Michael J. Copps: The Price of Free Airwaves

[babylonsister]

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/06/02/1611/

The Price of Free Airwaves
by Michael J. Copps
Michael J. Copps is a commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission.

snip//

Nowadays, a lot of people claim that because of the Internet, traditional broadcast outlets are an endangered species and there’s no point in worrying about them. That’s a mistake.

First, broadcast licenses continue to be very valuable. Univision’s assets - many in small markets - were sold for more than $12 billion. A single station in Sacramento, owned by Sinclair Broadcasting, went for $285 million in 2004. A station in a megamarket like New York or Los Angeles could easily fetch half a billion dollars or more.

Second, broadcast outlets are still primary, critical sources of information for the American public. Nearly 60 percent of adults watch local TV news each day - it remains the nation’s most popular information source. And so it’s imperative that broadcasters continue to provide high-quality coverage of local and national issues.

But ensuring they do so means putting teeth back into the renewal process. To begin with, shorten the license term. Eight years is too long to go without an accounting - we ought to return to the three-year model.

snip//

If you need convincing that something needs to be done, consider that only about 8 percent of local TV newscasts in the month before the last presidential election contained any coverage whatsoever of local races, including those for the House of Representatives.

This low number is just one example of how poorly stations are serving their viewers. Do stations that make so much money using the public airwaves, but so plainly fail to educate viewers on the issues facing them, really deserve to have their renewals rubber-stamped?

[ret5hd]

1. They should set up a "scoring system" for each license holder...

once every license holder has been scored, they should revoke the license with the lowest scoring, and auction it off to a new licensee. Lather rinse repeat. In just one or two "scoring periods", i'd bet quality news, children's educational programs, etc would skyrocket.

The use of the public airwaves is a PRIVILEGE, not a right.

[WhiteTara]

2. careful, you might be accused of

being like Hugo Chavez! ;)

[ret5hd]

3. I would be honored...

but i am not bright enough nor charismatic enough.

[WhiteTara]

4. bravo n/t