A spirited letter against media consolidation. . .

So, as many of you know, the FCC secretly voted to allow for hte ownership of multiple media outlets in a single location allowing for the enhancement of media consolidation. I received this letter from a concerned American named Craig E.

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Hi, For those of us who don't want a few big companies deciding what we see, hear, and read in the news, it's a bad day. The Bush-appointed FCC just voted to loosen media ownership rules so media titans like Rupert Murdoch can swallow up more local news outlets. They did this despite a huge public outcry--when the FCC asked for public comments, 99% opposed media consolidation!

The LAST thing our democracy needs these days is fewer independent media voices and more news outlets like FOX. We are allowing the insidious creation of "Big Brother" right under our sleepy, apathetic little noses!

Congress has the power to reverse this rule change, and I just signed this petition asking Congress to do that. This issue is very important. Can you join me at the link below?

I can't tell you how annoyed I am with both the government AND the corporate media. After being enlightened about our involvement in Iraq, I am so livid with "the system" that I feel there needs to be a grassroots revolution peaceful, of course) to kick this country in the ass and wake up in regard to how we are asleep at the wheel when it comes to staying fully informed about matters of national discourse and policy.

While I am a former military man, and supporter of our national interests, I'm an independent thinker with no allegiance to either political party. That said, I feel our country is being eroded from within. When I studied journalism in college, Woodward & Bernstein were my idols, along with Mike Royko. The way the media is being conducted today, guys like that would be muzzled, thrown out of work, or never hired in the first place. And we'd never have known about the corrupt hacks that we entrust with creating public policy on every level of the government--from Nixon to Vrdolyak.

EXAMPLE: The Chicago Sun-Times is losing money, and must save something like $50 million this year. Has anyone been reading this formerly great paper, once home to Mike Royko? Well, if you have, you're reading a paper that is filled with pre-written press releases, packaged news items, and National Enquirer-style pap. On the front page yesterday, I saw a headline detailing the squalid love life of a Chicago Bears player. WTF!!!!!!

I guess we can thank Paris, Lindsey, and Britney for that, but I digress. In an effort to stop the hemorrhaging and save the paper, they are cutting their news reporting staff to the bone.

Here's an idea to all the brain surgeons at the Sun Times and other papers like them. Get back to what made the industry great--report the NEWS! Get the best reporters who aren't afraid for their jobs, who can dig deep, make contacts, do the footwork, and make a difference by keeping valued readers informed about the things that matter locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally. Then, grow these types of reporters from within and cultivate a media culture of being professional, inquisitive, unbiased, and dogged in their pursuit of stories that MATTER.

Then maybe, just maybe, you'll have a product that is worth the investment of time to read every day, thereby increasing your readership and subscriptions. When that happens, your viability as a business increases exponentially, allowing ad revenues to go up. What does that do? It ensures success as both a business AND as a trusted source of news the public needs. DUH.

RRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!

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