I've seen little notice of this in the ususal sources, which surprises me. The only place giving this high priority, that I can see, is MoveOn.org. It's been so quiet it's scary, really, and deserves our full attention. Why? Because it is perhaps the last remaining big step left - in a large scale effort by the Right Wing - to eliminate remaining sources of dissent in mainstream media. There is legislation pending in the House that will eliminate ALL government funding of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). The vote on this spending bill may occur as early as tomorrow.
The bill, which came out of a Republican controlled committee only last Thursday, is clearly part of a carefully coordinated process that began years ago. The basic steps have been to remove the voices of independent news sources through consolidation. Hence, the drive by Michael Powell, as chairman of the FCC, to reduce restrictions on ownership of media outlets within individual markets. It was perhaps only Powell's inexperience in weilding power that caused his efforts to fail. His glib comments regarding "the public interest," not intended for public ears, created a public outcry that resulted in failure of the bill and, ulitmately, in his resignation. BushCo will not make the same mistake again, but that doesn't mean they have changed the plan. Bush appointed Kevin Martin as new FCC chair who will no doubt work more quietly.
While public outcry temporarily blocked that attempt, the basic facts remain the same: all mainstream media outlets, including television stations, newspapers, radio, book publishing, are owned by only six major corporations. They control both the content and delivery. And they, in turn, are controlled by their own interests.
For most of America, the only exception to this has been Public Broadcasting. CPB was created in 1967, by Congress, with the purpose, and protections necessary, to provide politically unbiased sources for news and programming. The Bush Administration has determined that middle of the road is too far left - "If they aren't supporting us they're against us." - and has appointed Kenneth Tomlinson, director of Voice of America under Reagan, to lead the charge to dismantle Public Broadcasting. His first actions included installing two ombudsmen watchdogs to make sure that news programming remain "Fair and Balanced." Sound familiar. His next item is personally selecting a new President of CPB. His choice? Patricia de Stacy Harrison, former co-chair of the Republican National Committee.
While the people who may read this blog are not likely to worry about the loss of another Old Media source, it is important to remember that a majority of Americans still get their opinions from sources other than the internet. It is through the constant bombardment of "the message" through printed headlines, TV sound bites, and radio talk shows, that public opinion is formed. There are few sources left where that opinion is left up to the individual, and the one that has perhaps the most integrity, PBS/NPR, is about to be eliminated.