freepress.net and fair.org have been demanding for years.
http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=5
FAIR stands for "Freedom & Accuracy in Reporting": It claims that "Independent, aggressive and critical media are essential to an informed democracy. But mainstream media are increasingly cozy with the economic and political powers they should be watchdogging. Mergers in the news industry have accelerated, further limiting the spectrum of viewpoints that have access to mass media. With U.S. media outlets overwhelmingly owned by for-profit conglomerates and supported by corporate advertisers, independent journalism is compromised. Ultimately, FAIR believes that structural reform is needed to break up the dominant media conglomerates, establish independent public broadcasting, and promote strong, non-profit alternative sources of information."
Meanwhile, "Free Press[net] is a national, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization working to reform the media. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, quality journalism, and universal access to communications."
The founders of Free Press have argued that the "free press" or free media is a public good, like having good roads, right to an education, etc. They think localized moneys need to be spent by governments in the U.S.A. in order to return America to being a high ranking democratic state.
Who is to say that the increasing centralizing of media sources--FOX, Comcast, etc.--are the real cause of the world-wide stop of a historical march to more democracy each decade of my lifetime--till now.
When I was a teenager, the U.S. government sponsored through organizations and programs, like CETA, a means for small-town, inner-city, and down-out kids and adults to learn to work in small local access, TV, and radio networks, Many went on to careers in media and communication.
Now, the USA needs to do the same with our public access to training in the new media age with high standards of good journalism for many unemployed and underemployed peoples who desire to make America Great and Democratic.
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