House Reverses FCC
I’m late on this, but for the record…
House Votes to Reverse Media Ownership Rules and to limit companies from owning stations that reach more than 35% of the national audience. (The new FCC rules proposed raising it to 45%.)
This 45% cap interestingly enough is the same number audience share that the TV show Gunsmoke enjoyed back in the day of the three networks (I believe the largest regular audience). Our darling media giants obviously wants to capture that Gunsmoke-size audience again. It seems to me it’s really all about trying to maintain access to the “mass” audience and their (our) minds/eyeballs. But with all the new channels and new media, reaching a true mass audience has become impossible (see previous rant on mass audience)… unless of course you own all the outlets. When you own all the outlets and direct the content, it’s just as good as (or better than)… dun-dunna-da-duna-da-duna-da-dunna-da-da… a “Gunsmoke share!” (See the ClearChannel case for example).
So I am surprised, but relieved, that the Republican House overwhelmingly decided against the FCC plan as it stands.
Today’s Washington Post, an article titled FCC Chairman’s Star a Little Dimmer: Defeat on Capitol Hill Raises Questions About Powell’s Political Savvy” quotes Rep. Ed Markey as saying after the vote, “Never before have I seen an FCC chairman’s decision repudiated by the House of Representatives so quickly and so emphatically.” The article goes on to criticize Powell for being too much the lawyer and not enough the politician.
We’ll see what happens… stay tuned
