media policy 101
TRANSCRIPT
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Cpyrigt 2008 Fr Prss, n t Wb at www.rprss.nt.
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T viw a cpy tis licns, visit crativcmmns.rg/licnss/by-nc-sa/2.0/ r sna lttr t Crativ Cmmns, 559 Natan Abbtt Way, Stanr, Calirnia 94305, USA.
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m e d i a p o l i c y 1 0 1
1
Symptoms o the media problem 3
Prot trumps the public interest 4
A handul o corporations control the media 5
The public is shut out o media policy debates 6
Who makes media policy? 7
Infuence and media policy 8
A ew key points 8
Who owns the airwaves? 10
The system isnt inevitable 11
Change the rules, change the media 11
Public interest media policies 12
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People rom all backgrounds and belies are concerned about the state o
our media You dont have to be a scholar or an expert to recognize thesymptoms o our media problem For example:
Instead o quality journalism about vital issues, we get inotainment,
sensationalism and celebrity gossip Entertaining or dramatic stories that
have no impact on our lives are presented
as news, while key stories about social and
political issues are let uncovered
Local perspectives and culture are vanish-
ing rom the airwaves, so the media look
and sound the same rom Alaska to
Florida
What you see in the media doesnt look
like the real world We see stereotypes
instead o nuance Important issues and
social groups are misrepresented or let out
altogether
Were bombarded with commercials,
billboards and product placements Entire
movies and V shows are made just to sell
spin-o merchandise
oo many people are stranded on the wrong side o the digital divide,
unable to access or aord a high-speed Internet connection
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Th vrg arntngr w sn rhurs r r wthng TVthn n sh.
on vrg, n arnh w vw 40,000
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Sources:
(1) Nielsen Media Research, (2) Radio
Advertising Bureau, (3) Pew Internet &
American Life Project, (4) Handbook of
Children in the Media.
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Most o the media that we see and hear is produced to make a prot not
necessarily to provide the inormation and quality entertainment we needCommercial media make money through advertising So media companies
create content that attracts the best audience or advertisers not content
that serves the best interests o the public
Controversial issues are ignored to keep advertisers happy4
Entire segments o our population Arican Americans, Latinos, Asian4
Americans, Native Americans, low-income people, rural populations,and others are ignored or misrepresented
Local political aairs, viewed as a ratings loser, are ignored4
V networks rely on violent or sexually explicit programming to grab4the most eyeballs and get the highest ratings
Cost-cutting in newsrooms results in less local reporting and investiga-4
tive journalism
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Sources:
(1,2) Center for Responsive Politics; Free Press Research, (3) OECD Broadband Statistics to
December 2006, OECD, (4) New America Foundation, The Citizens Guide to the Airwaves, 2003.
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Te ederal policies that govern media ownership allow a handul o ex-
tremely powerul corporate giants to control the media industry Troughmergers and takeovers over the past ew decades, major conglomerates have
swallowed up independent outlets, reducing the diversity o voices in the
media market while intensiying the conglomerates inuence
odays media owners not only decide what musical artists, V programs
and news reach us but they also decide how much we pay or it, how its
distributed, and how we can use it Tis gives them tremendous power
Its simple: You control the inormation, and you control the nation
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Sources:
(1) Writers Guild of America East, (2) BIA Financial; Free Press research, (3) Free Press research,
(4) Review of the Radio Industry, Federal Communications Commission, Media Bureau,
Industry Analysis Division, September 2003, (5)High-Speed Services for Internet Access as of
June 30, 2007, Industry Analysis and Technology Division, Wireline Competition Bureau, Federal
Communications Commission.
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Because o Big Medias tremendous inuence in Washington, media poli-
cymaking has been a closed and secretive process, and citizens have beenshut out o media policy debates So even though we own the airwaves, they
decide how media is created, nanced and distributed
In act, we are so ar rom these debates that we oten dont even hear when
they are happening Mainstream media conveniently ignore stories about media
policy Tey dont like to cover themselves: When Congress was voting to elimi-
nate longstanding media ownership limits in 1996, the nightly newscasts on the
major networks never once mentioned the elecommunications Act In act, theact was only mentioned on national broadcast V twice by ed Koppel on
Nightline and by cartoon character Lisa Simpson on Te Simpsons
Its up to concerned citizens that means you to change the system
Dont orget that policymakers are public ofcials, and its their job to serve
the public interest You have the power to hold them accountable; you
deserve a say in policy debates about the media issues you care about
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Media Policy BasicsIG MedIA has one o the most powerul special interest lobbies in
Washington In 2006, they spent more money on lobbyists than any
other industry, including the drug and oil companies Tese lobbyists try
to inuence policymakers in Washington to enact policies that will increase
Big Media prots, not serve the public interest
Trough their massive lobbying, Big Media wields enormous inuence inWashington Media policy is made behind closed doors In act, several
sections o the disastrous elecommunications Act o 1996 were actually
written by media industry lobbyists Tat kind o corrupt process is unac-
ceptable in a democracy
Our media system is complex, with many dierent types o media print,
broadcast and the Internet and dierent rules that apply to each Its
important or activists to know the basics Here are a ew key points on US
media policy:
Te First Amendment protects ree speech and reedom o the press Tat
means that media outlets television and radio stations, newspapers, Websites are ree to choose whatever kind o content they want Congress can
make laws to cover all sectors o the media system, but the First Amendment
generally prohibits government rom regulating content
Some types o media use public property to distribute their messages
For instance, V and radio stations broadcast over the public airwaves, andyour mobile phone uses them, too Cable and phone companies dig up public
roads to lay their wires Because these companies have been entrusted with
invaluable public resources, they have a legal obligation to serve the public
Congress and the FCC can dictate how they do so
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Tere are dierent regulations or dierent types o media Te more
dependent a media sector is on public property, the more power the
government has to enact public interest provisions So the government has
virtually no power to make rules or newspapers, but considerable power
to regulate broadcast V and radio because these media get to use public
airwaves or ree
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Who Ownsthe Airwaves?
Te public airwaves are the transmission requen-
cies used by radio, V and satellite broadcasters,
cell phone companies, Wi-Fi routers even your
V remote control to transmit signals
Although the airwaves are used or many dier-
ent purposes, they ultimately belong to you the
American public in the same way that your side-walk or your local park belongs to you Te airwaves
are a public resource
Some businesses, like cell phone companies, pay
the government to use the airwaves (also called
spectrum) Radio and V broadcasters, though,
use these airwaves ree o charge In return or thisgenerous government handout, broadcasters are re-
quired by law to serve the public interest
Even though citizens own the airwaves, weve oten
been shut out o debates over how these airwaves
should be used But because the airwaves belong to
us, we have a legitimate platorm rom which we canchange the rules and change the media
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Media PolicyPrioritiesoST PeoPLe ASSUMe that our media system developed naturally
as the result o market orces Teyre wrong Te system didnt
develop in response to market orces Instead, its the direct result o poli-cies made by Congress and the FCC in Washington
In crating communications policy, policymakers ace choices: How will the
system operate and whom will laws and regulations benet? Our current
policies have created a system that benets giant media corporations at the
expense o average Americans and their need or inormation and diverse
viewpoints
I we want to improve the media and create a more diverse and democratic
system that serves the public interest, then we need to change media
policies
Citizen activism can aect policy We cant match the massive unds o the
big industry lobbies, but as voters, citizens and constituents, we also havethe power to inuence policymakers We can match Big Medias market
power with people power I we change the rules, we can change the media!
Motivated citizens rom across the country need to join the movement or
better media Te next section will tell you how you can have an impact
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Rampant media consolidation has led to the decline o quality
journalism and the elimination o diverse, local, independent
voices Now the handul o huge conglomerates that dominate
our media want to rewrite the rules so they can get even bigger
Congress and the FCC need to block urther market concentra-
tion and diversiy media ownership
Soon nearly all media V, phone, radio and the Web will
be delivered over the Internet A broadband connection is ast
becoming a basic public necessity, just like water or electricity We
need to enact a national broadband policy to provide universal,
aordable broadband access to all Americans Congress andthe FCC need to protect Net Neutrality the principle that
prevents phone and cable companies rom discriminating against
Web sites and services they dont own
Citizens and policymakers need to prevent political intererence at
PBS and NPR and support a vibrant public and noncommercialmedia sector Tat means obtaining long-term unding or public
and noncommercial media including television, low-power and
community radio, public access programming, and independent
publications and Web sites
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We rely on the media or the news and inormation we need
to hold elected and corporate leaders accountable But media
consolidation has squeezed newsrooms, shuttered oreign
bureaus, and put countless journalists out o work Hard-hitting
news and in-depth local coverage have been replaced by celebrity
chatter, shouting pundits and other u We need to sustainquality journalism and support the individuals and institutions
that produce it
Media is a civil rights issue People o color, women, youth, and
other disenranchised communities have long been shut out
o our countrys media Teyre not represented on the publicairwaves We need to oster public policies that promote media
diversity, strengthen laws and regulations to support minority
ownership, eliminate institutional biases in media content, and
ensure air and accurate representation or all communities
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What You Can DoGet e-mail alerts and updates that will tell you what you can do to change
the media o sign up, go to www.freepress.net
Calls and letters really do make a dierence in getting members o Congress
to pay attention to media issues that matter At www.freepress.net/
policy_updates/congress_center, you can nd contact inormation or yourelected ofcials and learn about important legislation You can also call
the US Capitol switchboard at (800) 614-2803 and ask to speak to the
ofce o your senator or representative
Teres an old saying that the only way to beat organized money is with
organized people Every time you sign a petition, call your senator, post toyour blog, or write a letter to the editor about the media, encourage your
riends and amily to do the same Make media an issue or the groups in
which youre already active
Many media policy issues are local issues You can protest the renewal o a
local broadcasters license, negotiate with cable companies or public access
channels and lower rates, or get your city or county to develop a communityInternet project
Local activists are banding together across the country to ght or bet-
ter media Tey host events, meet with local media, organize rallies and
educate the public o see a list o groups working on media reorm near
you, check out: www.freepress.net/org_directoryCant nd a local group? Start your own!
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alk to your riends, amily, and colleagues about building better media
Write about it; talk about it; go to local events I your issues arent gettingcovered, you can make your own media Start a blog or create videos and
tell the story o whats happening in your community Spread the word!
Te Free Press Action Network is the new hub or media activism on
the Web
Tis exciting online resource allows users to discuss the latest media reorm
news, connect with other activists around the country, take action on the
latest campaigns, watch videos and much more Media activists rom across
the country have already joined the conversation
Help ampliy the chorus o motivated people who are taking action on
media issues that matter Check out the Free Press Action Network at:
www.freepress.net/action
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Learnthebasicsabout
mediapolicy,whomakestherulesandwhatyoucandotochangethesystem.