The forum will address the current federal review of the nation's media ownership rules under consideration by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The event will provide citizens in the region with an opportunity to learn about - and provide input on - the issue. It will be held at the KAET/Channel 8 television studio (www.kaet.asu.edu) on the campus of Arizona State University from 1:00pm to 4:30 p.m.

Charles Benton, Chairman of the Board of the Benton Foundation, noted, "We are seeking to meet the need for greater public education and debate in helping organize this event. This is a 'people's forum' to elevate the voiceless in the current media ownership debate — Hispanics, Native Americans and those who live in rural areas — silenced by the very media legally obliged to serve the diversity of local interests."

The Durham Independent has a nice overview of the issues:

The Federal Communications Commission, the government agency that regulates the broadcasting industry, is considering proposals from the major media companies to relax or even scrap current rules that limit the number of radio and television stations a single company can own in a given market. Also on the table, awaiting the hatchet, is a rule that prohibits a company that owns a TV station from also owning a newspaper in the same market. If that were approved, there could be many cities in America served by just one newsroom.

....Back in 1996, Congress and the FCC decided to do away with many of the rules regarding media ownership. What's the effect?

Arbitron released a survey in February that bolstered further deregulation. It said about 79 percent of listeners were "very pleased" with radio programming and felt they had as many or more choices available as they did five years ago. Arbitron is the media and marketing research firm that provides ratings to the radio industry and effectively compiles song playlists to most commercial radio stations through market test response of target age groups to particular songs.

But the industry's own hard data reveal something else. According to a study by the Future of Music Coalition, a Washington-based musician advocacy group that has vocally opposed the relaxation of ownership rules, there has been dramatic change for the worse. The study released last November found a loss of localism, less competition, fewer viewpoints and less diversity in programming, with virtually every music format controlled by an "oligopoly" of four or fewer companies across the country. Using data from the BIA Financial Network (an investment banking firm that serves broadcasters), the group analyzed the Triangle radio market and found it even worse than the national average. Here, there are a total of 46 stations and 24 owners, generating approximately $77.8 million in sales revenue each year. Four broadcasters--Curtis Media Group, Clear Channel, Radio One, and Capitol Broadcasting--control 95.5 percent of the listenership (nearly 2 million people) and 96.4 percent of the total sales revenue.

Radio has arguably felt the strongest impact from the 1996 deregulation. Limited bandwidth is the major reason, since the expansion of cable has helped to diversify the programming (if not the sources of the programming) available on TV. There are only so many spots on the radio dial.

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