" block. Spectrum Auction Raises $19.6 Billion John Dunbar, Associated Press http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=FTH4IS2Adha3OkfIf0uY8w.. Bidding closed on a record-setting government airwaves auction with the total amount pledged reaching nearly $19.6 billion. But enthusiasm in the result was tempered by doubts concerning the future of a proposed emergency communications network. FCC Spectrum Auction Ends, Successfully Chloe Albanesius, PC Magazine http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=RBU9Gda6_mzlZBzR0x98cQ.. The FCC's much-hyped 700 MHz spectrum auction closed after nearly eight weeks of continuous bidding. Every block but the ill-fated public safety D-block reached their reserve prices, calling into question the future of public safety spectrum. ---- JOURNALISM and BEYOND ---- Five Years On: Media's Role in Iraq Christian Science Monitor http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=oX60FI5_kGG_byo6l97Zzg.. This fifth anniversary of the invasion of Iraq offers a chance to look at how the U.S. media has portrayed the war. Mostly they have done well, but they've also played an unwitting role in the subtle battle to influence public opinion. Some 'Unsung Heroes' of Iraq War Coverage Greg Mitchell, Editor & Publisher http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=786jIc775DKNiizNYdxyDg.. In the five years since the tragic U.S. intervention in Iraq began, many journalists for mainstream news outlets have certainly contributed tough and honest reporting. Too often, however, their efforts have either fallen short or been negated by a cascade of pro-war views expressed by pundits, analysts, and editorial writers at their own newspapers or broadcast/cable networks. Hundreds of Journalists Forced into Exile in Five Years Since Start of U.S.-led Invasion of Iraq Reporters Without Borders http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=rATZBBK-a3vgnflQCgrkMw.. The first-ever detailed report on the plight of Iraqi journalists who have been forced into exile was released by Reporters Without Borders today, the eve of the fifth anniversary of the start of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. Most of these journalists fled to Jordan or Syria after receiving threats or surviving murder attempts. Dow Jones Will Stop Carrying AP News Robert MacMillan, Reuters http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=l4rOUJKCxfKiuc7JKEA-RQ.. Dow Jones recently bought by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, is ending an agreement of more than 40 years to carry news from the Associated Press, after the AP said it wanted more money. Instead, Dow Jones Newswires will run news from Agence France-Presse, a French news service. How Sulzberger Beat the Hedge Funds at Their Own Game Devin Leonard, Fortune http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=Y-N4ChzFEOSbqWTqBBmL6Q.. It seemed too easy. Two months ago, a pair of little-known hedge funds informed the New York Times that they were mounting a campaign to elect four directors to the company's board. Monday, the nation's most powerful newspaper publisher capitulated and agreed to support two of the insurgent nominees at its annual meeting next month. Rising Prices Hit Newsprint Publishers Jim Jelter, Wall Street Journal http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=vCTB5OnOjiwVaiM-kRAI8Q.. As newspapers across America shrink in readership, page count and format, the price of the paper they are printed on has been rising, piling yet another worry onto the industry. Credible Web? It's Where We Click Most Tom Regan, Christian Science Monitor http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=HgTKOOYnctWLznXiMUy-Fw.. In many cases the sites that people come to trust are built on nontraditional models of expertise. Sometimes such sites highlight great reporting from traditional media. But often they bring forward bits of important information that are ignored (or missed) by "experts." Sunshine Week Arrives OMB Watch http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=99zfYDTtiGzLNtebKdnmGw.. The week of March 17 marks the third annual national Sunshine Week, a nonpartisan campaign to promote openness in government and access to public records. China Slams Foreign Media While Restricting Access to Tibet Associated Press http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=Kgbomj-ptLQxV0GvcSXMBg.. China criticized the foreign media Wednesday for its reporting on the violence in Tibet, while it continued to block or detain international journalists trying to cover the story. --- ALSO IN THE NEWS ---- Inclusion or Illusion? An Analysis of the FCC's Public Hearings on Media Ownership 2006-2007 Jonathan Obar and Amit Schejter, Penn State University http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=wwVwbZ_4v6sO2u2lMdoXMA.. In 2006-2007 the FCC held six public hearings across the country in an attempt to fully involve the public in a re-evaluation of the rules governing media ownership in the United States. Facebook to Offer More Privacy Control Jessica Guynn, Los Angeles Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=uHAR4Rb-QREf-XTbKr6J1w.. Facebook is rolling out tighter privacy controls that allow users to decide which friends can see their profile information and other personal details. iPhone Users Love that Mobile Web Brad Stone, New York Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=Mn82S84fj0otRVnML0TraA.. The last thing anyone wants to do is to give iPhone users another chance to crow about their phone's slick interface and seamless connection to the Web. But, until now, little was known about the media habits of iPhone users and how they have diverged from the activities of mere mortals who own run-of-the mill smartphones and regular mobile phones. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Many of these articles are copyrighted material. We make such material available to advance understanding of public issues, which we believe constitutes a 'fair use' of copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material in this email is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. 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