FCC

Radio Speech is not Free Speech

08/19/2009 Filed in: Media Reform | Talk Radio

August 11, 2009, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, in a unanimous vote, became the first elected body in the United States to stand up to Hate Radio. Their resolution "the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to conduct a comprehensive investigation on hate speech in the media, allowing public participation via public hearings, and asks the NTIA to update its 1993 report on the Role of Telecommunications in Hate Crimes."

For two years, San Francisco's Hispanic/Latino Anti-Defamation Coalition has been trying to get some traction on this issue. They've staged rallies against Michael Savage worked with the Media Alliance, Common Cause and Broadcast Bluesto protest hate radio, and supported the National Hispanic Media Coaltion's campaign to convince the FCC and NTIA to act. But HLADC leader Aurora Grajedas saw she could better effect national change by working with her own city's board of supervisors. Acting locally is a good lesson for all activists.

We Told the FCC to Stop Hate Radio!

07/18/2009 Filed in: Media Reform

Sunday, June 28, California Common Cause, the Media Alliance, and the Hispanic Latino Anti-Defamation Coalition braved record breaking heat to screen Broadcast Blues in San Francsico. There, we supported the National Hispanic Media Coalition's petition to the FCC to study hate radio. Studies from UCLA and Civilrights.org point to a correlation between hate radio and hate crimes.

Grassroots Groups Tell FCC: Stop Hate Radio!

06/23/2009 Filed in: Media Reform

Grassroots Groups Tell FCC: Stop Hate Radio!

At 3:00 PM on Sunday June 28, the Hispanic/Latino Anti-Defamation Coalition, Media Alliance, and California Common Cause will mount a rally outside the San Francisico Premiere of Broadcast Blues at the Victoria Theater at 16th and Mission. The message is clear: Tell the FCC to schedule hearings on Hate Radio. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is the federal agency which oversees broadcasters.

FCC apologizes to Broadcast Blues Director

In the four years of making Broadcast Blues, I found that the Federal Communications Commission, the federal agency tasked with oversight of the broadcast airwaves, was completely ignoring the public. The key thread of the film surrounds the public's petitons to deny station licenses. (Most people don't know that we own the airwaves, and we can petition to have a station's license taken away.) At one point, an FCC media rep told me they do not keep track of these petitions, and had no idea when the last station's license was removed. (Not recently, obviously.)
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Tags: FCC, KDND, News, Sue Wilson, FoIA, FCC License, Petition

Broadcast Blues wins Sacramento International Film Festival!

Wow, what a time. Thanks to Winston Jordan, Exec. Director of Cease Spin, and webmaster extraordinaire, we now have a blog!

And thanks to Marty Anaya and the Sacramento International Film Festival, we now have our first "Laurel." They honored us with the "Outstanding Environmental Vision" award.

"Environmental", for a movie about media, you say? Don't forget, media influences every aspect of our lives. When the media weights the few scientists who are funded by oil companies who discount climate change as being equal with the many scientists who are peer reviewed and factually back up climate change, we the people lose. The environment loses. But the broadcasters win, because it is cheap and easy to set up those kinds of arguments and pretend they are telling both sides of the story. Cheap and easy means more profits, but less credible information.
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Tags: FCC, Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, KDND, News, Hannity, Colbert, Daily Show, Clear Channel, Sue Wilson

Talk Radio Rules Blue Dog States

07/22/2009 Filed in: Media Reform | Talk Radio

There's a showdown at the House Energy and Commerce Committee corral. Seven Blue Dog Democrat members are banding together, and if they don't get their way, they can gun down the healthcare bill.

The Blue Dog Seven are spooked by pressure from their constituents and recent polls that show American's approval of Obama's healthcare initiative has dropped below 50 percent for the first time.

It's War

08/19/2009 Filed in: Media Reform | Talk Radio

Hundreds of protesters are turning Democratic Town Hall meetings into combat zones in a battle over health care. They are angry, really angry. Barack Obama's healthcare plan, they believe, is going to euthanize Grandma.

I would be angry, too, if they were going to kill my grandmother, wouldn't you? Except, of course, the government is not going to euthanize anybody; the Obama adminstration, like most family doctors, just want people to prepare advance directives, statements which give people control over their own end of life issues.