Take The Lid Off Local Broadcasting
Lee Spieckerman: “Prohibiting TV broadcast groups from at least approaching the reach of the big networks dramatically diminishes their ability to invest in more non-network programming options for viewers, become serious contenders in the burgeoning streaming marketplace and effectively compete with the networks and digital titans. How can that possibly be in the public interest?”
Counterpoint: The Seattle Times Got It Wrong
The Seattle Times and its publisher, Frank Blethen, have long styled themselves as crusaders for independent journalism and freedom of the press. So, it’s both discordant and disappointing that a recent editorial in The Times called for heavy-handed federal government intervention to limit media companies’ ability to acquire and run more TV stations.
Judge Got It All Wrong With Aereo Decision
Incredibly, Judge Alison Nathan bought into Aereo’s laughable argument that the company was merely “renting antennas” to its subscribers. That would be like a store claiming that, because it pilfers merchandise from a distributor’s warehouse one item at a time, instead of by the truckload, it should be allowed to sell the goods without paying for them.
