Will the U.S. Get the Democratic Media We Deserve?
The answer is that for the short-term–even in the broadband era–it isn’t likely. First, our largest media companies have a current political agenda that will further weaken the institution of journalism. They now seek – at the FCC and in Congress – to remove what remains of critical safeguards designed to ensure the public receives a diverse array of information sources. Newspaper and broadcasting companies want to kill the broadcast-newspaper cross-ownership safeguard. That rule has prevented one company from dominating the two most powerful sources of information in a single town (a number of such combinations were “grandfathered” in 1975 when the rule went into effect). Once that rule is killed, expect more newspapers to be swept up in TV-oriented empires, forced to focus on TV industry tabloid, sound bite, business models.
The TV networks and major broadcasting companies also want to scrap what’s left of the “cap,” the number of stations a single company can own in a town and nationally. Expect fewer voices, less news, more commercials. As my colleague Tim Karr wrote recently for this blog, the big cable and phone companies want to control the future of the broadband Internet in the U.S. Under their proposed business model, they would become powerful digital gatekeepers. The content owned by a Comcast, Time Warner or AT&T would travel to TV’s, PC’s and mobile devices on a super-fast highway. Competing content, such as new forms of news, would likely have to face an expensive toll road or resort to what will be the equivalent of a digital dirt road. In the next few weeks, both the House and Senate–now being heavily lobbied by the cable and telephone lobby–will decide whether such a scenario is likely to come to pass soon. The big cable and telephone companies will very likely win–since they are currently spending many millions for lobbying and on political donations.
The current crisis in U.S. journalism reflects two decades (and more) of such special interest lobbying by the media lobby. The cut-backs in overseas bureaus, elimination of most investigative reporting on TV, and the lack of electoral related coverage is all linked to the sweeping away of FCC safeguards (including limits on media ownership). A business model that has little regard for public service dominates.
If the media lobby has its way, we will have even fewer owners controlling newspapers, radio, broadcast TV, cable, satellite, and broadband access. Is this what we really want for the U.S.? In my next post, I will discuss the future of alternative media in the emerging digital world.
TAG: wemedia
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Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) Author of The Declaration of Independence said that “We hold these Truths to be self-evident that Governments are insituted Among MEN, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed. We, the people give our representives the power and right-the authority-to govern us. We, as citizens, have the right to control how our government uses the authority we have given to it. As citizens in a free society , all of us have the responsibilty to deal intelligently with issuses of authority and make informed decisions about it.
What makes you think that the US public deserves any better media than it now has, i.e. chooses to watch, i.e. supports by purchasing?
I’d say the American public is getting exactly what they deserve, by buying into the dumbed down mainstream.
Hence ignorant blunders like Iraq.
Hence the scorn of the rest of us.
Check out Tim and Jeff’s campaign to ‘Stop Fake News’ to see that their battle against the big media companies is as much about the substance of the news as it is about the fairness of the process. We all deserve real news. Thanks to Tim and Jeff for stepping up to lead the fight for all of us.
http://www.freepress.net/fakenews/