Be The Media

Big blow to Big Media

John Nichols writes for CommonDreams.org:

"More than a year after the Federal Communications Commission narrowly endorsed a radical rewrite of media ownership laws in a manner that would have strengthened the hand of media conglomerates, a US appeals court has determined that the FCC went too far.

In one of the most significant setbacks for the Bush Administration's campaign to rewrite regulations to favor big business, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia rejected the rationale the FCC used to ease media ownership limits and ordered the commission to revisit the issue with an eye toward protecting, rather than undermining, the public interest in diverse ownership or local and national media.

The appeals court panel, which last year stayed implementation of the rule changes, complained that the FCC had relied on flawed reasoning and reached contradictory conclusions to justify rule changes that would have allowed the consolidation of media ownership in local markets across the country.

"The court ruling affirmed what many of us have been saying for a long time," explained US Representative Maurice Hinchey, D-New York, one of the most ardent Congressional critics of the rule changes. "Chairman Powell's gift to media conglomerates was made without basis in legitimate research. He cannot show that the commission's decision was made in the public's best interest. On the contrary, it threatens the ability of the public to have its voice heard and to have access to other diverse voices."

"This outstanding decision comes at a time when unprecedented debate on the role of media outlets in Americans' lives is taking place," said Prometheus Program Director Hannah Sassaman. "Thousands of Americans are telling the Commission and everyone who will listen that consolidation is bad for their communities and families. It is of paramount importance that the FCC use that testimony to inform new ownership rules that will preserve and protect America's diverse, local voices."

VICTORY! Federal Court Overturns FCC

Its OFFICIAL!: A Federal Court overturned FCC Chairman Powell's June 2, 2003 media ownership rule changes, joining Congress and millions of Americans in unanimously opposing the proposed regulations.

Powell should resign - it should not have gone this far in the first place.

Thanks to Jonathan Schwartzman of the Media Access Project, the folks at the Prometheus Radio Project, Media-Alliance, FreePress, and the millions of Americans that expressed their outrage.

Tell Congress to support LPFM!

Sign the petition circulated by Free Press to increase the distribution of community radio licenses.

"Millions of petitions and calls have finally paid off: Senators McCain and Leahy just introduced a bill that would revolutionize community radio, but we need your help to get it passed.

Take Action Now!

Senate Bill 2505 would give thousands of communities the right to broadcast on low-power FM airwaves. Congress needs to know how important it is for this bill to pass. Please sign the petition at the link above.

What is Low-Power FM (LPFM) radio? Why is it important?

Low-Power FM radio, or LPFM for short, refers to 10 to 100 watt, nonprofit radio stations with a reach of only a few miles. Because LPFM stations are non-profit and reach a small broadcast area, they hold great promise to offer truly community-driven and locally-oriented programming. They will add diversity to the airwaves and allow for a greater range of debate and local programming than corporate radio can offer."

Low Power FM in the big city?

The Low Power Radio Act of 2004, recently introduced by Senators McCain (R-Ariz) and Leahy (D-Vt), aims to ease restrictions on LPFM rollouts in urban areas, according to both the Washington Post and Broadcasting and Cable.

The Post reports:

"A number [of LPFM stations] are up and running in less-populated areas. Nationwide, more than 200 such stations are on the air. If the McCain-Leahy bill is enacted, as many as 1,000 more could be licensed, community-radio advocates estimate.

Low-power advocates have pushed hard to bring the stations into urban, often-poorer areas, saying that is where they are most needed. But their introduction into urban locations — where the FM band is crowded with commercial frequencies — is opposed by National Public Radio and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), the trade group of commercial radio stations, each of which maintains the low-power signals will interfere with existing FM stations.

"After spending almost two years and over $2 million, an independent study revealed what the [Federal Communications Commission] and community groups have said all along: Low-power FM radio will do no harm to other broadcasters," McCain said in a statement issued yesterday."

Senators back Low Power FM Stations!

Great news for independent democratic media! Senator John McCain (R-Arizona), chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, and Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), the ranking member on the Judiciary Committee, introduced a bill today to allow the FCC to license small radio stations - the LOW POWER RADIO ACT OF 2004. According to Ryan Singel in Wired news:

"McCain has been a longtime proponent of low-power radio stations and has fought against increasing media consolidation rules. "I look forward to hearing more local artists, local news, local public-affairs programming and community-based programming on low-power FM radio stations throughout the country," McCain said.

The new legislation seeks to undo an appropriations rider passed in December 2000 by Congress, which was persuaded by large commercial broadcasters that local radio would likely interfere with their radio signals. Congress directed the Federal Communications Commission not to grant licenses until the FCC studied interference issues. In February, the FCC told Congress that an independent study conducted by MITRE Corp. found that low-power stations "do not pose a significant risk of causing interference to existing full-service FM stations."

In response to the finding, McCain drafted the Low Power Radio Act of 2004, which would lift congressional "third-adjacent minimum distance requirements." Those rules say that if there is an existing radio station at 91.3 on the FM dial, no new radio station can be established at 90.7 or 91.9 within 90 kilometers. These restrictions have made it impossible for any low-power station to be licensed in any of the top-50 radio markets, said Pete Tridish, technical director for the Prometheus Radio Project, a nonprofit group dedicated to low-power radio.

"It will make a pretty dramatic change for mid-sized cities, and the largest 10 radio markets could get an additional 25 stations," Tridish said. New Orleans, for example, would have room for five new stations."

TAKE ACTION! Go to Prometheus Radio Project to learn more and to take action now!

DIY Radio: How to get your voice heard

Jason Silverman writes in Wired about the growing LPFM movement.

"Stephen Dunifer dreams of reclaiming the airwaves, neighborhood by neighborhood, from the corporate powers that be. To that end, he's spent the past several years training would-be do-it-yourself broadcasters. His four-day Radio Summer Camps, sponsored by Free Radio Berkeley, offer how-tos for building transmitters and antennas, along with advice on handling any FCC agents that might come knocking. The camps begin in June.

With a few hundred bucks and a bit of know-how, potential pirates, er, microbroadcasters, could hop the airwaves right away.

Katie Jacoby, a junior at Bard College in New York, spent her winter break in one of Dunifer's training sessions, and earlier this month launched Free Radio Annandale, an unlicensed station at 92.5 FM. After overcoming some logistical problems — Jacoby had to put her antenna up a tree — she began broadcasting hip-hop and punk music and politically oriented programming including Democracy Now. "It's been extremely empowering to follow the DIY ethic," she said. "What's even more exciting is that I am continually inspired to learn more about radio technology ... and I've really started to think about the facets of society that constrict our ability to communicate."

"As far as I'm concerned, the real pirates are the NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) and their member stations," Dunifer said, referring to the powerful lobbying group. "They've stolen the airwaves with the full complicity of the FCC and Congress."

Still, Pete Tridish, a recovering pirate and head of the low-power radio advocacy group Prometheus Radio Project, thinks pirate stations on their own won't cause enough of a ripple in Washington. He is lobbying to have the FCC cough up more LPFM licenses, including in urban areas. "Having tried it, I don't think a strategy just of civil disobedience will work," Tridish said. "The pirates' ability to be civilly disobedient is out of proportion to the problem they are trying to change."

That problem is media concentration. Critics say that the 1996 Telecommunications Act turned radio into a preprogrammed monolith as independent, local radio stations were gobbled up by conglomerates, including Clear Channel, which now owns 1,200 stations in 230 markets.

For some media activists, working with the FCC to solve perceived problems with the mass media is counterintuitive. Dunifer spent four years banging heads with the feds while fighting an injunction against his station, Free Radio Berkeley. His defense: The FCC was stepping on his Bill of Rights. "This was a First Amendment issue," Dunifer said. "When you have a system that allocates access depending on money, that's not free speech.

"Our core argument was that the FCC's rules and regulations constitute an artificially high barrier to free speech. If the government is going to regulate First Amendment rights, they have to do it in the least-restrictive means possible. But, at this point, unless you have tons of money you can't even enter the (broadcasting) game."

Dunifer's success in court was shocking — it undermined, to an extent, the FCC's entire existence — but temporary. The injunction against Free Radio Berkeley stands.

But those who can't broadcast, teach. Dunifer's summer camps are an attempt to seed an army of microbroadcasters to reclaim what he calls "stolen property: the airwaves, a public resource."

"We need an alternative media to bring alternative viewpoints and to give us access to music and art and poetry and other forms of expression," Dunifer said. "It's fundamental to the democratic process. If you don't have an open media that's freewheeling and chaotic and a wonderful mess, you don't have democracy."

Two victories for media reform!

Josh Silver of Free Press reports two victories for media reform! Hooray for the good guys :)

The popular backlash against the FCC's lifting of media ownership regulations is bearing fruit: Two recent victories show that our collective efforts are having an impact.

1. Corporate-sponsored junkets for FCC Commissioners have been stopped. Last year, the Center for Public Integrity revealed that the FCC had accepted over $2.8 million in free travel and entertainment from the very industries they were regulating. Public outrage at this and the loosening of media ownership regulations resulted in the FCC banning this practice. For the complete story, visit here.

2. Low-power FM broadcasting -- nonprofit radio stations with a reach of just a few miles -- recently received a huge boost. Last Friday, the FCC recommended to Congress that it eliminate restrictions that deprived communities of their own locally-oriented radio stations. If Congress writes this into law, it will clear the way for hundreds -- if not thousands -- of communities to begin broadcasting.

The battle in Congress over Low-power FM licenses is about to begin, and Big Media is going to fight back - hard. We're going to need all of your support to beat them. Stay tuned here

Neither of these developments would have even been thinkable a year ago, proving what Free Press has believed all along: when corrupt policymaking practices are brought into the daylight for all to see, the public will demand action, and regulators and legislators will be forced to respond.

It's quite possible that the federal appeals court in Philadelphia will roll back the all-important newspaper - broadcast cross-ownership rule, thanks to public pressure and a brilliant legal fight led by the Media Access Project. Congress is still trying to roll back the rest of the new rules, with growing bipartisan support. More and more Americans are realizing that we have to fight for better media if we want a better country and a better democracy.

New Life For Little Radio?

Eric Boehlert writes in Salon "Opposition to Big media could invigorate low-power FM radio."

"As the political backlash against media consolidation mounts on Capitol Hill, one of the issues that first sparked the movement is back in the news: low-power FM radio, or LPFM.

The political environment on Capitol Hill regarding consolidation, media ownership and diversity has clearly tilted in favor of LPFM advocates in recent months, as more and more politicians question the wisdom of massive deregulation."

LPFM: Broadcast Lobby Caught Red Handed With Red Herring

Congress mandated a study to determine whether or not small community radio stations (LPFM) would cause interference to the signals of full power broadcasters. It was conducted by MITRE Corporation, an independent testing company. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) had complained before Congress that FM radio would be drowned in "an ocean of interference" if LPFM stations were allowed to proliferate. The study found that no such interference existed.

"I hope that the wild goose chase for interference -- and the claim that a dinky hundred watt community station can cause this kind of problem for a 20,000 watt commercial station -- can finally come to a close." said Pete Tridish, Technical Director of the Prometheus Radio Project.

Among other findings, the study proved that no significant LPFM-related degradation to a full power station's signal was ever identified at more than 333 meters from an LPFM transmitter.

"As the result of these bizarre political pressures exerted by the broadcast lobby, the FCC has developed a more extensive complaint procedure for when you turn on a hundred watt station than when you turn on a 50,000 watt station. We proved in 1999 that the interference issue was a red herring, and MITRE has proven it again," said Pete Tridish. "It is time to let low power radio into the cities."

Over 200 Low power radio stations are on the air in small towns around the United States today, run by schools, churches, activist groups, unions and other civil society groups. If adopted by an act of Congress, MITRE'S recommendations would allow thousands of small community groups, in cities all across the US, to build these vibrant new neighborhood institutions of democratic media.