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Media Monopoly
Press Conference and generally noisy event on the steps of SF's City Hall - Monday May 6 Noon
WITH
Willie Ratcliff-Publisher SF Bayview, Bruce Brugmann-Publisher SF Guardian, Davey-D - former PA director at ClearChannel radio station KMEL-FM and others!
WITH
Willie Ratcliff-Publisher SF Bayview, Bruce Brugmann-Publisher SF Guardian, Davey-D - former PA director at ClearChannel radio station KMEL-FM and others!
***TAKE ACTION NOW*** Please Distribute
Media behemoth ClearChannel Communications - one of the largest and most criticized media companies in the U.S. - isn't content with dominating the nation's radio airwaves, billboards, and concert venues. On Monday, in a precedent-setting case with national implications, SF's Supervisors are about to hand over gatekeeper status for the city's newspaper distribution to ClearChannel subsidiary Adshel - without so much as a public comment period.
At issue is a law pushed through by current Mayor Willie Brown, when he had majority control of the Supervisors, mandating that freestanding newsracks in the city's high traffic areas be replaced with special "pedmount" kiosks that would hold up to eight publications. Publishers from the New York Times to Gannett, from the L.A. Times to the SF Bay Guardian immediately saw the frightening implications of such control by a for-profit third party and sued to stop the law.
But now a settlement's been proposed - the big publications lawyers are tired and their clients have almost certainly been assured spots in the "pedmounts - and the law is being fast-tracked through City Hall with little review of its ugly implications.
As just one example, consider the chilling effect on reporting of ClearChannel's exploits by any publication that wants to be distributed in the "pedmounts".
It's troubling enough that elected representatives would allow a for- profit corporation to determine which publications can be distributed in public spaces, and to allow them to profit from the process by posting advertising up to 18 feet long on the backside of the kiosks. But the contract is just plain awful in
other ways too - it locks the city into a 20 year contract with no money at all from ClearChannel to pay for the administrative costs of the program.
This deal is not in the public's interest. It is bad for our media landscape, bad for our so-called democracy, and a bad deal for San Francisco residents.
WE DEMAND a slow-down of this process to include a full public hearing on the implications of this law locally and nationally, and testimony on ClearChannel's monopolistic and anti-competitive policies (as thoroughly documented by Salon.com's Eric Boehlert, see link below).
For excellent coverage of this case and CC's well-documented abuses, including links to the Salon.com investigations, please visit:
http://www.sfbg.com/36/30/news_clearchannel.html
Media behemoth ClearChannel Communications - one of the largest and most criticized media companies in the U.S. - isn't content with dominating the nation's radio airwaves, billboards, and concert venues. On Monday, in a precedent-setting case with national implications, SF's Supervisors are about to hand over gatekeeper status for the city's newspaper distribution to ClearChannel subsidiary Adshel - without so much as a public comment period.
At issue is a law pushed through by current Mayor Willie Brown, when he had majority control of the Supervisors, mandating that freestanding newsracks in the city's high traffic areas be replaced with special "pedmount" kiosks that would hold up to eight publications. Publishers from the New York Times to Gannett, from the L.A. Times to the SF Bay Guardian immediately saw the frightening implications of such control by a for-profit third party and sued to stop the law.
But now a settlement's been proposed - the big publications lawyers are tired and their clients have almost certainly been assured spots in the "pedmounts - and the law is being fast-tracked through City Hall with little review of its ugly implications.
As just one example, consider the chilling effect on reporting of ClearChannel's exploits by any publication that wants to be distributed in the "pedmounts".
It's troubling enough that elected representatives would allow a for- profit corporation to determine which publications can be distributed in public spaces, and to allow them to profit from the process by posting advertising up to 18 feet long on the backside of the kiosks. But the contract is just plain awful in
other ways too - it locks the city into a 20 year contract with no money at all from ClearChannel to pay for the administrative costs of the program.
This deal is not in the public's interest. It is bad for our media landscape, bad for our so-called democracy, and a bad deal for San Francisco residents.
WE DEMAND a slow-down of this process to include a full public hearing on the implications of this law locally and nationally, and testimony on ClearChannel's monopolistic and anti-competitive policies (as thoroughly documented by Salon.com's Eric Boehlert, see link below).
For excellent coverage of this case and CC's well-documented abuses, including links to the Salon.com investigations, please visit:
http://www.sfbg.com/36/30/news_clearchannel.html
For more information:
http://www.media-alliance.org
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I am appalled that anyone connected to San Francisoc politics would write something so ridiculous as stating that Willie Brown was a supervisor. Willie Brown sat in the California Assembly from 1965 to 1995 as the leading pro-tobacco, pro-gambling assemblyperson (and his only other elected office), making himself a millionaire real estate attorney at the same time, contributing to the whitening of San Francisco with his pro-development, anti-tenant policies. If you want to know more about this stinking little fascist, who also has a long history of election-fraud, and like all good Democrats has used progressive causes like the gay movement as a cover for his evil deeds, please read the biography of Willie Brown by James Richardson (1996: University of California Press). This book covers Brown's life, and San Francisco politics from 1950 to 1995. It was because if his empire-building that we finally won term limits so that we never have 35 year reigns again. He was an election-frauding thug in the NAACP in the 1950s, he promoted the election-frauding People's Temple in the 1970s, and now sits in office with 40% of the vote plus election fraud, in a second and last term. His history of election fraud can be found at http://www.brasscheck.com/stadium
As to the newsrack ordinance, it was passed during Willie Brown's first term as mayor (1996-1999) by his obsequious Board of Supervisors, which Board was elected citywide, and many of those positions were held by appointees of Brown due to resignations of previous supervisors. The current Board was elected in November 2000 by district and thus is less tied to anti-First Amendment, anti-tenant, pro-Catholic vote (aka anti-gay and anti-women vote) organized crime election-frauding thug Willie Brown.
I must point out that Willie Brown is a lifelong Democrat and until he became mayor, was considered a "liberal." In the fishbowl politics of City Hall, the truth has now come out, and we now hear from people who should have said so earlier, that Willie Brown as assemblyperson was an anti-tenant stinker there. He became Speaker of the Assembly with the help of Republican votes and he ran to the Republican Party in his second run for mayor for their endorsement, which he received, on the basis of promising to repeal rent control.
This all goes to prove that there is not a dime's worth of difference between the Republicans and Democrats. You saw that with the vote in Congress in support of Israel, and you can be sure fascist Willie Brown supports Israel, as do 10 of the 11 supervisors, who are Democrats.
Now we are having a freedom of the press fight in "liberal" San Francisco, run by the Democratic Party machine, against an outfit, Clear Channel, that is so rightwing, it allows Rush Limbaugh to babble on its radio airwaves. See:
http://www.jerusalem.indymedia.org/news/2002/05/25979.php#26451
No to Clear Channel's News Racks. Uphold the First Amendment!
As to the newsrack ordinance, it was passed during Willie Brown's first term as mayor (1996-1999) by his obsequious Board of Supervisors, which Board was elected citywide, and many of those positions were held by appointees of Brown due to resignations of previous supervisors. The current Board was elected in November 2000 by district and thus is less tied to anti-First Amendment, anti-tenant, pro-Catholic vote (aka anti-gay and anti-women vote) organized crime election-frauding thug Willie Brown.
I must point out that Willie Brown is a lifelong Democrat and until he became mayor, was considered a "liberal." In the fishbowl politics of City Hall, the truth has now come out, and we now hear from people who should have said so earlier, that Willie Brown as assemblyperson was an anti-tenant stinker there. He became Speaker of the Assembly with the help of Republican votes and he ran to the Republican Party in his second run for mayor for their endorsement, which he received, on the basis of promising to repeal rent control.
This all goes to prove that there is not a dime's worth of difference between the Republicans and Democrats. You saw that with the vote in Congress in support of Israel, and you can be sure fascist Willie Brown supports Israel, as do 10 of the 11 supervisors, who are Democrats.
Now we are having a freedom of the press fight in "liberal" San Francisco, run by the Democratic Party machine, against an outfit, Clear Channel, that is so rightwing, it allows Rush Limbaugh to babble on its radio airwaves. See:
http://www.jerusalem.indymedia.org/news/2002/05/25979.php#26451
No to Clear Channel's News Racks. Uphold the First Amendment!
For more information:
http://www.brasscheck.com/stadium
>Now we are having a freedom of the press fight in "liberal" San Francisco, run by the Democratic Party machine, against an outfit, Clear Channel, that is so rightwing, it allows Rush Limbaugh to babble on its radio airwaves.
>No to Clear Channel's News Racks. Uphold the First Amendment!
YES!! Let's ALL uphold the First Amendment. Rush Limbaugh and right-wing radio should be silenced. Freedom of Speech only to those who agree with San Francisco Voter.
>No to Clear Channel's News Racks. Uphold the First Amendment!
YES!! Let's ALL uphold the First Amendment. Rush Limbaugh and right-wing radio should be silenced. Freedom of Speech only to those who agree with San Francisco Voter.
"At issue is a law pushed through by current Mayor Willie Brown, back when he was a Supervisor"
should read
"At issue is a law pushed through by Mayor Willie Brown during his first term"
should read
"At issue is a law pushed through by Mayor Willie Brown during his first term"
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