Media IS The Issue
by Josh Silver, Free Press
With the
GOP convention wrapped up and Congress returning to Washington next
week, media reform advocates are gearing up for a busy season.
Media
coverage of the election is a disaster. Corporate media are avoiding
substantial analysis and debate in favor of sensationalistic sound-bite
journalism, gossip and horserace-style speculation. Celebrity
journalists mute the tough questions and amplify partisan spin, and
rarely point out the inaccurate and misleading statements made by
candidates and their proxies. As outgoing head of the National
Association of Hispanic Journalists Juan Gonzales quipped: “If (a
government official) said the world was flat, today's corporate media
would dutifully report, 'Breaking News: There Appear to be Differing
Views on The World's Shape.'”
The
facts are damning. Networks will carried a mere three hours of
convention coverage this week. During the 2000 election, we heard
directly from presidential candidates an average of only 9 seconds per
night on the news. Four years later, as election reporting declines,
networks are raking in a record $1.5 billion in political ad revenue —
hardly an incentive to expand their coverage. Campaign advertisements
outnumber campaign news stories four to one.
Many
conservative organizations and Republican members of Congress have
expressed strong support for media reform. Nonetheless, the GOP
platform fails to include any support for limits on media
consolidation. Once again, Big Media lobbyists are having their way
with public policy through close ties with elected officials.
Despite
these dark days, media reform has more momentum than at any point in
our nation's history. In Washington and across the country, activists
are redoubling efforts to fight back:
1)
Communities nationwide are fighting monopoly cable providers (like
Comcast and Time Warner) to ensure that cable and broadband services
serve the community and not just the bottom line, with increased public
access and more non-commercial channels.
2)
Advocates are pressing Congress to force cable monopolies to carry new,
independent networks and to make access to cable more affordable
through measures like 'a la carte' programming that let viewers choose
which channels they pay for.
3)
With last year's disastrous loosening of media ownership rules rejected
by the courts, activists are pushing for more public involvement in the
FCC's creation of new rules.
4) Legislation to license thousands of new low power FM radio stations is working its way through Congress.
5)
A growing coalition is demanding increased access to the public
airwaves for low-cost, high-speed, wireless broadband that would turn
Internet access into a public right instead of a luxury.
This is
just a glimpse of what's going on in the fight for media reform.
Americans understand that our democracy will not survive without
tougher journalism, more diverse and independent voices, and a stronger
noncommercial media sector. It is up to you to keep the momentum going.
The Free Press website (www.freepress.net)
is now even easier to use, containing resources and tools to help you
get more involved, raise awareness, and hold our elected officials and
the media accountable.
The time
is now — to fight organized media corporations with organized people —
and create a media system that puts the public interest before profits.
Onward,
Josh Silver
Free Press
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