|
(Links
to these sites are provided along the left margin of our site)
Center
for Media & Public Affairs is a research-oriented
organization that researches trends in the news and entertainment
media, as well as political coverage by the media.
Center
for Public Integrity CPI investigates and reports
on media consolidation, the corporate-political money connection
of lobbyists and big political contributors (including Big Media),
and other threats to our democracy. It also has its useful Media
Tracker, which allows you find out who owns the media in your
community.
The
Counter Point is more than a blog, providing informative
perspectives by former IBLTV member (and
co-founder) Ted Remington. In it, Remington rebuts the
one-sided views presented on "The Point", the opinions
of Sinclair Broadcast Group's Mark Hyman that are aired daily
during each SBG station's local news (including KGAN). Unlike
Sinclair's Mark Hyman, however, Remington provides accurate background
information and a wider perspective to his opinions. Reading this
gives you a good idea of the problem that we're up against.
Free
Press is perhaps the leading media reform advocacy
group, with many useful resource pages for those interested in
becoming active in challenging Big Media.
Hear
Us Now is a website devoted to media issues and media
reform. It is run by the same nonprofit group that publishes Consumer
Reports, the popular magazine. With other groups, they have engaged
Washington in an attempt to counter the excessive influence of
the large lobbyists, like the National Association of Broadcasters.
Journalism.org
represents a large effort to study journalism in the U.S. It produces
a yearly report called "State of the News Media" that
is widely read.
Media
Matters is a popular site, excoriated by Bill O'Reilly,
that focuses on examining distortions in the press on an ongoing,
day-to-day basis. Distortions by both right-leaning (Fox, Sinclair,
Clear Channel) and left-leaning (New York Times, NPR) groups are
called on the carpet. Not surprisingly, there is greater representation
of the larger and more prevalent right-leaning broadcast groups.
Museum
of Broadcast Communications is not a media reform
group, but a site that does include a very nice page on the history
of the FCC. Our link should take you to that page
On
the Media is the website of the only weekly nationwide
radio program that takes a critical look at the news media. This
worthy program is aired on National Public Radio stations. A good
way of keeping up with media issues on a Sunday afternoon. (WSUI
airs it at 1 pm. Note that WSUI, 910 AM, can be heard over the
Internet. See their website for more information).
Our
Airwaves is the website for the Public Interest, Public
Airwaves (PIPA) Coalition, which includes 115 groups, including
Common Cause, the Media Access Project, and the United Church
of Christ. They have proposed the Bill of Media Rights and are
concerned about defining "public interest" in the new
digital media world and pending FCC rulings.
Sinclair
Action, an offshoot of Media Matters, concerns
itself with the distortions broadcast by Sinclair Broadcasting
Group, which forces its opinion pieces on the local news shows.
News
Central, is the aptly named website for The
Point and a few other matters produced by Sinclair
Broadcast Group. One can view recent editions of Mark Hyman's
musings, just in case you miss them on KGAN's 12 noon and 10 PM
local news broadcasts (it used to also appear on KGAN's 5 p.m.
news program, but they have dropped that program and replaced
it with non-news programming. Finally, don't forget to check the
Saturday "Mailbag" edition to see for yourself how Hyman
often ridicules those who write to him with an opposing view.
Sinclair
Broadcast Group,
the collection of 61 broadcast stations owned by the extreme right-wing
Smith family, pushed the envelope with its plan to air the film
"Stolen Honor" two weeks before the 2004 presidential
election. In the conservative, pro-business climate of our country,
It continues to push the limits of acceptable broadcast standards,
particularly with its uncivil program called "The Point",
which Sinclair forces its stations to air during their local
news programs.
KGAN*,
KFXA,
and KDSM*
(Des Moines) are all stations that are either owned and operated
(*) by Sinclair Broadcast Group, or have a contractual relationship.
They are all located in Iowa.
|
