Media and the Struggle for Democracy A Perspective from the U.S. Chris Conybeare Attorney and Media Specialist University of Hawai‘i West O‘ahu Secretary General World Association of Press Councils (WAPC)

PRESS FREEDOM INDEX 2007 United States Ranks 48th Cape Verde Cyprus Nicaragua United States

Imprisoned at Guantanamo Since 2002 Sami al-Hajj

Chauncey Baily Editor Oakland Post Murdered August 2007

Joshua Wolf – Jailed in U.S. for 224 Days Jailed for refusing to give his tape to prosecutors. Show need for Shield Law.

A quote by James Madison (US President ) “A popular government without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both.” A “free media” is a principal way that citizens in a complex world can get information needed to participate in the democratic process

Two Ways to Curtail Media Freedom Limit the ability of journalists and media to do their jobs Close newspapers Jail writers and journalist Seize broadcast facilities Limit right of assemble Restrict access to government information Allow concentration of media into a few hands with government in “partnership” with owners

First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution “ Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech or of the press…”

Media Regulation Content is not highly regulated but there are a variety of regulations that apply the media business Print - Newspaper Preservation Act Radio and TV - F.C.C. Internet and Other

Radio and TV  Radio and TV use a scarce public resource, the electro magnetic spectrum.  The Communication Act of 1933 says that the airwaves belong to the public

Business regulations apply:  Financial reporting for tax purposes  Anti-Trust laws which attempt to limit corporate power used against competition.

Publishing in the 19 th century U.S. Publishing was local “Everyone” with a “philosophy” had a paper Due to number and diversity of owners: The press was truly representation Workers and average people had strong proponents

Radio in the early 20 th century Lots of local owners Lots of competing ideas

REGULATE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST- FCC 1933’s – US chooses commercial model In theory people get programming they choose – advertisers pay for what they want FCC watch-dog to regulate in the public interest President must choose 2 members from each major political party and also chooses a 5 th member as chairman

Early television Those seeking licenses had to: Offer local programs Serve community interests Show knowledge of their community Limits were placed on ownership TV and newspapers couldn’t have same owner One owner couldn’t have 2 stations in same market Networks couldn’t own stations that covered more than 35% of market

However… The real marketplace of capital works against this: Owners strive to maximize profits They compete for advertising revenue They depart from “partisan” beliefs The news becomes more “bland” so as not to offend Owners use vast resources to influence regulation

Owners and Government Owners provide huge financial support for political campaigns Owners control coverage Government controls regulations on ownership

All Celebrities…all the Time

Appearance of Democracy Only a very narrow range of choices are disseminated to the public. An appearance of democracy is preserved The public become spectators, not participants -Robert Mc Chesney

Concentration of Ownership

The 5 biggest media owners (and their 2001 revenues) (AOL)Time Warner ($36.2 billion) General Electric / NBC ($129.9 billion) Viacom / CBS ($20 billion) Walt Disney Company ($25.4 billion) NEWS Corp / Star TV / Fox ($11.6 billion) TV, Newspapers, Films, Book Publishing, Radio, Internet

Time Warner CNN, HBO, and Cinemax TV Time Magazine Atlantic Group music Warner Brothers film and music New Line Cinema (Lord of the Rings) AOL Internet service

General Electric (GE) NBC network CNBC and MSNBC cable Universal Studios Sci-Fi Magazine Consumer products Military hardware Nuclear power

Viacom CBS network MTV Paramount Pictures Simon and Schuster Books Blockbuster Video Radio

Disney Company ABC network History Channel Disney Channel ESPN Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone, and Miramax Films Radio

News Corporation (Murdoch) Fox News Star TV, Sky TV National Geographic Channel 20 th Century Fox, Searchlight Pictures Harper Collins Publishing Newspapers The Times of London

Biggest Media Company 1983 In 1983 the biggest media company was worth $340 million

Today (AOL) Time Warner is 1,000 times bigger 1983, $340 million 2000, $350 billion AOL-TW

Anna Nicole Smith

Ownership Concentration Bad for Democracy--examples 1973 Newspaper Publishers cut deal with President Nixon to support his re-election in return for his support for Newspaper Preservation Act which permitted newspaper monopolies News Corp head Rupert Murdoch cancels BBC news on his Star TV satellite service when China’s leaders complain about coverage

More from Murdoch Harper Collins Publishing cancels Chris Paten’s book about Hong Kong handover due to Chinese government dissatisfaction

CLEAR CHANNEL the radio example 1996 Clear Channel owns 40 radio stations Telecommunications Act of 1996 permits concentrated ownership Clear Channel owns 1200 stations, merging 70 separate companies

Automated Radio Clear Channel voice tracks separate messages from one location One announcer reads copy as if he is in different locations He reads “Good morning” it’s a beautiful day in your city…but he is perhaps thousands of miles away

NO EMERGENCY RESPONSE BY CLEAR CHANNEL Minot, North Dakota January 18, 2002

Monopoly Power and Politics New York Times reveals Clear Channel creates pro war rallies across the U.S. before the Iraq war Uses its radio airtime to cover them as if they are independent events Bans air play of recording artists who oppose the war, like the Dixie Chicks

FOX News On camera anchor: “If there are no weapons of mass destruction I’ll resign!” Created image that news media supported the President’s claims There were no WMD and the anchor has neither resigned nor apologized

Project Censored

NO HABEAS CORPUS President may deem any person an “enemy of the state” and preclude constitutional guarantees

MOVE TOWARD MARTIAL LAW John Warner Defense Act gives new presidential powers May station troops anywhere in the U.S. Take control of state guard units without need for state approval

AFRICON US Africa Command established with anti terrorism rationale Experts see move to counter China and control resources

TELEVISION NEWS VS INTERNET Consumer studies confirm that the overwhelming majority of Americans get their news and information from television.

FCC and Diversity No Reliable Ownership data for women and minorities A Duke University Study shows that out of 10,000 radio stations, African - Americans and Hispanics own only 635, less than 6%. In Chicago, with a population of 1 million African Americans, there is only one black- owned radio station - Bill Moyers Journal

The Original Information Highways Roads Postal Service Telephone Mostly open to all on a non- discriminatory basis

Threats Include Internet Control US Law Toll booths on Internet Giant Media Controlled broadband with wall-to-wall advertising High-speed available, IF YOU CAN PAY

Google USA

Google China

MORE INTERFERENCE Verizon Wireless attempts to ban text messages regarding information on abortion availability Comcast Manipulates Speed of file sharing for non-preferred services, without disclosure

Net Neutrality! Equal access (and equal speed) for all No toll booths

Perils of Media Monopoly FCC Watch- dog? Or Lap Dog? Fake news Paid-for news Favors for gain Complacent press corps Diversity is lost

The U.S. Federal Communication Commission Headed by Michael Powell (son of Secretary of State Colin Powell) Facilitated changes to rules Newspapers can own TV stations (& vice versa) Networks could own individual stations reaching 45% of market One company can increase station ownership in a single market

Money versus People Past 8 years, media corporations showered the FCC with 2.8 million dollars worth of travel and entertainment In 9 months the FCC received 2,000,000 protests against consolidation

Popular Coalition Left, Right, and Center organizations and many individuals combine forces to stop consolidation. Congress has passed legislation partially reversing network ownership rules, reduce from 45% to 39%.

Government Secrecy on the Rise Excessive classification Executive privilege State Secrets Limits on Freedom of Information Requests

No Protection for Sources 34 States protect journalist disclosure of confidential sources No federal government protection Increased use of jail to coerce, examples: Judith Miller Josh Wolf

Article 19 Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Public Demands Can Make Congress Change the Rules

GLOBAL COMPANIES Control TV Newspapers Book Publishing Films Sports Internet

Think globally, act locally! FIGHT FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION