mediageek

Month: July 2003

  • Live from PDX

    I’m out of town this week, in lovely Portland, OR, after a 2.5 day trip on AMTRAK’s “Empire Builder” train. I’ll be attending the Portland Zine Symposium this weekend, where I’m also sharing a table with Aj “Low Hug” Michel. Since I won’t have regular Internet access, posts will be light this week, and probably…

  • Congressionally Mandated Report on Low-Power FM Says It’s OK, No Interference (Duh)

    It only took a Freedom of Information Act request and the subtle threat of filing suit to bring it to light, but the FCC finally released the Mitre report on low-power FM interference issues. The report was mandated by Congress as part of the Radio Broadcasting Preservation Act of 2000 which gutted the rollout of…

  • Mark your calendar and dust off your transmitter: Oct. 17 Is A Day of Mass Electronic Civil Disobedience

    I just received a missive from Free Radio Berkeley’s Stephen Dunifer calling on us to seize the airwaves on Media Democracy Day, October 17. Rather than working through representatives and intermediaries, Dunifer argues that it’s time to talk back directly through direct action on the airwaves. And I couldn’t agree more. Here’s the full text:…

  • Global Community Radio Under Seige

    This is very disturbing news that I heard rumors about yesterday and have had confirmed today. Radio for Peace Int’l, a global non-profit shortwave radio station located in Costa Rica, has been locked down by armed guards working for the University of Peace, which is the station’s landlord. The University intends to evict the station…

  • One Hour Left To Phone Congress to Restore Some Media Ownership Limits

    Just received this from Robert McChesney: >Today is a critical moment in the effort to roll back the FCC media ownership rules. Your voice is needed. This afternoon, the House of Representatives will vote on H.R. 2799 to roll back one of the three ownership rules – the national television cap. Even if it passes,…

  • mediageek zine page

    The mediageek zine now has its own page, with some excerpts and ordering information. There are permanent links to the page above in the header and in the right column. Check it out and order yours — it’s only 2 bucks!

  • More Motion to Delay and Block New Media Ownership Rules

    Just to show you that our elected representatives aren’t 100% bought-and-paid -for, there are thirty-five Senators trying to use a little-known maneuver to block the implementation of the FCC’s new loosened media ownership rules. According to the Washington Post, “A ‘resolution of disapproval,’ which is permitted under the Congressional Review Act, has been placed on…

  • Attention California and Michigan — Time to Kick Your Hand-Maiden Reps Out of Congress

    Another bill has been introduced into Congress to turn every 15-year-old kid with a CD burner and cable modem into a criminal. Reps. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) and Howard Berman (D-Calif.) have written legislation that makes uploading a single copyrighted song punishable with a 5 year prison term and a $250,000 fine. Nevermind that you…

  • Raise The Fist Webmaster Getting Screwed Again by the Courts

    The LA Weekly covers the June 30 court appearance of Sherman Austin, webmaster for RaisetheFist.com, an anarchist who faces federal charges for distributing various information on his website, including some instructions on bombmaking. Back in October of last year Sherman made a plea agreement with the Federal prosecutor which astonishingly was thrown out by the…

  • Using the Net to Distro Indy TV

    Wired News has an article about how independent and community media activists are using the net to distribute programming. What’s interesting to me is that the focus is not just on streaming video, but also on using the net to distribute video from producers to public access TV stations. The video group at the Urbana-Champaign…