roundtable: Grass Roots Campaign Against Telecom Mergers

roundtable: Grass Roots Campaign Against Telecom Mergers

Grass Roots Campaign Against Telecom Mergers

Jeffrey S. Hops (jhops@alliancecm.org)
Thu, 3 Jul 1997 14:20:25 -0700 (PDT) 

Date: Thu, 3 Jul 1997 14:20:25 -0700 (PDT)
Message-Id: <2.2.16.19970703171442.54c73fa4@pop.igc.org>
To: roundtable@cni.org
From: "Jeffrey S. Hops" <jhops@alliancecm.org>
Subject: Grass Roots Campaign Against Telecom Mergers


Please find attached a letter to the chairs and ranking members of the
Senate and House Commerce Committees. We are asking all Alliance annual
conference attendees to sign four copies of this letter and send it to 
the members of Congress indicated, as well as your own Representative 
and Senators.  We hope you will urge your volunteer producers, members,
community leaders and any one else you can get to do the same.  We
appreciate your participation.  Please call the Alliance National Office 
at (202) 393.2650 x14 or email me if you have any questions.

------------------------------------------------------------------
The Hon. John McCain, Chairman          The Hon. Thomas Bliley, Chairman
Senate Commerce Committee               House Commerce Committee
508 Dirksen Senate Building             2125 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20510                    Washington, DC 20515

The Hon. Ernest Hollings, Ranking       The Hon. John Dingell, Ranking
Senate Commerce Committee               House Commerce Committee
558 Dirksen Senate Building             2322 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20510                    Washington, DC 20515


Dear Chairman:

I am writing on behalf of the Alliance for Community Media, a national
membership organization ensuring people's access to electronic media, 
to express my grave concern about the current wave of corporate mergers 
which is taking place in the telecommunications industry.  I am 
concerned that this wave is bad for consumers and worse for the 
First Amendment.

As you may know, the Alliance for Community Media and its 1400
organizational and individual members represent the interests of the
millions of volunteers who participate in making programming for public,
educational and governmental (PEG) access centers nationwide, and who use
community communications centers to access the Internet.  This vital
non-commercial lane of the information superhighway is often the only means
of mass communications for non-profit organizations like schools, churches,
synagogues, United Way agencies, local and state governments, and performing
arts organizations.

The 1996 Telecommunications Act was intended by Congress to promote
competition, lower prices and give consumers a greater range of choice 
in telecommunications service.  Thus far, just the opposite seems to 
have happened.  Major telecommunications firms are fighting the 
requirements of the law, both at the Federal Communications Commission, 
and more recently in federal court.

At the same time, mergers and acquisitions among telecommunications 
entities has increased steadily.  Two of the seven Regional Bell 
companies have already merged, Microsoft Inc. has purchased a 
significant proportion of a cable operator, long-distance carriers 
have sought mergers with local telephone companies, and television 
and radio broadcast networks have purchased more stations, expanding 
their networks at the expense of local programming and local voices.  
We do not believe this is what Congress intended.

We urge you in the strongest possible terms to contact Attorney General
Janet Reno and Acting Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust Joel Klein
and express your concern about the Department of Justice's excessively
tolerant attitude toward these media mega-mergers, which threaten the
diversity of viewpoints and voices which is at the heart of the First
Amendment.  I look forward to hearing from you on this important subject.

Sincerely,

                              _________________________________________

                              _________________________________________

                              __________________________________________

                              [YOUR NAME AND HOME ADDRESS]



------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks again for your help and participation!!!



Jeffrey Hops
Director, Govt Relations
Alliance for Community Media
vox (202) 393-2650 x14
fax (202) 393-2653
<jhops@alliancecm.org>

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