Communications-related Headlines for 3/31/97
Kevin Taglang
Communications-related Headlines for 3/31/97
Disney Will Charge Fee For Children's Web Site
Disney Launching Children's Web Site Only on Microsoft's On-Line Service
Powerful Few Rule Russian Mass Media
An Internet Answer to Repression
How to Stop An E-Mail Avalanche
Broadcasters, FCC Close to Agreement on Digital TV Deployment Schedule
Hearst Stocks Up On Argyles
TV's Forbidden Fruit
*********************************************
Title: Disney Will Charge Fee For Children's Web Site
Source: New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/) (D5)
Author: Laurie J. Flynn
Issue: Internet Sales/Services
Description: Disney Online will charge families $4.95 a month for access
to its website of games, stories, and puzzles with Mickey, Goofy, seven
dwarves, and five commissioners. The new site called, Disney Daily Blast,
is aimed at children 3-12 years old.
Title: Disney Launching Children's Web Site Only on Microsoft's On-Line Se=
rvice
Source: Wall Street Journal (http://www.wsj.com/) (B6)
Author: Don Clark
Issue: Internet Sales/Services
Description: Disney is launching a fee based web site on Microsoft's
online service. The Disney Daily Blast will charge $4.95 a month or
$39.95 a year. Disney believes that parents who are concerned about
finding safe places for their children to go on the Internet will support
the service.
Title: Powerful Few Rule Russian Mass Media
Source: Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/)(A1)
Author: David Hoffman
Issue: International
Description: "Russia's information market is a Klondike for business," says
one media mogul. Powerful financial and political clans are buying up the
country's major media outlets in search of profit and political capital.
Title: In Presidential Race, TV Ads Were Biggest '96 Cost By Far
Source: Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/)(A19)
Author: Ira Chinoy
Issue: Free Time for Candidates
Description: The Clinton and Dole campaigns combined to spend $113 million
of political advertising -- all other campaign expenses (including polling,
fund-raising, telephones, rent) totaled $118 million. Public financing
accounted for 65% of the money raised; 27% came from individual
contributors and PACs; 8% from party funds. These figure do not include the
$69 million spent on "issue" ads by the parties. These ads and the "soft
money" that funds them have become the center of the campaign fiance
debate.
Title: An Internet Answer to Repression
Source: Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/)(A21)
Author: Bob Schmitt, US Institute of Peace
Issue: International
Description: A lesson from Serbia: "Tecchnology is a powerful tool no
longer reserved for elites." The story of how Drazen Pantic broke Slobodan
Milosevic's control of Serbia's domestic news media using the Internet.
Title: How to Stop An E-Mail Avalanche
Source: Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/)(WashTech 15)
Author: Leslie Walker (wal...@washpost.com)
Issue: Internet
Description: A look at the two edges of e-mail: on one side it is supposed
to save time by speeding up communication, on the other it steals time by
overloading us with messages and daily Headlines services (what a pain they
are). And as more and more people use the Internet, the overload problem
could get worse before it gets better [look soon for the additional
E-Mail-Related Headlines]. Solution: fancier filters are in your future.
Until then, here's some hints for us: 1) write short relevant subject
headers, 2) create a smart folder system, 3) scan headers and sort at
regular times, 4) avoid unnecessary replies and cc's, and 5) print
important memos to read off-line. Or, go the MTV route and just get
unplugged.
Title: Broadcasters, FCC Close to Agreement on Digital TV Deployment Sched=
ule
Source: Telecommunications Reports Daily
Issue: Digital TV (ATV)
Description: Broadcasters and FCC officials continue to negotiate a rollout
schedule for digital TV. The proposal from broadcasters is tweaked "almost
hourly." Sen John McCain has sent a letter to FCC Chairman Reed Hundt
asking the Commission to establish a rigorous but workable digital
conversion schedule and holding broadcasters accountable to the Commission
for complying with it." McCain would like to see spectrum returned for
auction by Jan 1, 2006.
Title: Hearst Stocks Up On Argyles
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (http://www.broadcastingcable.com/)(p.6)
Author: Elizabeth Rathbun
Issue: Media Merger
Description: Hearst Corporation paid 3.9 times 1996 earnings for 6 Argyle
Television stations. The new station ownership group will be called
Hearst-Argyle Television and will control 14 stations -- including more ABC
affiliates than ABC itself owns.
Title: TV's Forbidden Fruit
Source: Broadcasting&Cable (http://www.broadcastingcable.com/)(p.14)
Author: Heather Fleming
Issue: V-Chip
Description: A report by the National Television Violence Study finds that
kids are drawn to movies and shows with higher-level motion-picture type
ratings. Rep Ed Markey says the study shows that the current TV ratings
system "leaves parents in the worst of all worlds. They are asked to accept
an age-based system that they not only don't want but that is likely to
make their job of parenting even tougher than it already is."
*********
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