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Historic Senate Vote Rejects FCC's Rules

Posted by on May 16, 2008 | 2 Comments

Stop Big Media reports:

In a near-unanimous voice vote tonight, the Senate passed a “resolution of disapproval” that would nullify the Federal Communications Commission’s latest attempt to dismantle longstanding media ownership limits.

Last December, the FCC voted to remove the “newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership” ban that prohibits one company from owning a broadcast station and the major daily newspaper in the same market. The resolution of disapproval (Senate Joint Resolution 28), introduced by Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), would nullify the FCC’s new rules if passed by Congress and signed by the president. The House version of the resolution was introduced by Reps. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.) and Dave Reichert (R-Wash.) in March.

Today, the Bush administration issued a statement opposing the resolution and threatening to veto it. The statement called the FCC’s new rules the product of “extensive public comment and consultation” but failed to mention that only 1 percent of public comments supported the administration’s position.

Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press, which coordinates the StopBigMedia.com Coalition, made the following statement:

“Today’s historic Senate vote is a resounding victory for the vast majority of Americans who oppose media consolidation. We applaud the bipartisan leadership of Senators Dorgan and Snowe for acting in the public interest. But to stop Big Media from polluting our local airwaves with more junk journalism and propaganda, we need the House to move this legislation forward quickly.

“At this watershed moment, public outrage against Big Media has reached a breaking point. The Bush administration’s threats to undercut this bipartisan effort in Congress show how out of touch this president is with the will of the American people. But we’re not going to stand idly by and let the White House green light Big Media’s expansion. The great pendulum of political change is swinging away from corrosive consolidation and toward better media.”

Read the FCC’s cross-ownership order here.

Learn more about the FCC’s new rules here.

  • Urban Underbrink

    Hello, I’m not sure exactly why this is needed. But If you were to take all the tapes of every major TV News broadcast or every Major Newspaper from the last 6 years before the Supreme Court – there is no doubt that nearly every one would be criminally charged.

    They have been running a one sided campaign against the Conservatives and Brainwashing everyone with constant doom and gloom. Never a story about success here or abroad unless it is on the back page. When they find something rotten on a Republican, you never hear the end of it. But let it be on a Democrat-Socialist, and it never gets in the news.

    To top it off they want to silence the two people on Radio who aren’t affraid to tell everyone what the Major Stations & Newspapers are trying to hide. Most Democrats could not exist if the truth were known about them.

    There is also the fact that Socialists Professors have been Brainwashing generations of our Children. Is there any wonder why this Country is going to Hell???

    Sorry, Now you know why I hate talking Politics!

    Urban Underbrink

  • hacked360

    If they have a monopoly then you will get biased views and you will not get different opinions. Different opinions on subjects promote conversation and can lead to improved ways of thinking towards different subjects. And if you give two sides of a subject, people will make a more informed open minded choice, and may help to solve some of the worlds problems.