In a case of
deja vu all over again, the
FCC
was back in Seattle, holding
a public hearing
regarding a proposed rule change which will
allow further consolidation of media owner-
ship. The hearing, attended by 4 of the 5 FCC
commissioners, was announced with only
5 days' notice, but that was still enough time
for people here to mobilize and fill to capacity
the 800-seat Town Hall. Washington governor
Christine Gregoire opened the proceedings
with a fiery
indictment of the
3/5ths majority
of the FCC which proposed the rule change
to satisfy their corporate media lobbyist
cronies. Live and recorded testimony by
senators and other elected representatives
followed--all of whom, regardless of their party
affiliation, reaffirmed the need to maintain
media diversity. A panel of 13 "experts" were
given 5 minutes each to sound off before the
microphones were turned over to the public.
I'd waited 6 hours to speak my 2 minutes
but it was worth it, even if, as one speaker
suggested, the vote is a foregone conclusion.
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