Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (April 24, 2003)
law, radio must not take political sides. After World War II, the world saw what could happen when a tyrant, in that case Hitler, controlled the media, using it to convince his nation to go to war. Because of media’s power, laws were put into place that limited radio sta- tion ownership and demanded that divergent viewpoints be aired. The Supreme Court set out a constitutional requirement in 1945 (before TV, cable and Internet) that stated, “the widest possible dissemination of information from di- verse and antagonistic sources is essential to the welfare of the people.” Radio was meant to pro- vide a public service: the dissemination of in- the owners of the venue, not them. There’s no holding back DiFranco, however; she spoke out; the other artists did, too, and the show went on. Those artists weren’t concerned about Clear Channel’s penchant for retribution. Traci Mann, publicist for DiFranco, told the NYT that DiFranco doesn’t need commercial radio anyway. “Her audience is going to be there whether she’s on the radio or not,” she said. Some Clear Channel stations banned the Dixie Chicks after lead singer Natalie Maines came out against the war. Again, Hogan claimed it was not a Clear Channel directive. Although Clear Channel did co-sponsor and because of that,” says Barton. Of course, he adds, the pressures are similar in that public radio stations have to raise enough money to stay on the air. But if listeners appreciate the broad perspective public radio provides, they’ll tune in. “KLCC is not beholden to any major na- tional corporation and so when we do news sto- ries about them we’re not worried about biting the hand that feeds us, but Clear Channel owns lots of national companies, like Disney does, so their stations are not going to provide negative coverage for one of their own,” he says, adding, “Democracy is built on a good flow of informa- Ties To Bush What Clear Channel knows is that media is powerful, and having a conservative political agenda piped onto the airwaves with increasing saturation is going to have an effect on people’s attitudes. And that’s what the Bush Administration is banking on. While it’s true the 1996 de-reg came during the Clinton ad- ministration, and earlier “reforms” came during Carter’s time, the ties between Clear Channel and George Bush, Jr. cannot be overlooked. The Texas buddies are the merger masters: Politics and business make great bedfellows. Clear Channel execs Hicks and Mays have con- Now Clear Channel is cozying up to the Bush administration even more, because members of Congress, in light of Clear Channel’s growing monopoly, are looking at once again regulating the industry. formation, realized through divergent views, that would inform the people and let listeners make up their own minds as to what to believe. Over the next few decades, everything changed: •1969: The Supreme Court upheld the Fairness Doctrine, saying radio airwaves were a “public trust” that must reflect opposing views. •1986: the District of Columbia Federal Court of Appeals in a 2-1 decision upheld a new FCC rule refusing to apply the Fairness Doctrine to television text. The prevailing judges were Reagan-appointed Scalia and Bork. •1987: Reagan-appointed FCC commis- sioners repealed the Fairness Doctrine. Later that year, Congress put the Doctrine back into law, but Reagan vetoed it, writing, “The Fairness Doctrine is inconsistent with the tradi- tion of independent journalism.” •1996: The FCC lifted the ban on radio ownership, which had been limited to one AM and one FM in one market and seven total na- tionwide. The move allowed Clear Channel, Cumulus and other corporations to begin amassing every station they could afford to buy. •2003: A proposed new FCC law, under the direction of Bush-appointee Michael Powell, would lift the regulation on television owner- ship and the 35 percent rule and allow one com- pany to own all media — radio, television, bill- boards, newspapers — in any area. Poor Business Practices Not only has Clear Channel been accused of promoting pro-war rallies, but also of not play- ing music by artists who have spoken out against the war in Iraq. But president and chief executive of Clear Channel radio division John Hogan told The New York Times that that idea was “laughable.” Hogan added Clear Channel was looking for a big audience, not “the most politically unified.” Clear Channel became a household name after 9/11, when it circulated a list of songs that shouldn’t be played, such as “Dust in the Wind,” “Imagine” and “Peace Train.” A month later, Clear Channel fired the popular commu- nity affairs director, David “Davey D.” Cook, of its recently acquired KMEL, after he aired the views of Rep. Barbara Lee, the only con- gressperson to vote against military action in Afghanistan. Then on March 19, 2003 at the New Jersey Performing Arts center, Ani DiFranco, one of several artists slated to perform, was told to keep quiet about the war and to make sure the others performing did so as well. But Clear Channel now claims that directive came from promote 13 out of 18 recent pro-war rallies held across the land, the company, now under fire, claims those rallies were done by individual stations after conservative talk show host Glenn Beck called for them. Yet the rallies were pro- moted on Clear Channel’s website. And Cumulus, which owns many country music stations, banned the Dixie Chicks from 40 of its stations. Cumulus CEO Lewis W. Dickey, Jr. says it has no pro-war agenda, it just did that in deference to its more conservative listeners. In Louisiana, one Cumulus sta- tion sponsored a pro-war rally where bulldozers ran over Dixie Chicks’ CDs. Finally, rumors abound that Clear Channel circu- lated a memo to its station managers saying the war in Iraq would raise the fears of the American people and that that emotion could be used to their advantage. Robert Dove, General Manager of all Eugene and Albany Clear Channel radio stations since January 2002, however, says he never saw such a memo. Dove adds that unlike other Clear Channel stations, at KDUK the station is “100 percent programmed by us. Nothing comes from Clear Channel.” But the story is different on the AM dial. Dove says KPNW carries syndi- cated talk shows, all of them politically conservative, although he points out they come from “a variety of sources.” Lars Larson comes from Portland, and “Rush Limbaugh and Dr. Laura Schlessinger come from Premiere in L.A.” But Clear Channel owns Premiere. Dove quickly adds, “But we’re not required to carry it. Nobody forces you to take programming that doesn’t fit your radio station. You’re looking for programs that will get you the best ratings. Lars Larson and Rush have proven ratings.” The ratings game affects all radio stations that sell ads, leaving public radio the only entity free of that concern. KLCC General Manager Steve Barton says Clear Channel-owned com- mercial station managers, while having some freedom in what they do, are “significantly constrained. They don’t set all their own priori- ties.” Also, as a corporation with shareholders to report to, Clear Channel’s “sole reason for existing is making money for its owners.” KLCC, on the other hand, “has no real profit motive. The more money we bring in, the more service we provide. Nobody gets richer tion and open and honest discussion. I become concerned when you find media giants taking a position. In fact I think we should not take any positions because that’s not what we’re here for. In fact, it ruins our credibility.” tributed tens of thousands of dollars to Bush’s gubernatorial and presidential campaigns, as well as more than $100,000 to Republicans from 2001-2002. And there’s the now-famous shady Texas Rangers deal between Bush and Hicks. Bush owned a 1 percent share of the Rangers, and worked it out with his partners that when they got their money back from their investment in the team his portion would jump to 11 percent. Bush then used his influence, according to the Austin Chronicle, to have the stadium con- demned, used tax dollars to rebuild it, and, after the value of the Rangers skyrock- eted, sold his shares, walking away with $15 million. Who’d he sell to? Hicks. Now Clear Channel is cozying up to the Bush administration even more, be- cause members of Congress, in light of Clear Channel’s growing monopoly, are looking at once again regulating the indus- try. Sen. Russ Feingold has introduced legislation that will impose nco: a r F i D i An ool she So c need doesn’t stay radio to s. famou APRIL 24, 2003 13
