FCC Proposes Greater Media Consolidation

On October 17, FCC chairman Kevin Martin proposed lifting the 1975 media cross-ownership rule that forbids a company from owning a newspaper and television or radio station in the same city even though giant conglomerates like Rupert Murdock's News Corp. and the (Chicago) Tribune Company already do. On November 13, he expanded on his earlier plan claiming changes will only allow cross ownership "in the largest markets where there exists competition and numerous voices."

That's not how Free Press.net's policy director, Ben Scott, sees it in his statement on the same day saying: "Chairman Martin's lofty rhetoric talks about saving American newspapers and ensuring a diversity of voices. But the devil is in the details. His new rules appear to be corporate welfare for the (media giants) in the biggest cities (and) most worrying....the proposed rules appear to contain a giant loophole that could open the back door to runaway media consolidation in nearly every market (in) another massive giveaway to Big Media."

Click here for the full article.

Comments

[Smirk]

That is a very bad idea. I don't want one company owning all the media in town.

[RTIII]

We HAVE to stop this, NOW.

Either that, or we will have to enact laws repealing it - and all the related laws.

Among THIS audience, I don't have to tell you that a major part of why we're so screwed right now is because of media consolidation and the loss of the fairness doctrine. We need to get back to the rules, policies, and laws of the Carter Administration!

While we're at it, we need to make it such that the head of the FCC can't ever address these questions - EVER - not in his purview.

We need a free and thinking press that challenges those who would lead, those that do lead, and the policies that are proposed - fact check, report the fact-check results, and perform investigative journalism. Without an INFORMED public, you get administrations like the one we have now - the worst in history.