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If FCC chairman Kevin Martin pushes the vote on media ownership rules tomorrow as planned, Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) and Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (D-IL) plan to ask the Senate Appropriations Committee to cancel any planned funding for the FCC to implement the new rules.
The two have issued a press release demanding that Martin delay the vote on media ownership until the FCC has “followed the will of Congress” and established a commission to look into minority and women media ownership.
“This is a show-down with an FCC Chairman who is letting the FCC do the bidding of big corporate conglomerates without giving smaller media outlets a chance to fight back,” said Kerry.
“We must ensure that we have an open media market that represents all of the voices in our diverse nation, and allows them to be heard,” said Senator Obama. “The FCC must meet its obligations to our country’s minority communities and not special interests by ensuring that broadcasters are doing right by the communities they operate in before it considers loosening media ownership regulations. I reiterate my call to the FCC to conduct its rules changes in a transparent and inclusive process, respect minority interests, and delay its upcoming vote until further evaluations are completed.”
The Media Ownership Act, introduced by Sens. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Trent Lott (R-MS) a few days before Martin’s proposal was made public, would, among other things, require the FCC to establish an independent panel on female and minority ownership and await that panel’s recommendations before voting on any changes to the ownership rules, writes Radio Ink.
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Below, fiscal results from the discount retail giants:
Sales of food and…
