Same Songs Sung at Media Ownership Hearing in Harrisburg
HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Media consolidation critics again clashed with broadcasters and industry advocates at the FCC’s latest media ownership hearing, held here Fri. Unlike L.A. and Nashville hearings attended by droves of TV and music industry workers, no industry dominated comments from the public. Majority commissioners opened with brief comments, and Comrs. Copps and Adelstein made longer speeches. Trying to set a tone, Comr. Copps criticized media coverage of state legislatures. “There are only about 500 reporters covering statehouses across the country,” he said: “That works out to about 10 per state, with only a handful, sometimes as few as 2, in some smaller states.” Further newsroom consolidation will mean even fewer statehouse reporters, he said. Union representatives echoed Copps during a public comment period.
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The FCC shouldn’t let media companies dodge rules barring more consolidation until the industry shows it meets public interest obligations, critics said. The media ignore key stories, especially if they involve minorities, said Bishop Benjamin Peterson of the Greater Bible Way Temple: “The countless incidents of discrimination that people of color experience every day are almost invisible in our media.” Instead, the major broadcast networks program prime viewing hours with “negative stereotype of people of color,” he said: “The FCC should not even consider allowing increased media consolidation until the agency has effectively dealt with your mandate to increase diversity.”
Local govt. officials, community groups and charities defended Harrisburg-area broadcasters. “Nonprofits count on local media to get our messages across,” said Randy Freedman, exec. dir.-York Jewish Community Center: “I can’t put a price tag on the in-kind support we receive from our partners.” A gaggle of charities -- executives from the Ronald McDonald House, American Red Cross, YWCA, Big Brothers and Big Sisters and others - echoed Freedman’s praise. Broadcasters do a good job informing the public of emergencies, govt. officials said, citing the success of Pa. Amber Alert system and recent coverage of a crippling snowstorm.
Charity work and public service announcements don’t make up for journalistic timidity, said Linda Foley, vp-Communications Workers of America: “The reason for public service rules isn’t for broadcasters to donate money to charities,” she said: “Stations are supposed to get credible information out to the public.” Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh Pres. Mike Bucsko said newspaper staffs will shrink more and standards fall lower under a relaxed cross- ownership ban. “In the electronic media in Pittsburgh, they're all corporately owned,” Bucsko said: “Recently we had these kind of ’shadow TV’ stations with canned news from Sinclair and Fox that were not locally produced. We don’t want that to happen” to newspapers.
The FCC should relax the rules to foster local programming, said Jim Lewin, gen. mgr. of Allbritton-owned WHTM-TV Harrisburg, hitting a familiar industry refrain. Competition from cable and satellite companies, online news outlets and other TV stations has changed the information landscape, he said. “Literally and figuratively, I'm being bypassed… The handwriting is on the wall for local television,” he said: Without rule changes, “the number of stations with local news operations will surely dwindle.”