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FCC votes to punish Comcast

I'm hearing from friends that the FCC just voted 3-2 to punish Comcast for illegally blocking internet traffic to some customers who used file-sharing software. This was a bipartisan decision, with Republican Kevin Martin standing up to vicious party and media pressure to side with Democrats Jonathan Adelstein and Michael Copps. Though Comcast will litigate the order and the order carries no fine, this is a precedent setting move...

'X-Files' picks up after six year break - Variety

Washington Post

'X-Files' picks up after six year break
Variety - 41 minutes ago
By ANTHONY D'ALESSANDRO Throughout the nine-year history of "The X-Files," there have been lawsuits between studio Fox, series creator Chris Carter and star David Duchovny.
Video: Duchovny, Anderson Believe in New X-Files Flick AssociatedPress
The X-Files: I Want to Believe E! Online
Reuters - The Associated Press - Kitsap Sun - Monsters and Critics.com
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Christopher Kuttruff | Net Neutrality

Christopher Kuttruff, Truthout, reports: "The Federal Communications Commission has recently encountered mounting scrutiny in response to its broad deregulatory practices. Public frustration regarding the FCC has peaked at a time of fierce debate on net neutrality."

Congress to probe FCC with red hot questions

Congress investigates when corporations ask: "The cable operators are upset about the FCC's attempt to regulate their industry, along with the Commission's decision last year to nullify many of their exclusive contracts with apartment buildings. The telephone companies aren't thrilled about the FCC's 700MHz auction conditions (Verizon even sued), and everyone wants the FCC to keep away from their traffic monitoring and shaping practices."

Bland Menu if Cable Goes à la Carte

This is an interesting article that argues that monopoly blended cable packages are good for consumers - and actually would keep the costs down. I disagree but it's a well written sparse argument.

Google Has Even Bigger Plans for Mobile Phones

The company is gearing up to make a serious run at buying wireless spectrum, a chunk of the airwaves that can be used to provide mobile phone and Internet services, in a Federal Communications Commission auction in January. Google is prepared to bid on its own without any partners, say people familiar with the matter. It is working out a plan to finance its bid, which could run $4.6 billion or higher, that would rely on its own cash and possibly some borrowed money.

Seattle crowd blasts FCC on big media

If the FCC quickly proposes new rules, "you know your input was dismissed," said Jonathan Adelstein, one the five-member commission's two Democrats. More than 200 people signed up to testify, almost all of them opposed to the proposed rules.

FCC Media Consolidation Hearing in Seattle

The big, surprise, seven-hour public hearing about media ownership, announced suddenly just a week ago by the Federal Communications Commission, is this evening in Seattle at Town Hall. You didn't have any plans tonight, right? Actually, turnout is going to be huge, because ticked off activists have been mobilizing. Could be the best party in town.

Don Imus: Shock Jock Fired For Shocking

This week, America has been assaulted by endless news coverage about the racist comments spoken by Don Imus about the Rutgers University Women's Basketball Team. Al Sharpton, Spike Lee and Whoopi Goldberg are just a few of the big names that networks have brought on air to discuss this in depth. Unfortunately, with this debate, there is only one side to take. Arguing context or Don Imus' work in the community or striving to see a larger picture is futile. The people are pissed.

» Skype on cellphones? Skype, Verizon lobbyists square off

The issue at hand here is Skype's "Carterphone petition" to the FCC. If granted, that would mandate that most cellphones and other handsets be made available to third-party applications, such as (well, duh) Skype.

Webcasters Screwed by RIAA Royalties

On Friday, which is generally accepted in public relations circles as the best day of the week to release controversial news, the United States Copyright Royalty Board (image to the right) announced new royalty rates for webcasts, effective from 2006 to 2010.

While the press covers the surge, troops are already on the way

The president s plan to send more than 20 thousand additional troops to Iraq is being hotly debated on Capitol Hill. But the troops are already shipping out. Defense analyst Bill Arkin says that while the press obsesses over politics, they re missing the facts on the ground.

New reports question media consolidation

The reports released Monday by two private groups, the Benton Foundation and the Social Science Research Council, seek to counter the Federal Communications Commission's contention that consolidation would improve programming.

Media ownership study ordered destroyed

Corporate ownership of the media is how business is done in the U.S.: Adam Candeub, now a law professor at Michigan State University, said senior managers at the agency ordered that "every last piece" of the report be destroyed. "The whole project was just stopped - end of discussion," he said.

Lawyer Says FCC Ordered Study Destroyed

The Federal Communications Commission ordered its staff to destroy all copies of a draft study that suggested greater concentration of media ownership would hurt local TV news coverage, a former lawyer at the agency says. The report, written in 2004, came to light during the Senate confirmation hearing for FCC Chairman Kevin Martin.