Press Release
Columbus Speaks Out Against Consolidation
Contact: Timothy Karr, 201-533-8838
COLUMBUS -- Nearly 400 people packed into the Broad Street Presbyterian Church in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday night to testify for more than four hours about the threat of sweeping changes to the nation's media ownership rules.
"I'm ready to play offense," said Democratic Commissioner Michael Copps. "So let's talk this evening about more than just preventing bad new rules but about revisiting the bad old rules that got us into this mess in the first place. Let's talk about actually bringing back positive public interest obligations to our broadcast media."
Commissioner Copps, along with Commissioners Jonathan Adelstein and Robert McDowell, listened to the testimony of more than 100 residents who traveled from all over Ohio to speak out about the negative impact of further media consolidation.
"I am here on behalf of the men and women who care deeply about their profession -- in part because they care about our democracy," said panelist Connie Schultz, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. "I mourn the changes in the media industry, but I am hopeful for the first time because hearings like this are happening all across the country. You, the FCC, have a chance to make it right, and we need you to make it right in Ohio."
The FCC is currently reviewing longstanding media ownership rules, including the limits on the number of television and radio stations a company can own in one area and the prohibition on newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership -- which prevents companies from owning a television or radio station and the major daily newspaper in most markets.
"I am concerned that only a few companies own most of the media," said 13-year-old Lucy Powell, a resident of Athens, Ohio. "This is my future, and I need to hear different viewpoints to know what is going on. Thank you for thinking about me and the rest of my generation as you make decisions on this important issue."
"When large companies take over local newspapers and radio and television stations, they strip the local news staff and package recycled news programming to the community, making the kind of reporting I witnessed in my early days as a social worker shallow at best and non-existent at worst," said Alvin Hadley, executive director of the Columbus Metropolitan Area Church Council.
The Columbus event was sponsored by Free Press, Consumers Union, Common Cause Ohio, United Church of Christ Office of Communications, Inc., Columbus Metropolitan Area Church Council, Ohio PIRG, Ohio Citizen Action, OK-Alliance, the Ohio/Kentucky Chapter of the Alliance for Community Media, Mid-Atlantic Community Papers Association, and Media Bridges.
"As the message we receive becomes increasingly controlled by fewer and fewer sources, we lose the rich diversity that surrounds us," said Rev. Robert Chase, director of communication at the United Church of Christ. "We call upon the FCC to exercise its congressionally mandated authority and set policies based not on economic efficiencies, but on the public interest, and restore the airwaves to the people."
The Town Meeting on the Future of Media in Columbus was the first community-organized forum attended by commissioners from both sides of the aisle.
"The debate over media ownership concerns the vitality of American democracy," said Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell. "This is my first foray into the media ownership debate. I am approaching the issue with an open mind, and I am eager to hear from the public on the impact of media policy decisions."
"Decisions about local media should not be made in New York, Los Angeles or even Washington, D.C.," said Democratic Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein. "They should be made right here in Columbus, Ohio. If we are to craft media ownership rules that best serve the public interest, we must hear from the public."
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"I'm ready to play offense," said Democratic Commissioner Michael Copps. "So let's talk this evening about more than just preventing bad new rules but about revisiting the bad old rules that got us into this mess in the first place. Let's talk about actually bringing back positive public interest obligations to our broadcast media."
Commissioner Copps, along with Commissioners Jonathan Adelstein and Robert McDowell, listened to the testimony of more than 100 residents who traveled from all over Ohio to speak out about the negative impact of further media consolidation.
"I am here on behalf of the men and women who care deeply about their profession -- in part because they care about our democracy," said panelist Connie Schultz, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. "I mourn the changes in the media industry, but I am hopeful for the first time because hearings like this are happening all across the country. You, the FCC, have a chance to make it right, and we need you to make it right in Ohio."
The FCC is currently reviewing longstanding media ownership rules, including the limits on the number of television and radio stations a company can own in one area and the prohibition on newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership -- which prevents companies from owning a television or radio station and the major daily newspaper in most markets.
"I am concerned that only a few companies own most of the media," said 13-year-old Lucy Powell, a resident of Athens, Ohio. "This is my future, and I need to hear different viewpoints to know what is going on. Thank you for thinking about me and the rest of my generation as you make decisions on this important issue."
"When large companies take over local newspapers and radio and television stations, they strip the local news staff and package recycled news programming to the community, making the kind of reporting I witnessed in my early days as a social worker shallow at best and non-existent at worst," said Alvin Hadley, executive director of the Columbus Metropolitan Area Church Council.
The Columbus event was sponsored by Free Press, Consumers Union, Common Cause Ohio, United Church of Christ Office of Communications, Inc., Columbus Metropolitan Area Church Council, Ohio PIRG, Ohio Citizen Action, OK-Alliance, the Ohio/Kentucky Chapter of the Alliance for Community Media, Mid-Atlantic Community Papers Association, and Media Bridges.
"As the message we receive becomes increasingly controlled by fewer and fewer sources, we lose the rich diversity that surrounds us," said Rev. Robert Chase, director of communication at the United Church of Christ. "We call upon the FCC to exercise its congressionally mandated authority and set policies based not on economic efficiencies, but on the public interest, and restore the airwaves to the people."
The Town Meeting on the Future of Media in Columbus was the first community-organized forum attended by commissioners from both sides of the aisle.
"The debate over media ownership concerns the vitality of American democracy," said Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell. "This is my first foray into the media ownership debate. I am approaching the issue with an open mind, and I am eager to hear from the public on the impact of media policy decisions."
"Decisions about local media should not be made in New York, Los Angeles or even Washington, D.C.," said Democratic Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein. "They should be made right here in Columbus, Ohio. If we are to craft media ownership rules that best serve the public interest, we must hear from the public."
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