Just what the media needs:
Now it’s the Federal Communications Commission’s turn to examine the future of journalism and the media industry.
“We are at a critical juncture in the evolution of American media,” FCC chairman Julius Genachowski said in a statement. “Rapid technological change in the media marketplace has created opportunities for tremendous innovation. It has also caused financial turmoil for traditional media, calling into question whether these media outlets will continue to play their historic role in providing local communities with essential news and civic information.”
Yeah, I know: you’re all broke up about it. So let’s hear your diagnosis and prescribed course of treatment. Especially as it relates to this inconvenient little truth:
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74 Comments
MSM will be determined to be to-big-to-fail, get bailed out, have some kind of law passed to insure their availability to perform government propoganda duties for a few more years and then fail anyway.
"You can't have an opposition movement without an opposition media" – Van Jones.
The Feds have absolutely no business interfereing with the media in any fashion. Stay away from our free speech! No bailouts! No subsidies! No control!
Congress shall make no law!!!!!!
It's a lost cause, but maybe, just maybe, they could learn the lesson of a revitalized AM dial post Fairness Doctrine. I know that this "cause" would be dependent upon the wizards of smart to start seeing us for what we are, reasoned creatures, unfortunately I believe that this "study group" will start with the prejudice of us being sheep, or nutjobs.
I guess the elites think sheep or nutjobs don't have First Ammendment rights unlike enemy combatants.
As anyone with an honest and open mind knows, the MSM stop being a "free press" a long time ago. For the most part, they are now nothing more than the propaganda of the Left wing. Manipulating facts, distorting the truth, and spinning everything, has now become a daily routine for them. This is NOT what our Founding Fathers had in mind when it devised the idea of a free press.
Solution? A law should be passed which says, while the media can (and should) remain free, they are only free to report "factual" information. They are NOT free to take political sides, which is where the ongoing abuse of their Constitutional freedoms and protections is most obvious…
It has also caused financial turmoil for traditional media, calling into question whether these media outlets will continue to play their historic role in providing local communities with essential news and civic information.”
Providing…essential news and civic information???
When?
And, to whom?
The "financial hardship" is based upon the wholesale abandonment of their mandate TO provide essential news and civic information.
They are not leaving the marketplace, the marketplace is leaving them. In droves.
It has been said that at times truth is stranger than fiction. For the entrenched media's impending demise it should be noted that truth became a stranger…so they wrote fiction.
The FCC to study the future of Journalism, I wonder what their findings will be? Hmmm…
The MSM has been rendered utterly, and completely irrelevant. Willing sycophants of elite Washington right and left, and as we flip this country back towards it’s founding, the press has to be part of the equation!
Should the FCC investigate NO! If they do it should only be to ensure that no laws or regulations are being broken, that's it!
I agree, but that will never happen. Especially with a bunch of kids with mommy's credit card at the mall running this country.
It will be challenged in the court, since a media bailout directly contradicts the 1st amendment.
We just have to make sure it gets to the court while there are 5 justices with common sense.
1. Declare the electorate retarded.
2. ????
3. Take over the world.
So the failure of the "traditional media" to take advantage of the technological innovation requires the taxpayers to pay the MSM's bills for them?
Makes sense. If you're a Marxist.
IF the MSM fails who will spread the Liberal Propaganda? Maybe we need subsidizes for those networks with the correct Point of View.
So maybe we should support the press writing with fountain pens? That way of doing business went away. These people really want to try to destroy us. It's gonna be a battle!
Before the Obama single term presidency is over there will be, I believe, a bailout for certain media outlets, that are deemed critical to the dissemination of "news", to the NY/Wash/Chicago/LA corridor power base, for the continuation of propaganda and leftist disinformation.
Without such outlets the Socialist message will die……eventually
Joe Klein over at TIME has already announced that America needs to be saved from Americans. We're too stupid, I supose, to vote, or make rational decisions. He wants the government and the elite media (but I repreat myself) to make choices through congress for us.
See, like his pal Tom Friedman…what we really need is a government like Red China…where intelligent elites make "rational" choices for the great unwashed. Of course there's the little problem of the Constituiton standing in the way…but with a few more appropriate choices for the SCOTUS…and a "proper" interpretation of the 14th amendment…that's doable.
" We are at a critical juncture in the evolution of American media,” – FCC chairman Julius Genachowski said.
" So I wish the MSMedia best of luck because they'll need it. There is little that we here in Washington can or should do. As strong believers in the free market system it will be interesting to see how it plays out. The winners will be decided in the great American arena ". – what FCC chairman J.G. should have said.
Their findings will be that journalism is just fine, that talk radio and FOXNEWS is the problem and their intellectuals have just the answer to fix it.
"I'm from the government and I'm here to help" – President Ronald Reagan
Congress shall make no law . . . they should have stopped there and went home.
Good Lt.
Great question. I was inspired to write to the FCC and ask them just that. As a matter of fact, maybe we should start writing all federal government offices and asking them personally if they are being good stewards of our money.
Mjdzfun
meredith.baker@fcc.gov mignon.clyburn@fcc.gov robert.mcdowell@fcc.gov Michael.Copps@fcc.gov Julius.Genachowski@fcc.gov
"Dear Commissioners:
As a taxpayer, I am writing to each of you to question your announcement to study to future of journalism, specifically calling into question your concerns over the financial turmoil new media has created for more traditional media. Your concerns over if and how traditional media's continuing to provide communities with news and civic information quite frankly, concerns me.
My concerns are as follows:
The federal government's excessive power grabs is one of the troubling aspects that bothers me. How will your study impact the 1st Amendment? Will the study's findings interfere with the journalism market? If so, how? And how would the FCC's interference work out any better than other interferences by the federal government into free markets?
Next, is this an appropriate use of taxpayer money? DC's record deficits already have many of us deeply worried about generational theft. You must understand that this is a recurring topic of conversation for many of us at the dinner table every night. Lately, DC has been increasing the national debt ceiling every 6 weeks by billions of dollars, running the deficit into the trillions, dollars we are either borrowing or printing. Is it possible there may be more appropriate uses for the money we are borrowing/printing to keep the federal government up and running?
Perhaps there are good reasons for the FCC to conduct this study, if so please explain and I'd like assurances that the true goal of this study by the FCC isn't geared towards setting up a true "State Run" media."
Socialism, like mushrooms will keep thriving underground in our schools, sending out spores. The MostlySucksMedia is just where the flowering part of the socialist fungus shows itself.
Do Progressives ever actually do anything other than "study" a problem? For example, how many committees has Obama formed to study unemployment?
So right Randy…That's why the Madrasa PS system must be taken down. Only problem left in the way are the enormously powerful teachers Unions that contribute massively to the Leftist Dims.
Next time VOUCHERS come up on the ballot, pull the lever for"MostDefinitely" or "HellYes"…It may take another generation to wash out the Leftist stain, but we gotta start sometime…
I think you left out 2 important words…
" So I wish the MSMedia best of luck because they'll need it. There is little that we here in Washington can or should do. As strong believers in the free market system it will be interesting to see how it plays out. The winners will be decided in the great American arena ( OF IDEAS ) what FCC chairman J.G. SHOULD have said.
The new (R) governor of NJ, Chris "Just-Man-Up-And-Call-Me-Fat" Christie slashed the budget, including some education money and then had the backbone of steel to call them out on their wasteful mismanagement when they howled. Called them "sacred cows". Maybe no other legislator wanted to be the first to take that sacred cow on, now that Gov. Christie (R) has, I'd like to see more of that.
I know you are frustrated with the MSM but passing such a law is exactly what the First Amendment is against. The only way to insure a Free Press is to remove as much Government Involvement as possible. Who would define what is political. Facts could be deemed political by the Govt. I know that was not your intention but that would be the result.
Personally, though I do not read the local papers, I would hate to see them go down the tubes. Hate it, but I don't worry about it because the free market abhors a vacuum every bit as much as nature does. The way I see it, the main thing keeping print media alive nowadays is the lack of an internet connection in every household. One day a household connection to the internet will be as common as indoor plumbing. If you think otherwise, you are in the same boat as those people who did not believe that indoor plumbing or electricity would be in every household, even the poorest ones, and that was not very long ago.
People will always want local news, and they'll always get it. The form it takes will change for the better. These changes are as inevitable as the sun rising every day, and NOTHING should be done about it. Let the free market take its course.
so, pass a 'Limabaugh/Hannity/Beck tax on all of THEIR programs and disperse it among Couric, Williams…
And Olbermann, and Maddow, and everyone else NO ONE listens to. Now THAT's change we can all believe in, right?
This will be about "what to do about the problem that talk-radio and conservative blogs pose as obstacles to permanent Statist power."
That is all it was ever to be about.
What to do about the "talk radio problem" and the "blog problem". In the same fashion as Germany wondering what to do about the "Jewish problem".
There is much to be concerned about at the FCC. The FCC was set up to administer the distribution of Radio Frequencys so that one station could not step on anothers signal. Over the years slowly the FCC has regulated the content of what is said or shown on those frequencies. The idea was that the radio spectrum was the property of everyone and should not be abused by a few. That idea is now dead. The Govt. now claims ownership of the radio spectrum and instead of administering the bandwidth they claim ownership and sell it. We do need the Govt. to Administer the bandwidths of the radio spectrum but to do anything else is really not in thier charter as an agency.
One of the first and worst outragious actions Obamass did was scrubbing the DC voucher program.
Still can't understand how he got away with such a blatant move. Made me sick, so much for his caring about inner city black youth.
Recent government study findings released on "Government Studies" reveal higher than normal prevalences for working groups, committees and panel boards that meet with one another to drink coffee and eat pastries. Something to fill the minutes they're not surfing internet porn. </sarc>
Could we be better off with his summits?
The logical step in this would be for my local paper (The St. Louis PostDispatch) to do a study and say, "why are we losing readers like crazy?". Okay there is internet and increased competition. However, there are a lot of people who grew up reading a paper every single day. I wish I could pass this love along to my children. But, when the paper simply reprints the garbage sent to it by the wire service without putting any thought into it, like "do my readers agree with this? is it offensive to them? ". Or maybe actually being balanced at all. Having one Conservative editorial a month isn't balance.
If a store opened and sold only black shoes. People came in and said "hey have any brown or white?" and they still only sold black shoes. Would people be upset when they went out of business? Perhaps the black shoe wearer, but if there were not enough sales to support them, we would logically go "that was rather dumb of them to sell only black shoes". We wouldn't rush to offer them more money to stay in business.
The one successful piece of legislation of the 2009 Democrat supermajority in DC.
"these media outlets will continue to play their historic role in providing local communities with essential news and civic information.”
My local media outlet hasn't provided this service for like 5 years. Unless, it's a union rally or some science conference to promote global warming or explain why abortion is good for cancer victims.
The fact is that most newspapers have been so slow to adapt, they're behind the curve and dying off.
Genachowski: "calling into question whether these media outlets will continue to play their historic role in providing local communities with essential news and civic information.”
There's little doubt that the hard-left bias which forms that "historic role" of MSM is of most concern to Mr. Genachowski. Every media sob story, aiming to milk the taxpayers for funds to keep the MSM on its course in 'informing the public' (meaning, bulldozing public opinion hard left by selective omissions of news items), is just another verse in the same long song.
There's no reason for the market to be perverted by the FCC, other than the wish to continue bamboozling the public by what NPR calls "news and information". And if one thinks that "information" has anything to do with a balanced spectrum of items (half of which would necessarily infuriate the lefties who run the MSM), I have a nice bridge for sale, cheap this week only.
School vouchers would take care of the fungus! Bringing in options for parents to educate their kids….novel!
Love your descriptive word picture by the way!
You beat me to it! HPD! ;^)
LoiBen
You gotta get up real early on Presidents Day to beat me to the punch….
Watch this youtube vid 5 min…It's very heartbreaking but instructive about those in charge and how much work still needs to be done…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7FS5B-CynM
You left out the most important part of the Reagan quotation.
The complete quotation is: "The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, 'I'm from the government and I'm here to help.'"
Thanks Clint, nice uplifting video!
These rats in DC need some D-Con.
Um, where was the study when the printing press went the way of the dodo? Innovation, progress and what the market will "bear" should be the name of the game. This "study" is just a justification to allow liberal/progressive media outlets to thrive. The Fairness Doctrine (or whatever name they'll end up calling it) won't be too far behind.
The wonderful thing about free speech is the ability, the choice NOT to listen. What'll be next? TV's just tuned to MSNBC without an on/off switch?
1984 much?
Stupid Question:
What does this have to do with allocating frequency spectrum?
It grieves me to think O can choose to prop up Big Business and take away from the children. I think this story needs to be resurrected and brought up to date on where these kids are now…..Hannah and James, this is easy pickings in a story.
Randy…
ObamaCare Euthanasia for all involved..
Glad you watched it…He doesn't even want to help his own people, only his own UnionPeople..
I think the GOP needs to take up this issue, dissociate themselves from the NEA lobby and push for competition in education. The NEA progressive pushers can't stand up to any real alternatives to their sub-prime teaching.
Randy…
You gave me the idea…I had no idea Obamster could sink this low…
.I thought he wanted to help the kids….They could be future union members…Kind of short -sighted on MrO' part..
Its funny you should say this, school vouchers was on the platform questionnaire at the GOP Caucus I attended on Saturday in my county. It is one of my main concerns in the coming days, weeks, months, and years……
It seems anytime a committee (or any group) is involved in the decision making process, the results are often mediocre, at best and/or long term failure, at worst. On the flip side, an individual that is held accountable for results seeks the best and brightest ideas in order to solve a problem… with the key word being accountability.
Heartbreaking. That takes the wind out my sails.
While we have the First Amendment in print right in front of us, can anyone explain how "prohibiting the free exercise thereof" allows removal of references to God in public places?
Spoken like a true believer in the free market! Even without competition from the internet, etc., print media would still be declining because it presents one predominant point of view. They have narrowed their market to those who remain duped that the paper is balanced, fair and unbiased, and those who like the Progressive slant. They would increase circulation by taking on a Conservative slant or a truly neutral one. In the end, though, the internet will still kill off print media, IMHO.
Lots of work to do…It all starts with the schools…That's why they protect this Provence of their power so fiercely..VOUCHERS…only way..
Don't be an idiot, it's right there in the Constitution, just before the section that clearly spells out our right to murder children depending on whether they happen to still be at least partially in the womb. EVERYBODY knows that!
I've been such a fool. It IS just a form of religion-abortion, isn't it?
"But the study, the turmoil for traditional media and civic information…..and and and and it's for the children!"
Well, since Mark Lloyd is the "Freedom of Speech" Czar, and he has publicly spoken out about how wonderful the revolution of Hugo Chavez was, that the only thing that slowed Chavez down was that he didn't seize control of the national media quickly enough – - – that pretty much tells you where they are really headed under the guise of what is best for our country.
This is just an opening salvo, get ready for the real thing prior to NOVEMBER 2010!!!!!!
Doubt me? Just watch.
Katie does not need any financial help. She is getting paid $14M a year, or about $300,000 a week, plus bonus money when she appears on 60 mins. She is dead last in the ratings. Can I suck at my job and get paid too? I don't think so.
From Orson Welles' classic movie, "Touch of Evil"
Quinlan: Come on, read my future for me.
Tanya: You haven't got any.
Quinlan: What do you mean?
Tanya: Your future is all used up.
Welles was a genius. Who wudda thunk?
The Feds should be studying the Constitution.
Ultimately, it's the responsibility of the education business to ensure that future generations have a healthy appetite for good information, which will feed a robust journalism industry. If journalism seems like an iffy business today, blame the schools.
[...] [...]
What the Feds should be studying is how to balance a checkbook, since none of them seem capable of doing so.
Can anyone surmise what the reaction to the Bush FCC announcing it wanted to "study the future of journalism and the media industry?"
Is this an appropriate use of taxpayer money?
Don't you hate it when your own words come back to bite you?
Yeah…the 'financial turmoil' over at Fox News is that they can't count the money fast enough.
The Lib media wants to reorganize itself into a womb-to-the-tomb entitlement program.
The FCC will regulate the distribution of idea's. They will not take away your right to free speach. They will find ways to regulate the message inside your free speech by controlling the infrastructure that distributes it.
The Net Nuetrality and recent articles have surfaced whereas POTUS has said he would like to controll the internet in case of an emergency. Now with that said…I do not recall any administration Repub or Dem…eliminating power obtained by a previous administration.
What is going on?
It is human nature to seek God. Populist liberals have allowed progressives* to push God out of their lives and that in turn has left an empty spot. Attempting to fill that emptiness is what leads people to follow what seem to be well meaning causes such as "Global Warming" or "Hope and Change."
When these causes are exposed as frauds, it leaves the populist liberals in despair as day after day they witness their progressive* heroes twist and turn as their lies become more and more bizarre.
The answer is simple, continue your search for God, he has not abandoned you, he is there waiting. Even more important, save your children. Don't let these impressionable young minds follow the progressive* frauds down that same path.
*progressive: I am elite and smart, you are stupid, therefore I will be your master
Progressive Assault on Children
http://usataxpayer.org/?0040951310
Perversion Taught in Public Schools
http://usataxpayer.org/?0039156365
My apologies I shall be more careful in the future.
not financial help for her- but for her dopey network…
"Study" … you mean "bailout" ? … $$$ Failure is not an option for the liberal media?
For doody and 'umanity!
Nice post. My friend Ernie told me about this blog a few weeks ago however this is the first time I am visting. I’ll undoubtedly be back.
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