Free Market or FIXED Market?

When it comes to making the rules, it helps to have a little help from your friends at the FCC, at least if you are Big Media. With friends like the FCC, it's no wonder that we seem to be stuck with such a homogenized media landscape. After all, the last thing Big Media wants is actual competition.

According to the L.A. Times and the GAO, the fix is in:

WASHINGTON -- From giant phone companies to small consumer advocates, the Federal Communications Commission is supposed to treat every group equally. But congressional investigators have found some companies and trade groups have received special treatment.

FCC officials tipped them off to confidential information about when regulators planned to vote on important issues -- a clear violation of agency rules that provided an unfair lobbying advantage, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office released today. Other interested parties -- generally consumer and public-interest groups -- did not get such favorable treatment, the report said.

"It is critical that FCC maintain an environment in which all stakeholders have an equal opportunity to participate in the rulemaking process and that the process is perceived as fair and transparent," the report said. "Situations where some, but not all, stakeholders know what FCC is considering for an upcoming vote undermine the fairness and transparency of the process and constitute a violation of FCC's rules."

With oversight of many aspects of telephone, TV, radio and Internet services, the FCC has a major effect on people's lives. Its decisions also can affect entire sectors of the telecommunications industry. Privileged information, leaked in violation of FCC rules, could give some companies and organizations advantages when trying to sway the commission, the GAO said.

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The period covered the chairmanships of Michael Powell and current head Kevin J. Martin.

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"FCC officials told us that, for stakeholders to successfully make their case before FCC, 'timing is everything,' " the report said. "Specifically, if a stakeholder knows that a proposed rule has been scheduled for a vote and may be voted on in three weeks, that stakeholder can schedule a meeting with FCC officials before the rule is voted on."

Those who don't know about an upcoming vote until the agenda is announced are frozen out of lobbying by the one-week prohibition, the GAO said.

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In addition to the case studies, several businesses or groups said they were tipped off about upcoming votes by FCC staff. "One stakeholder -- representing a large organization that is involved in numerous rulemakings -- told us that FCC staff call them and tell them what items are scheduled for a vote," the report said.

The Reality of an Emerging Market

Local media titans repeat the mantra all the time: "There is no market for progressive talk radio in the High Country."

The titans would do well to take a look at this month's Talkers magazine. According to the Talkers analysis of Arbitron reports, progressive talker Ed Schultz has moved into a tie with (wait for it) Bill O'Reilly--with 3.25 million+ weekly listeners.

Titans, please. Boone is a university town, with plenty of progressive voters (wasn't there some kind of election recently?). Can you say, "EMERGING MARKET"?

Our Own Loose Nukes

Sometimes the mainstream media misses a story altogether...and sometimes they simply cover the wrong angle--to the detriment of us all.

Here is a column written by Robert Stormer, a retired Lieutenant Commander with the U.S. Navy, about that little incident not too long ago when the Air Force flew some nuclear weapons from North Dakota to Louisiana's Barksdale Air Force Base (according to him the "staging area for Middle Eastern operations", in clear violation of seemingly every policy there is:

Last month, six W80-1 nuclear-armed AGM-129 advanced cruise missiles were flown from Minot Air Force Base, N.D., to Barksdale AFB in Louisiana and sat on the tarmac for 10 hours undetected.

Press reports initially cited the Air Force mistake of flying nuclear weapons over the United States in violation of Air Force standing orders and international treaties, while completely missing the more important major issues, such as how six nuclear cruise missiles got loose to begin with.

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There is a strict chain of custody for all such weapons. Nuclear weapons handling is spelled out in great detail in Air Force regulations, to the credit of that service. Every person who orders the movement of these weapons, handles them, breaks seals or moves any nuclear weapon must sign off for tracking purposes.

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The United States also does not transport nuclear weapons meant for elimination attached to their launch vehicles under the wings of a combat aircraft. The procedure is to separate the warhead from the missile, encase the warhead and transport it by military cargo aircraft to a repository -- not an operational bomber base that just happens to be the staging area for Middle Eastern operations.

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This is about how six nuclear advanced cruise missiles got out of their bunkers and onto a combat aircraft without notice of the wing commander, squadron commander, munitions maintenance squadron (MMS), the B-52H's crew chief and command pilot and onto another Air Force base tarmac without notice of that air base's chain of command -- for 10 hours.

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Does the Bush administration, as some news reports suggest, have plans to attack Iran with nuclear weapons?

His full article is here.

Bizarre Call to WETS

Apparently, someone is really threatened by the concept of Democracy Now!'s alternative viewpoints being heard in our area.

As our sister organization, Democracy Now Tri-Cities reports, WETS received a veeeeeerrrrry early morning voicemail from a caller who had these wonderful things to say about Democracy Now! (h/t Democracy Now Tri-Cities).

What more motivation do you need to make a pledge to WETS?

As we all know too well, free speech isn't free.

Appalachian Voices on Earthbeat Radio

You can catch Earthbeat Radio on 19 radio stations in the U.S. But not here.

That's too bad, because Mary Anne Hitt of Appalachian Voices was on the show just last week. Earthbeat Radio aired a speech made by Ms. Hitt at the International Forum on Globalization/Institute For Policy Studies Teach-In, where she discussed the impact of coal mining on the land and the people of Appalachia.

Earthbeat Radio even provided a link to ilovemountains.org, the Appalachian Voices sister site--with their address in Boone and everything!

Wouldn't it be great if a radio station in the High Country carried Earthbeat Radio? There is, after all, a strong interest in sustainable energy up here. Why, even the largest employer in Boone is getting into the act. Biodiesel anyone? Wind? We are in Appalachia, right?

We often wonder why, with ASU's intense interest in sustainable energy, that WASU-FM carries exactly zero programming dedicated to this topic. Would WASU-FM station management say there is no market for a show like Earthbeat Radio? Given all the activity of the various groups above, (and the built-in listener market at ASU itself--faculty, staff, and students) that seems like a pretty weak argument. Would WASU-FM station management say Earthbeat Radio costs too much? That one won't work either--Earthbeat Radio is FREE for the taking.

Why not send the General Manager at WASU-FM a courteous question or two about Earthbeat Radio? His name is Dan "Vallie" Hill. Carrying Earthbeat Radio would be just one more way that ASU can fulfill their oft-stated educational and community service missions.

Here are a few comments from some of the radio stations currently carrying Earthbeat Radio:

"In 2006, Earthbeat became our Friday 'luncheon listen' - it's been a great success."
John Cain, Station Manager
KABF - 100,000 watts
Little Rock, Arkansas

"Since we added Earthbeat to our line-up, it's been a solid performer both in terms of listenership and financial support."
Ron Pinchback, Station Manager
WPFW - 50,000 watts
Washington, DC

Book Review: The Shock Doctrine

Naomi Klein is a true intellectual and a fantastic investigative reporter. We cannot recommend her new book enough. The Shock Doctrine examines much of what is wrong with the privatization agenda being pushed by those in power. Here is some information about the book (you can order it here):

"With a bold and brilliantly conceived thesis, skillfully and cogently threaded through more than 500 pages of trenchant writing, Klein may well have revealed the master narrative of our time."

- William S. Kowinski
San Francisco Chronicle
September 23, 2007

Based on breakthrough historical research and four years of on-the-ground reporting in disaster zones, The Shock Doctrine vividly shows how disaster capitalism – the rapid-fire corporate reengineering of societies still reeling from shock – did not begin with September 11, 2001. The book traces its origins back fifty years, to the University of Chicago under Milton Friedman, which produced many of the leading neo-conservative and neo-liberal thinkers whose influence is still profound in Washington today. New, surprising connections are drawn between economic policy, “shock and awe” warfare and covert CIA-funded experiments in electroshock and sensory deprivation in the 1950s, research that helped write the torture manuals used today in Guantanamo Bay. --naomiklein.org

WXIT 1200 AM

We're a bit late on this one, but we had to say something about it. On his September 26th radio show, Rush Limbaugh called soldiers who express their opposition to the Iraq war "phony soldiers."

Ask the local media titans why they carry shows like Rush, and they will tell you that they carry these shows because they are "WHAT THE PEOPLE WANT."

We wonder: How many members of the 1451st want to tune in to WXIT to hear this sort of invective? How about their families? Is this an example of how a local radio station serves the public good?

Can you imagine listening to Rush call you a "phony" while you have to go out on patrol everyday in a combat zone?

Did you know that Rush never served in the U.S. military?

Take a look at the results of this poll--you'd be amazed at how many active duty soldiers oppose this war.