July, 20 2010, 04:02pm EDT
Democracy Depends on Diverse Media, Senators Say
WASHINGTON
Today, a bipartisan group of senators sent a letter to Federal Communications Commission
Chairman Julius Genachowski reminding him that the Senate continues to
be concerned about the dangers of media consolidation. Sens. Byron
Dorgan, Maria Cantwell and Olympia Snowe urged Chairman Genachowski to
avoid the missteps of previous FCC chairmen, and to ensure that the
public's access to diverse, competing, local and accountable media
outlets remains protected.
"The strength of our democracy depends on a citizenry
informed by local and diverse voices in our media. While Americans
increasingly seek out news online, local newspapers and broadcast
stations continue to be the dominant source of news and information. As
you consider future action, we urge you not to forget the Senate's
interest in maintaining the public interest goals of localism,
diversity, and competition in our media," the senators wrote.
Free Press Policy Counsel Corie Wright commended the
bipartisan letter:
"The threat of media consolidation is not a left or right
issue - it is a public interest issue. All communities, large and small,
deserve diverse, competing and independent local media. The FCC media
ownership rules provide crucial safeguards against the consolidation of
media sources in the hands of a few companies, and maximize the
provision of diverse ideas and competing viewpoints. We encourage the
Commission to tighten media ownership rules to protect the public'
access to diverse information."
In May, the FCC issued a Notice of Inquiry seeking comment
on its media ownership rules as part of the agency's statutory
requirement to review its rules every four years. Free Press has
submitted extensive FCC filings demonstrating that media
consolidation adversely affects the provision of local news from diverse
sources. Consolidation also raises barriers to entry for new and
independent media owners, including women and people of color.
Link to Letter: https://www.freepress.net/resource/senators-letter-fcc-chairman-regards-media-ownership-rules
Link to "Out of the Picture: Minority and Female TV Station
Ownership in the United States": https://www.stopbigmedia.com/files/out_of_the_picture.pdf
Link to "Off the Dial": https://www.stopbigmedia.com/=off_the_dial
Link to Free Press' filing in the 2010 FCC Quadrennial
Review: https://www.freepress.net/resource/comments-fp-2010-fcc-quadrennial-review-media-ownership-rules
Free Press was created to give people a voice in the crucial decisions that shape our media. We believe that positive social change, racial justice and meaningful engagement in public life require equitable access to technology, diverse and independent ownership of media platforms, and journalism that holds leaders accountable and tells people what's actually happening in their communities.
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UN Chief Warns of Israel's Syria Invasion and Land Seizures
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres stressed the "urgent need" for Israel to "de-escalate violence on all fronts."
Dec 12, 2024
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said Thursday that he is "deeply concerned" by Israel's "recent and extensive violations of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity," including a ground invasion and airstrikes carried out by the Israel Defense Forces in the war-torn Mideastern nation.
Guterres "is particularly concerned over the hundreds of Israeli airstrikes on several locations in Syria" and has stressed the "urgent need to de-escalate violence on all fronts throughout the country," said U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
Israel claims its invasion and bombardment of Syria—which come as the United States and Turkey have also violated Syrian sovereignty with air and ground attacks—are meant to create a security buffer along the countries' shared border in the wake of last week's fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and amid the IDF's ongoing assault on Gaza, which has killed or wounded more than 162,000 Palestinians and is the subject of an International Court of Justice genocide case.
While Israel argues that its invasion of Syria does not violate a 1974 armistice agreement between the two countries because the Assad dynasty no longer rules the neighboring nation, Dujarric said Guterres maintains that Israel must uphold its obligations under the deal, "including by ending all unauthorized presence in the area of separation and refraining from any action that would undermine the cease-fire and stability in Golan."
Israel conquered the western two-thirds of the Golan Heights in 1967 and has illegally occupied it ever since, annexing the seized lands in 1981.
Other countries including France, Russia, and Saudi Arabia have criticized Israel's invasion, while the United States defended the move.
"The Syrian army abandoned its positions in the area... which potentially creates a vacuum that could have been filled by terrorist organizations," U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said at a press briefing earlier this week. "Israel has said that these actions are temporary to defend its borders. These are not permanent actions... We support all sides upholding the 1974 disengagement agreement."
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Addressing the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and conversations it has sparked about the country's for-profit system, longtime Medicare for All advocate Sen. Bernie Sanders on Wednesday condemned the murder and stressed that getting to universal coverage will require a movement challenging corporate money in politics.
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.)—a co-sponsor of Sanders' Medicare for All Act—similarly toldHuffPost in a Tuesday interview, "The visceral response from people across this country who feel cheated, ripped off, and threatened by the vile practices of their insurance companies should be a warning to everyone in the healthcare system."
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Reporters Without Borders' (RSF) 2024 roundup, which was published Thursday, found that at least 54 journalists were killed on the job or in connection with their work this year, and 18 of them were killed by Israeli armed forces (16 in Palestine, and two in Lebanon).
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Multiple journalists were also killed in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Mexico, Sudan, Myanmar, Colombia, and Ukraine, according to the report, and hundreds more were detained and are now behind bars in countries including Israel, China, and Russia.
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