Media and Democracy? Senator Franken Warns of Dangers in Comcast/NBC Universal Merger
On Thursday February 4, the Senate held hearings on the potential merger of Comcast and NBC Universal. During the hearings Senator Al Franken warned that we should be nervous about the companies that own our media and we should be particularly nervous when one company owns both the means to produce programs and the pipes that deliver those same programs. Senator Franken later went on to detail his dealings with Comcast CEO Brian Roberts regarding the merger, depicting either extreme dishonesty or incompetence.
In a Youtube video of the senate hearing Franken explains:
"You came in to my office, a United States Senator representing the people of Minnesota, people who buy cable, who's cable bills have gone up three times since 1995. And my job is to protect the interest of the people of Minnesota. Now how are they to trust you, when you come in and to my face say something that either you know is untrue, or you didn't know. And I don't know which is worse. How are the people of Minnesota supposed to trust you?"
This segment illustrates what we all know to be true: the cut-throat nature of Comcast when it comes to their business strategy and bottom-line. However, this becomes an issue of serious concern as Comcast is about to be the first company that can really leverage it's power as both cable provider and media conglomerate, to decide what we see and where. And as the debacle with Philly sports illustrates (if you have Direct TV or Dish TV in this city you cannot watch the Phillies or Sixers...) they will use that power to their advantage.
Of course Comcast is a Philly-based company, and we want more work in this community, that is undeniable. But we should be careful what we wish for, because the growth of Comcast might come at the expense of OUR democracy. On Monday, MMP is hosting a panel "The Bills are Too High" at Temple University where the Comcast merger and the cost of cable and Internet, among other things, will be discussed. Please come out and add your voice to the discussion.
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