Via Susie:
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Communications Commission, overturning a 32-year-old ban, voted Tuesday to allow broadcasters in the nation’s 20 largest media markets to also own a newspaper.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin was joined by his two Republican colleagues in favor of the proposal, while the commission’s two Democrats voted against it.
…
The two men blasted Martin for making changes to his proposal “in the dead of night” and just prior to the meeting that they said created new loopholes in the rule instead of closing them, as Martin pledged during a recent hearing on Capitol Hill.
“Anybody who thinks our processes are open, thoughtful or deliberative should think twice in light of these nocturnal escapades,” said Adelstein.
Adelstein said Martin’s proposal “will allow for waivers for six new newspaper-broadcast combinations and 36 grandfathered stations.”
In a lengthy statement, Copps described the commission’s action as a “terrible decision.”
“In the final analysis, the real winners today are businesses that are in many cases quite healthy, and the real losers are going to be all of us who depend on the news media to learn what’s happening in our communities and to keep an eye on local government,” he said.
Outrage fatigue.
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