THE MEDIACRACY

BRITISH OFFICIALS CONSIDER KILLING RADIO

RED HERRING, UK - Neither television nor the movies could do it, but
regulators in the United Kingdom are considering the end of AM and FM
radio on the grounds that they have both outlived their usefulness, and
digital services could make better use of the spectrum occupied by both
bands. Ofcom, the U.K.'s communications regulator, published a statement
that said many of the AM and FM licenses are up for renewal and an
automatic renewal could tie up very valuable slices of spectrum for 24
years, so the time is right for a long-term decision. So this could be
goodbye for AM and FM radio as the medium that has survived the
popularity of TV and movies signs off after 100 years on the air.
By making a decision on the future of analog commercial radio now, the
U.K regulator argues, it will have more flexibility in the use of the
VHF Band II spectrum currently occupied by FM radio. . . Ofcom believes
that the spectrum would be put to better use if it were allotted to
emerging services such as mobile TV and more digital radio and data
services. FM radio re-uses a limited number of frequencies in a
patchwork across the U.K. to deliver around 300 local BBC and commercial
services and five UK-wide networks," said the Ofcom statement. . . Ofcom
does not foresee a regulated shutdown of FM radio service. Instead, the
regulator believes that it will be phased out as commercial and
regulatory interests examine the best use of the spectrum in the rapidly
changing digital market.

On the U.K., as in the United States, terrestrial radio is one of the
primary media used for local information such as traffic, weather, and
advertising. U.S. regulators have embraced the reuse of AM and FM
spectrum for digital broadcasting, but the bulk of the change is
occurring as a result of market forces rather than regulation. Radio has
suffered from an exodus of younger people, many of whom have opted for
MP3 players such as the Ipod and other forms of digital entertainment
such as social networking.

http://www.redherring.com/Article.aspx?a=19897&hed=Brits%20Mull%20Radioa?Ts%20End

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LIBERAL BLOGGERS ON THE TAKE

MEDIA CHANNEL - It turns out that sections of the blogosphere are
selling out to get in, taking money from the very politicians they write
about. This sounds like the old state subsidies that were a staple in
the old Soviet Union and in today's China. Years ago, the CIA was
exposed for similar practices.

Is this part of the larger corruption of our politics? It's hard not to
think so. It certainly shows why so much of the "journalism" and
opinionizing about politics is so divisive and polarizing, to the
detriment of our democracy which is already being poisoned by so many
attack ads and negative campaigning. . .

The New York Times, an institution that, of course, has a strong
self-interest interest in discrediting a popular medium that competes
with its own, carried an almost page-long chart showing how political
parties are paying off certain bloggers for placing items and by hiring
them as "consultants."

http://Mediachannel.org

K. DANIEL GLOVER, NY TIMES - This year, candidates across the country
found plenty of outsiders ready and willing to move inside their
campaigns. Candidates hired some bloggers to blog and paid others
consulting fees for Internet strategy advice or more traditional
campaign tasks like opposition research.

After the Virginia Democratic primary, for instance, James Webb hired
two of the bloggers who had pushed to get him into the race. The
Democratic Senate candidate Ned Lamont in Connecticut had at least four
bloggers on his campaign team. Few of these bloggers shut down their
"independent" sites after signing on with campaigns, and while most
disclosed their campaign ties on their blogs, some - like Patrick Hynes
of Ankle Biting Pundits - did so only after being criticized by fellow
bloggers. . .

Potential presidential hopefuls like Hillary Rodham Clinton and John
McCain already are paying big-name bloggers as consultants, and Julie
Fanselow of Red State Rebels said on her blog she would entertain job
offers from Howard Dean, Barack Obama, John Edwards or Al Gore.

"This intersection isn't going away," Jerome Armstrong of MyDD, an elite
blogger hired by campaigns, wrote earlier this year, "and I hope more
and more bloggers are able to work to influence how campaigns are run."

[Daily Kos appears to be the biggest offenders but others include
writers for Huffington Post, MyDD and Salon

LIST OF BLOGGERS ON THE TAKE
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/12/03/opinion/03opchart.gif

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FAIR & BALANCED

Since we scan as many as 1,000 headlines a day, we thought it might be
useful for readers to know which Democratic presidential candidates have
the headline edge in the fair and balanced major media. Here's the score
for the last 24 hours:

13 OBAMA
4 CLINTON
0 KERRY
0 EDWARDS
0 GORE

SAMPLES
Crowds adore Obama
Obama's star power shows on NH visit

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AMERICAN MEDIA OUTSOURCING JOURNALISM TO FOREIGN LANDS

INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE - The rush of job recruiting ads on
Monsterindia.com tells the story of the latest class of workers to watch
their trade start migrating to another continent. "Urgent requirement
for business writers," reads one ad looking for journalists to locate in
Mumbai. "Should be willing to work in night shifts (UK shift)."

Another casts for English-speaking journalists in Bangalore with
"experience in editing and writing for US/International Media.". . .

Remote-control journalism is the scornful term that unions use for the
shift of newspaper jobs to low-cost countries like India or Singapore
with fiber-optic connections transmitting information all around the
world. But the momentum for "offshoring" to other countries or
outsourcing locally is accelerating as newspapers small and large seek
ways to reduce costs in the face of severe stresses, from sagging
circulation and advertising revenue to shareholder pressure. . .

WAN, a Paris-based organization representing 72 national newspaper
associations, conducted a global survey of about 350 newspapers in
Europe, Asia and the United States, and company executives reported that
they expected the outsourcing to increase, although few were willing to
farm out all of their editorial functions.

Since then, the memos have been churning: The Columbus Dispatch in Ohio
announced its intentions to shed 90 graphic design jobs and ship out the
work to Affinity Express in Pune, India. The Contra Costa Times, a
California newspaper newly acquired by Media News Group in the breakup
of Knight Ridder, revealed plans to shift ad production positions to
Express KCS in India, which bills itself as the "world's media back
office."

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/11/19/business/outsource.php

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