FCC and Newspaper/Broadcast Deregulation

Ok kids. Here's the deal: FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is working to have a revision passed that would remove the ban on ownership of multiple media outlets in a local area by one company; in this case, the ban which prevents newspaper companies from owning local radio and television stations as well. The revision would only apply to newspapers in the top 20 markets, excluding the top 4. You can read Martin's proposal in pdf form here.

I've attempted to collect some articles and arguments here as resources for everyone to form their own opinion on the matter and take action. The vote is set for December 18th, but the FCC is only hearing out comments until December 11th, so the time for action is now!


Arguments for the Revision:

• These local newspapers are "withering and dying" and need to have access to broadcast markets in order to stay afloat and still deliver quality local news (from Martin's NY Times article)
  
• "Newspapers in financial difficulty often have little choice but to scale back news gathering to cut costs. Allowing cross-ownership may help to forestall the erosion in local news coverage by enabling companies that own both newspapers and broadcast stations to share some costs" - Martin
  
• "Proposal is backed by research, public hearings and court guidance." (from ajax.com)
• The alleged loophole for big media does not exist (from ajax.com)
• Media has changed due to internet, cable tv, and satellite radio, meaning broadcast tv and radio no longer need the same restrictions as they did in the past. (from E&P article, Martin's NY Times article)
• Those who are listed under the top 20 can apply for a waiver, decided on case-by-case basis (from B&C article)
• Mergers/acquisitions will be made including several considerations, such as whether the combined entity will actually increase the amount of local news, whether the entity will continue to exercise "independent news judgement," and also the actual financial need of the newspaper in question (Martin's official proposal (pdf) )
• Future of Tribune at stake due to previous waivers and ongoing acquisitions (from LA Times article)

Oppositions and Concerns:

• Although hearings were held for several months, the proposal was not released until November, giving citizens about a month's notice and one remaining hearing (the Seattle hearing) to become informed about the revision and give their input (from reclaimthemedia.com article)
  
• Chairman Martin called final Seattle hearing with only one week's notice (from Moyers article)
• Newspapers on average aren't exactly struggling financially (from Bill Moyers video)
  
• Chairman Martin moving ahead with Dec. 18th vote despite requests for a delay.
• Struggling newspaper companies can't afford to buy radio and television broadcast stations in the first place, especially not one in the top 20 media markets (from Paly Voice article)
• Letting bigger corporations own local news stations lessens diversity and hurts local news (from Seminal consolidation article, E&P article)
• Waivers for non-top 20 business would likely take too long to be effective (from B&C article)
• Ownership by big media corporations, not the internet and new media, are what's causing newspapers to struggle. An FCC study showed these findings, but was never released to the public. (from Klinenberg article)

I haven't found any sites for supporting Martin's cause, but here's a few resources for those opposed:

• List of influential people opposed to the revision
  
• Bill Moyers video opposing the change and consolidation of big media.
• Article on ways to make your opinion heard
  
• Facebook group opposing the cause
• Reclaimthemedia.com includes several articles
• Stopbigmedia.com site devoted to this issue
  
• Contact the FCC through CommonCause.com
• Contact the FCC through Stopbigmedia.com
• How to contact the FCC directly through FCC.gov

My opinion:
This is a blog after all, so here's the opinion I've formed on the matter. I haven't fully investigated the FCC's "missing" report on big media's real influence on local media to know whether or not this revision would truly harm or help America's newspapers. My gut feeling says that newspapers in the top 20 markets aren't the ones who would be needing help, but then again in small towns everyone tends to subscribe to the local newspaper, and maybe a national newspaper, so mid-market papers might be in less demand. More media consolidation feels bad no matter what the situation, but this time it's being presented as a way to help preserve and improve local news which might not be able to spend the money on quality investigations. Then again, big media certainly doesn't seem to spend it's extra money on quality investigation..

So basically, I'm not sure I have a solid opinion on whether this revision is good or bad since I've only known about it for about three days.

The thing that rubs me the wrong way most about this proposal is the shady way it's all been introduced. Public hearings announced on such short notice that nobody can attend, the proposal being officially announced only a month before the vote date, "missing" reports which contradict Martin's argument, the FCC giving themselves just one week to review the public's comments. All of these factors make me wanna say no, stop, give us some more time. For that reason, if for no other reason, I'm going to be adding my name to the petitions and contacting the FCC through those sites up there to make sure this thing doesn't just go straight on through without the citizens really getting a chance to make their decisions.

I highly recommend the Bill Moyers video, cause I like that guy and it gives you a look into how things went down at the Seattle hearing. It's nice to see citizens standing up against big media for something and not just being passive and submissive like we're often assumed to be.

Media studies students: this is it, this is what we're studying. Let's get out there and make our voices heard. Only two days left to do so.

If anyone has any other articles/info they'd like me to add, leave a comment. I also encourage the discourse of this issue in the comments, just try to stay away from vulgarity or I might delete your comment.

Thanks for reading.

So You Think You Can Dance Results Show 07/26/07

All I really want to talk about this post is the opening number. Wow.



I really really enjoyed this piece. I think I've got a thing for Mia Michaels. I think this marked the first time I've honestly enjoyed watching Danny dance. I'm glad he was highlighted here because I feel like he really put himself into this dance emotionally.

Here were some of my favorite moments from this dance:

Danny's entire intro. He just seemed to be putting his entire heart and soul into it. He looked really professional, but still gave out so much emotion. I was just thinking, it's a shame he never got a contemporary piece, but upon looking it up I recalled his and Anya's Tyce DiOrio piece to "Apologize." I'd need to go back and watch that one again to remember much about it. My apathy might have been due to the fact that I didn't really have any interest in him at that point in the competition, but I think if he'd been given a piece like this Mia Michaels' one, I would've taken notice.

Whoever was doing that crazy handstand in the back. Can anyone tell who that was? I'm guessing Dominic. I loved the kicks, and then going up onto one hand, it was all just cool.

The lift. When all of the guys lifted the girls with their legs pointing straight up, and the lights came on in the back. I thought it was very powerful.

When everyone fell back across the edge of the stage. This was definitely my very favorite moment. It was so dramatic, and I loved the fact that I wasn't expecting it. I loved just the shape of it, with everyone's bodies laying backwards, arms spread out, making the arc around the stage. Then when the lights came down to just yellow floodlights on the dancers, I feel like it made the mood sooo intimate. The lighting went from cool to hot, the dancers were right there with the audience, everything in the background went pitch black. Awesome. The sound of the drum beat and their bodies hitting the stage was like a heartbeat. I really really love how nobody involved with this show is afraid of using every single part of the stage.

The ending. Everything got quiet, sort of suspended... The guys sort of hovering around Danny, kind of twitching like they've still got the electricity of the past few minutes of dance running through them, but they've hit a barrier. And then that last tone, as Danny strikes such a stoic, statuesque pose, and they all fall around him. He reminded me so much of the way statues of gods look in Asian culture, and the effect his movements had on the other dancers just emphasized that.


While I loved seeing everyone up close, this is a dance I would've really liked to have seen from a distance, to see what everyone was doing and how it all connected. It looks like after the girls ran and jumped into the guys' arms, after the singer sings "Don't," that the guys lower them each at a different beat, but it's hard to tell and impossible to appreciate at the camera angle that happened to be showing. I think this dance more than any other so far has made me want to see the tour, just in case they do something like this. (Does anyone know what the tours are like?) I'm not very familiar with the world of dance, or dance shows, but I hope that shows exist where there are lots of just interesting group dance routines like the ones they do for results shows on SYTYCD. That way when I'm rich and living in some big artsy city someday I can go enjoy them.

When I watched this routine on TV, and the dancers were leaving the stage, I saw Neil (in his awkwardly stretched-looking shirt) and realized I hadn't really noticed him the whole dance. After watching it online a few times I decided he was visible several times, it was just that he had on the same black hat thing (? what were those..) as everyone else, and you couldn't see his blonde hair as well. Hmm.. that sounds familiar. I'm extremely pleased that Mia didn't take to heart any of the hat and goggles anti-sentiment from last week. I really like the routines where all the dancers look the same or similar. Anything where it can take you a bit away from being able to tell who is who. I think the black eyes and forehead looked so cool on everyone and made a really mysterious feel for the whole dance. I watch a dance like this and wonder, was there really a story in this dance either? There was more raw emotion in this routine than Neil and Lauren's last week, but you still couldn't really see the dancers' eyes, and they were all producing a pretty stoic looking expression. I think last week the judges were just afraid somehow of the strangeness and almost complete lack of definable, human emotion in the routine.

All in all this has definitely been one of my favorite, if not my very favorite, group dance of the season! Nice going, Mia.

Catching Up

A big thanks to all the YouTube viewers who came and visited my blog! The number of vocal fans who really enjoyed Lauren and Neil's routine seems to have increased quite a bit since then, so I'm glad of that. It's always nice to hear that someone agrees with you first-hand though.

As for the results show (part 1, part 2) last Thursday, I hopped on some forums that were active during and right after the show and found a number of interesting opinions. A lot of people were saying that the top 10 has been somewhat fixed from the beginning, with the judges and producers having a preference for which dancers they want to be involved with the tour. I think Hok's dismissal on Thursday almost single-handedly debunks that theory, as he was definitely one of the more popular and interesting contestants.

Person by person, here's what I thought of the solos. Danny: I didn't find myself feeling particularly impressed or moved, it was the same technicality as always to me, without much of that "magic" Nigel's been asking for. Looking at it again online, I feel better about it and enjoyed it a lot more, but at the time I wasn't that crazy about it. Hok: He danced his heart out, and it's hard not to smile when he does some of those crazy moves. Neil: I thought Neil was going to be the one going home after his solo. It just seemed like more of the same, with only a few parts that really got me (I love that very first move of his though, where he almost tried to propel himself higher by pushing his knee down mid-jump. And those martial arts-esque spin kicks get me every time). And now for the ladies, Anya: I was much more impressed with this solo than the one she did the week before. She didn't just seem like one half of a ballroom couple, she was just explosive! I was thinking "I don't want her to do well.." because I don't really have a soft spot for her like I do Jamie or Lauren, but she did really really well. I thought Jamie and Lauren's dances were about the same.. Jamie's much more skilled of course. I think it's hard to see the same sorts of contemporary dances over and over and really still get much out of them.

My thoughts on the results: Hok was a wonderful character to have on the show, and I enjoyed watching him dance, but his waltz and contemporary both fell flat. And as the judges have said, this competition isn't to determine the best hip-hop dancer, or ballroom dancer, or contemporary dancer, it's to determine the best all-around dancer. Anya: She was technically wonderful but I had to go ask the Wikipedia to remember any of the dances she had been in. She never really moved me. Maybe it was just the routines she was given, maybe it was her personality, whatever it was, she never really did it for me. I'm not sure how much truth there was in the judges often comment that she seemed only fit for couples dancing and not so much for solos, seeing as the solos were a place to exhibit the dancer's personal favorite style, but I don't think I would've enjoyed seeing more of her in the competition. That being said, I also think Lauren got lucky.

Moving on from SYTYCD, for the most part, here's a few things I had been thinking about writing about before I actually had my new blog:

• So I guess Adobe bought out Macromedia, and I guess it happened a long time ago, but I’m just now starting to see the Adobe name on everything. “Adobe Flash Player” …what? It just feels weird! Maybe someday I can tell my grandkids “Well back in my day, it was Macromedia Flash Player!” and they’ll say “Shut up, grandma.”

• The new (last month) Fantastic Four movie was a good length for a movie. I didn’t get bored, or start thinking “This movie is kind of long..” I don’t really mind long movies, but it was nice to see one just jump out and say “Hey, I’m gonna entertain you! Entertaaain entertaaain entertaaaiin, ok I’m done, hope you had a good time, bye!!”

• Hillary Duff performed on the SYTYCD results show a few weeks ago. She and her backup dancers were dressed up in I Dream of Jeanie type harem girl outfits, but I was really pleased to see the way Hillary carried herself as she performed. I was glad to see she hasn’t just become another child star turned sexpot, but instead has become a sophisticated young lady. Maybe it’s because she’s on the short side, but the way she danced (or refrained from dancing) on the show was very demure, almost like a princess instead of a harem girl. So good job, Hillary Duff.

I think that's all for now. I expect the number of readers/comments to decrease from last post, since I'm not advertising on a busy YouTube upload, but I think I'd like to keep updating, regardless.

So You Think You Can Dance 07/18/07

So this is my new blog, where I'll be posting my view on some things in hopes that other people with the same views will read and feel that their opinion is a little more "valid," which is something I feel like everyone probably likes to find when they're browsing the web. Differing opinions are welcome as well. I had some other posts to start off with, but this one is eating away at me.

I'd like to say that I totally loved Neil and Lauren's contemporary dance by Mia Michaels last night
on So You Think You Can Dance. I feel so compelled to blog about this because I'm having a hard time finding people who agree with me. Mostly I'm seeing the same things the judges said: "I didn't get it," "they weren't in sync," "they could've done without the hats and goggles." I wish there was a way I could tell Mia, Neil and Lauren "Don't listen to them guys!"



I liked this routine right from the beginning. The soft subtle way they just tapped their toes to the beat of the piano, the way the stage lit up when they did. When they first started skipping up and down the stairs I was convinced that the "theme" of the dance was that they were dressed like piano keys. (It reminded me of the scene in Big where they play the big piano in the toystore)

I think the moment that really blew me away with this routine was when I realized "I can't tell which one is Lauren and which one is Neil." I had to actually start looking for the taller, more muscley one to be able to tell. I think that really says something for Neil's dancing, although most of the comments I've seen have commented on how manly Lauren seemed. I think it goes both ways. A comment on another blog called it "androgynous chic" I believe, which I think is dead-on.

But that leads me to my next thought. This routine wouldn't have been nearly as captivating for me if they hadn't been wearing those black beanies and goggles. After a while not only did it not feel like I was watching a boy and a girl dance, it stopped feeling like I was watching two dancers at all. Lauren and Neil transformed into these two strange android creature-characters from a story I've never read before. I wasn't sure what they were, or what they were doing, but they seemed to have done it before. Do these strange robot people enjoy dancing? Do they even know they're dancing? All I know is it seems like they've done it many times before. One of my favorite moments was when the two of them had just stood back up, their bodies bobbing back and forth, and Neil put out his hand to the side for Lauren behind him. He didn't turn towards her, look back at her, he just knew she would come take his hand and go into the next bizarre move with him.

A lot of hip-hop routines have this same style of side-by-side, identical movements of popping and locking, but I never really like the hip-hop routines. Somehow the interaction between boy and girl that way always seems awkward, forced, and out of place. The way Lauren and Neil's characters would, instead of looking to each other and acknowledging each other's presence in the dance, simply rely on each other and instead acknowledge the audience with a vacant, bobbing head, gaping mouth stare made them seem so much more natural, real, and in sync than any of their actual movements.

As for the very last section, where they're dancing back towards the front of the stage, the part where I believe it was Nigel who Mary said they were out of sync, I remember thinking at the time "Oh neat, I like how they weren't perfectly synced up there." Looking back a couple times I realize now that they probably were choreographed to be in sync there, and it was probably just the fact that I was so taken with this routine already that my mind turned a flaw into a good point. But I still like the way it rounded out the routine. If you want to put a little meaning into it, they're reminding us no, they're not robots, they're two individuals, they've been here to entertain us, don't you see? But just as they are able to get that feeling out, they begin to malfunction, power down, and then collapse.

I liked Neil from the start, of course, as a lot of other girls did I'm sure, but it wasn't until last week's Jazz routine that he and Lauren really pulled it together and became one of my favorite couples. I feel like they've grown a lot together so far and I'm sad that we might not see them dance together again. I think after the past two weeks of what I would consider "magic" that they both deserve to move on to the next round.

But that's just my opinion on the whole thing.