Publish to Newswire
Add an EventFrom the Open-Publishing Calendar
From the Open-Publishing Newswire
Indybay Feature
Kerry OPPOSES media consolidation, SUPPORTS campaign-finance reform
Did you know that John Kerry and John Edwards are active opponents of media consolidation and active supporters of campaign finance reform? (Did you expect corporate-owned media to tell you about this?) And is it possible that this is why the top executives of most major media corporations--FOX, Viacom, etcetera--oppose (and fear?) a Kerry presidency?
.........................
(Note: I'm re-posting this because my original post did not include the title I'd intended to give it. Sorry about that.)
Election Day is tomorrow and I believe this information can make a difference--not only by encouraging progressives, liberals, and Democrats to support Kerry, but also by encouraging conservatives and Republicans to do likewise.
If we EVER want media reform, and if we EVER want real campaign finance reform, I think a vote for Kerry is a smart vote.
KERRY ON MEDIA CONSOLIDATION......................
> In the fall of 2003, millions of Americans (from all points on the political spectrum) pressured the FCC and Congress to overturn the FCC's proposed new rules which would have allowed unprecedented media consolidation.
The FCC did nothing, and the House of Representatives did nothing. But the Senate *did* pass a resolution calling for the FCC's new rules to be overturned. JOHN KERRY AND JOHN EDWARDS WERE CO-SPONSORS OF THAT SENATE RESOLUTION.
> John Nichols recently interviewed Kerry for The Nation magazine. Here's some of what Nichols wrote, in "Kerry on the Media" on 8/7/04:
"If Kerry is elected president, he will be in a position to influence the media landscape. Encouraged by President Bush and lobbyists for the major networks, a Republican-dominated Federal Communications Commission sought last year to ease limits on media consolidation at the local and national levels. Kerry, who notes that he voted in the Senate to maintain the controls against consolidation, says he would set a different course by appointing FCC commissioners who are more sympathetic to diversity of ownership, competition and local control. Several days after he sat down for the interview that is recounted here, Kerry amplified the point when he promised a gathering of minority journalists that, "I will appoint people to the FCC, and I will pursue a policy, that tries to have as diverse and broad an ownership as possible."
Distinguishing himself from President Bush, Kerry says, "I'm against the ongoing push for media consolidation. It's contrary to the stronger interests of the country." Diversity of media ownership and content, the candidate explains, "is critical to who we are as a free people. It's critical to our democracy."
(Full article is at http://www.thenation.com/thebeat/index.mhtml?bid=1&pid=1671 )
KERRY ON CAMPAIGN-FINANCE REFORM.......................
> Kerry has a long history of refusing to accept PAC, or Political Action Committee, money.
> Kerry is a longtime advocate of real campaign-finance reform, and a strong proponent of "clean money," publicly-financed campaigns.
Consider this article, from Public Citizen (an organization founded in the 1970s by Ralph Nader), titled "Kerry Ranks Near Bottom in Senate on Money From PACs and Lobbyists":
"An analysis of PAC and lobbying contributions combined shows Kerry is near the bottom in receiving such funds when PAC money is averaged from 1993 through the present and lobbyist money is averaged from 1990 through present. Further, the lobbyist money that Kerry has taken in the presidential campaign is less than 1 percent of his total money raised.
Not only has Kerry historically refused to take PAC money, but his record shows that he been a leader for more than a decade in full reform of campaign financing, advocating for clean public money not only for presidential but also congressional campaigns.
Kerry was the lead sponsor with the late Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.) on a measure that would have authorized clean money in all federal congressional elections and was a leader in pressing for congressional public financing in the 1992 and 1993 campaign finance reform bills. Although those bills passed, they were not enacted.
Other Democratic presidential candidates such as former Gov. Howard Dean and Sen. John Edwards also have endorsed campaign finance reform. Dean has endorsed public financing and reform of the presidential public funding system. Edwards played a leadership role in the effort to pass the McCain-Feingold bill and has endorsed reform of the presidential public funding system. President Bush has not endorsed either.
(From http://www.publiccitizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=1639 )
(Note: I'm re-posting this because my original post did not include the title I'd intended to give it. Sorry about that.)
Election Day is tomorrow and I believe this information can make a difference--not only by encouraging progressives, liberals, and Democrats to support Kerry, but also by encouraging conservatives and Republicans to do likewise.
If we EVER want media reform, and if we EVER want real campaign finance reform, I think a vote for Kerry is a smart vote.
KERRY ON MEDIA CONSOLIDATION......................
> In the fall of 2003, millions of Americans (from all points on the political spectrum) pressured the FCC and Congress to overturn the FCC's proposed new rules which would have allowed unprecedented media consolidation.
The FCC did nothing, and the House of Representatives did nothing. But the Senate *did* pass a resolution calling for the FCC's new rules to be overturned. JOHN KERRY AND JOHN EDWARDS WERE CO-SPONSORS OF THAT SENATE RESOLUTION.
> John Nichols recently interviewed Kerry for The Nation magazine. Here's some of what Nichols wrote, in "Kerry on the Media" on 8/7/04:
"If Kerry is elected president, he will be in a position to influence the media landscape. Encouraged by President Bush and lobbyists for the major networks, a Republican-dominated Federal Communications Commission sought last year to ease limits on media consolidation at the local and national levels. Kerry, who notes that he voted in the Senate to maintain the controls against consolidation, says he would set a different course by appointing FCC commissioners who are more sympathetic to diversity of ownership, competition and local control. Several days after he sat down for the interview that is recounted here, Kerry amplified the point when he promised a gathering of minority journalists that, "I will appoint people to the FCC, and I will pursue a policy, that tries to have as diverse and broad an ownership as possible."
Distinguishing himself from President Bush, Kerry says, "I'm against the ongoing push for media consolidation. It's contrary to the stronger interests of the country." Diversity of media ownership and content, the candidate explains, "is critical to who we are as a free people. It's critical to our democracy."
(Full article is at http://www.thenation.com/thebeat/index.mhtml?bid=1&pid=1671 )
KERRY ON CAMPAIGN-FINANCE REFORM.......................
> Kerry has a long history of refusing to accept PAC, or Political Action Committee, money.
> Kerry is a longtime advocate of real campaign-finance reform, and a strong proponent of "clean money," publicly-financed campaigns.
Consider this article, from Public Citizen (an organization founded in the 1970s by Ralph Nader), titled "Kerry Ranks Near Bottom in Senate on Money From PACs and Lobbyists":
"An analysis of PAC and lobbying contributions combined shows Kerry is near the bottom in receiving such funds when PAC money is averaged from 1993 through the present and lobbyist money is averaged from 1990 through present. Further, the lobbyist money that Kerry has taken in the presidential campaign is less than 1 percent of his total money raised.
Not only has Kerry historically refused to take PAC money, but his record shows that he been a leader for more than a decade in full reform of campaign financing, advocating for clean public money not only for presidential but also congressional campaigns.
Kerry was the lead sponsor with the late Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.) on a measure that would have authorized clean money in all federal congressional elections and was a leader in pressing for congressional public financing in the 1992 and 1993 campaign finance reform bills. Although those bills passed, they were not enacted.
Other Democratic presidential candidates such as former Gov. Howard Dean and Sen. John Edwards also have endorsed campaign finance reform. Dean has endorsed public financing and reform of the presidential public funding system. Edwards played a leadership role in the effort to pass the McCain-Feingold bill and has endorsed reform of the presidential public funding system. President Bush has not endorsed either.
(From http://www.publiccitizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=1639 )
We are 100% volunteer and depend on your participation to sustain our efforts!
Donate
$135.00 donated
in the past month
Get Involved
If you'd like to help with maintaining or developing the website, contact us.
Publish
Publish your stories and upcoming events on Indybay.
Topics
More
Search Indybay's Archives
Advanced Search
►
▼
IMC Network
YOU MEAN LIKE DEMOCRAT BILL CLINTON, WHO'S TELECOMMUNICATIONS BILL LED TO THE MASSIVE EXPANSION OF MEDIA CONSOLIDATION, IN GENERAL, AND CLEAR CHANNEL, IN PARTICULAR.
FOR A FURTHER AND MORE DETAILED REFUTATION OF ALL THE KERRYCRAT PIE-IN-THE-SKY LIES, READ AT LEAST THE FIRST HALF OF ALEXANDER COCKBURN & JEFFREY ST.CLAIR'S NEW BOOK (ONLY $15.95):
DIME'S WORTH OF DIFFERENCE: BEYOND THE LESSER OF TWO EVILS
(OR READ THE MANY ARTICLES AT COUNTERPUNCH.ORG)