center for media justice
GRITtv: The F Word: Success on Net Neutrality
Public pressure works, GRITtv guests love to say. Now we have a new example. In an update on our last show, FCC chair Julius Genachowski says he's now going to go ahead and regulate broadband under the same decades-old rules designed for phone networks. This decision, as our guests Tim Karr and Amalia Deloney explained this week, will reiterate the FCC's jurisdiction and their right to enforce Net Neutrality. The move will likely anger the telecoms. More importantly, it shows the value of organized pressure on government agencies. Groups like Free Press and the Center for Media Justice rallied their contacts and made call after call to the FCC. In a way, the success is an example of just why Net Neutrality matters. Score another for a free and open Internet. The rapid-response organizing done online by Free Press and others was integral to this campaign. And it worked. The new regulations are not done and dusted as they say, but so far so good. More info - guess where - online. The F Word is a regular commentary by Laura Flanders, the host of GRITtv which broadcasts weekdays on satellite TV (Dish Network Ch. 9415 Free Speech TV) on cable, and online at GRITtv.org and TheNation.com. Support us by signing up for our podcast, and follow GRITtv or GRITlaura on Twitter.com. Distributed by Tubemogul.
Email this pageGRITtv: What's Next for Net Neutrality
President Obama campaigned on the issue of a free and open Internet as a candidate who understood the importance of 21st-century communication tools, and he appointed a chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Julius Genachowski, who also is a strong proponent of Net Neutrality--or was. After the court ruling in Comcast v. FCC, it seems that Genachowski might cave in to the demands of the big telecom companies and allow them to continue to have free rein over your Internet access. To discuss the situation, and what we can do about it, we speak to Tim Karr of Free Press and Amalia Deloney of the Center for Media Justice.
GRITtv: May 5 2010
The financial reform bill made it through the first Republican filibuster last week and is being debated and amended now on the Senate floor. Regulating Wall Street isn't easy, though, and economics journalist Zach Carter has noted that the proposed reforms are "pretty flimsy"--he uncovered a loophole that allows banks to continue to make illegal trades without punishment! Zach joins us via Skype from Virginia to discuss the financial reform bill and to explain in plain language just why derivatives continue to be so scary. William K. Black helped coordinate criminal investigations and prosecutions during the Savings & Loan crisis of the 1980s, when regulators played important parts in sending key players to jail. This time around, we've seen CEOs like Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs face a scolding in front of Congress, but no arrests. Where are the handcuffs? Our friends at the Huffington Post Investigative Fund asked Black just that. President Obama campaigned on the issue of a free and open Internet as a candidate who understood the importance of 21st-century communication tools, and he appointed a chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Julius Genachowski, who also is a strong proponent of Net Neutrality--or was. After the court ruling in Comcast v. FCC, it seems that Genachowski might cave in to the demands of the big telecom companies and allow them to continue to have free rein over your Internet access. To discuss the situation, and what we can do about it, we speak to Tim Karr of Free Press and Amalia Deloney of the Center for Media Justice. Finally, Laura takes a look at the situation in Greece after three were reported killed in protests there over the collapsing economy.
GRITtv: Our Internet, Not Theirs
Internet illiterate John McCain has introduced legislation that would allow corporations, not citizens, to control access to the Net. Obama has spoken about the importance of Net Neutrality, but can we count on him to fight for our right to the Web? We here at GRITtv wouldn't be able to do what we do without a free and open Internet, so today we're discussing Net Neutrality with Timothy Karr of Free Press, Gigi Sohn of Public Knowledge, and Karlos Schmieder of the Center for Media Justice.
GRITtv: Monday, Oct. 26, 2009
Corporations have edged into nearly every area of our lives, impacting decisions we make on a daily basis, from health care to the food we eat to the way we get our news and information. Today on GRITtv we take a look at a couple of places that corporate control is being challenged. The Internet has fundamentally changed the media landscape, allowing everyday people to have their voices heard and connect with one another in new and exciting ways. So it really shouldn't be surprising that corporations want to tighten their grip on the Web and our ability to disseminate information on it. And corporations doing medical research are calling into question the whole idea of where property begins and ends.
