Media Reform Headlines for March 26, 2008 Date: Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:21:28 -0500 (CDT) Media Reform Daily http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=nGDQwiQSFLg5Q7LJI6ORJA.. News of the movement for March 26, 2008 POLICY AT THE FCC Out of Tune with Consumers XM-Sirius is the latest in a long series of cop-outs by the antitrust police, but it's also more than that. As an unregulated monopoly, it is the perfect embodiment of a Bush-Cheney capitalism that reflexively favors shareholders over consumers and rewards financial manipulation over genuine innovation. Steven Pearlstein, Washington Post http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=5W0ZjSKyATdZ0G6iSsuGlQ.. Giving XM and Sirius a Monopoly on Data The Justice Department has approved the merger of XM and Sirius satellite radio. That leaves the FCC as the last line of defense for consumers. Philip Greenspun, Harvard University Law School http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=Oncfv71cUnMDrpjEZXFvfg.. FCC Must Stop the XM-Sirius Merger Common Cause is disappointed that the Department of Justice has approved the XM-Sirius satellite radio merger, clearing the path for ever more media consolidation. We are calling on the FCC to halt this dangerous potential monopoly. Common Cause http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=yKD65Ph-o9JqboNTyiLF1A.. STOP BIG MEDIA Banks Balk at Paying for Clear Channel Deal The $19.5 billion sale of the radio broadcaster Clear Channel to two private equity firms is in jeopardy. This time, however, instead of the buyers balking, the banks that had agreed to finance the deal have become apprehensive. Michael J. de la Merced and Andrew Ross Sorkin, New York Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=x4tNxB6U2rbOzBrnQLcNeg.. Talks Stall in Clear Channel Buy-Out Clear Channel's proposed $19 billion buy-out remained on shaky ground as private equity firms and banks remained at loggerheads over terms of the deal's financing. Francesco Guerrera and Joshua Chaffin, Financial Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=aDzI-cpLpcZd-llsdAD6ig.. Minority Voice in Media Matters There are two dissenting voices on the Federal Communications Commission. One was in Albany on Tuesday. Jonathan Adelstein spoke at an event sponsored by the WAMC network of public radio stations. Chris Churchill, Albany Times Union http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=Z1odWDXrgNn7gjwO5KmSxg.. SAVE OUR SPECTRUM Open Wireless Network May Not Be So Open With its winning $4.7 billion bid last week, Verizon Wireless didn't just stake claim to beachfront wireless property, it also grabbed control of the guest list to the open-access party. Dibya Sarkar, Associated Press http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=jnELJD7rTm4nm4uwwQMFag.. Viva Verizon The broadband roadmap of U.S. cable operators suddenly seems, well, feeble. Not content spending $23 billion rolling out fiber-to-the-home through its FiOS initiative, Verizon is set to plunk down another $9.6 billion for C-Block licenses following the FCC's 700 MHz spectrum auction, winning the bidding war hands down. Michael Harris, Light Reading http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=7fprD6xAujspH4pvGo7dPg.. Google's Spectrum Proposal Runs Into Opposition A renewed lobbying push by Google to utilize the spectrum for the Internet has run into strong opposition from powerful broadcasters. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has come out against a proposal that the tech giant submitted to the FCC. Kevin Bogardus, The Hill http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=Lmt7ty2vbQ4IfszTAB_ccw.. COMMUNITY INTERNET Minneapolis Wi-Fi Network to Be Completed by Month's End For many cities in Minnesota and across the country, creating municipal Wi-Fi has been much tougher to implement than it was to imagine. But many news outlets are holding up Minneapolis as a success story compared to failed or failing networks. Brandt Williams, Minnesota Public Radio http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=BS0nc0URGJhfMIMwEWBu7g.. Fiber Center Gets First Viewing After nearly a decade of discussions, Wilson, S.C., officials finally got a chance to see their vision of a city-operated cable television system come to life. City Council members were given a private tour of the technical hub of Wilson's new fiber optic broadband network. Matt Shaw, Wilson Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=B-82A9mbzVfqJJ8_ibZHbw.. NATIONAL CONFERENCE FOR MEDIA REFORM Early bird registration for the 2008 National Conference for Media Reform ends next week. If you care about the state of the media, this is the one event you can't miss. June 6-8 -- Minneapolis. Sign up now. http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=P__qdeSxIH7theubldkhyQ.. FP Action Network http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=rrT0WKN3To2AgnSyaw5HrA.. IN OTHER NEWS CNN's Response to Josh Silver of Free Press CNN's Jeanne Moos responds to Free Press Executive Director Josh Silver's recent criticism on Huffington Post. (Video 2:28) Jeanne Moos, CNN http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=XJarMI4aroWgjDJk0-KH6w.. Cable Companies Discuss Funding Wireless Venture The two largest U.S. cable operators, Comcast Corp and Time Warner Cable Inc, are discussing a plan to fund a new wireless venture to be operated by Sprint Nextel and Clearwire. Reuters http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=rit2I8YSkiNjHIcQnMBMpg.. Shareholders to Ask Google for Net Neutrality Commitment Shareholders of Google will propose that the Web search company take steps to ensure freedom of Internet access and establish a review of its operations' effect on human rights, according to a regulatory filing on Tuesday. Reuters http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=tHIFk9420EyMYnp40IaAKw.. Google Shareholders to Vote on Proposed Human Rights Panel Google investors proposed that the company create a committee on human rights and be forbidden from engaging in censorship. Google will let shareholders vote on the measures at its May 8 annual meeting, according to a regulatory filing yesterday. Bloomberg News http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=-4wLzB-Y09wyvrHqjsNv4Q.. FCC: Consistent to a Fault, but there is a (Small) Hope The FCC has put out a worse-than-useless report on the status of broadband deployment in the United States. NetworkWorld http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=E215hHPpU6-qmo_AFapUAA.. Off Target Every presidential campaign of recent memory has produced its share of Dewey-Defeats-Truman press embarrassments, but Campaign '08 has been particularly rich in bogus media narratives. Ever since the races began in earnest last year, the blown calls have just kept on coming. American Journalism Review http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=JqHhJrvuXBsb2ZeUWNQlvg.. The Buzz on the Bus: Pinched, Press Steps Off As Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama debated in Cleveland on a snowy evening in late February, 650 journalists descended on the city to follow every jab and parry, albeit on enormous televisions in two makeshift filing centers. New York Times http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=9VBfb-y2UT0G0ZvuEMnalw.. Ethics Opinions Find Two Lobbying Violations State lobbying rules may have been violated in two high-profile legislative fights, one over Internet wine sales and the other over cable television regulation, according to the Tennessee Ethics Commission. Tennessean http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=E58RDlX6fXEF-UXnqQunOg.. Suit Could Force Disclosure of RIAA's Methods An Oregon woman is suing the music industry trade association in a case that could force the group to reveal how it targets people in its campaign to curb illegal downloading and sharing of music online. eSchool News http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=oPh9XV9dieNJ_EPA9gaZVg.. Chinese Taking Aim at Media over Tibet The Chinese government bans CNN in most homes. The talk of China in recent days? The news coverage on CNN. Wall Street Journal http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=ukBB3t7rCsNIFZvg-Ob7xg.. 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. http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=_8jA6kGdNxFygZQiG1pGPA.. Free Press is a national organization working to increase informed public participation in crucial media policy debates. The ultimate aim of Free Press is to generate a range of policies that will produce a more competitive and public-interest-oriented media system with a strong nonprofit and noncommercial sector. Please send comments or other feedback to newswire@freepress.net. Donate Now www.freepress.net http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=9KZFZ-9jjicLbI6CWLPNrQ.. http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=mBEMw01Rcmc803s5OnBj-w.. http://free.convio.net/site/R?i=WO1POrHq1x5tjbixHaHQkA..