Chairman Martin and the newspaper association's chief spokesman John Sturm have spent the past six months doing all they can to convince Congress and the public that newspapers are in financial straights. The most common line you will hear from them is that the Internet has turned the media world on its head.

The Internet has become a great source of opinion and information but it has not changed the local news landscape, as we have shown repeatedly. In fact, the newspaper association

that no one dominates the online local news landscape more than themselves. Far from the rhetoric you will hear out of the

and the

lobbying arm, the facts speak for themselves and highlight that the public was not who the Chairman had in mind when he

for more consolidation on Dec. 18.

While the newspaper's lobbying arm tells the FCC and the public that the Internet is going to ruin them, they put out press releases each quarter touting the amount and frequency of visitors to their Web sites. It is always amazing to hear the disparity in rhetoric between what the FCC and the public is told and what investors hear. The latest numbers have been released and it was another record quarter for the newspaper industry. 60 million unique visitors -- a 9 percent increase from a year ago. More than a third of all active Web users visited newspaper websites. The newspaper industry told the FCC that they faced stiff local news competition from such daunting websites as Rio Vista Elementary School, The Crab Shack, and 1-800-Sail-Yes. As with most industry arguments, a look below the surface reveals their pathetic attempts to keep the public in the dark.