Clark Slams Media Consolidation January 6, 2004
Posted by faithinwes in 2004 platform, media reform.trackback
Another Democratic presidential candidate is speaking out against further media consolidation. General Wesley Clark says measures to protect localism and promote diversity in media ownership need to be reinstated, according to a report in AdAge.com. He was apparently referring to a series of federal media ownership rules that were either dismantled or rewritten by the FCC last June, much to the benefit of large media companies. The new rules are on hold pending the outcome of a court case brought against the FCC by the Prometheus Radio Project and the Media Access Project.
Speaking on the campaign trail in New Hampshire, Clark told an AdAge.com reporter that media consolidation “is damaging to putting out diverse opinions and fostering public dialogue. … We need to distribute the ownership in media. We need to have the fairness in broadcasting rules put back in place.”
Last fall, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean said he would work to reign in the power of conglomerates that dominate both the production and distribution of news and entertainment.
Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich has also made media reform part of his campaign platform, issuing a proposal to reinstate media ownership limits and promote the growth of non-commercial, community-based media.
