MoveOn.org, Free Press, and Common Cause Urge Senate & Courts to Defend Marketplace of Ideas

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: June 2, 2003
Contact: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Trevor Fitzgibbon
Fenton Communications
(202) 822-5200

Download a PDF of this press release (42 KB)

Washington, DC — Common Cause, MoveOn.org and Free Press today condemned the FCC's 3-2 vote in favor of relaxing media ownership rules that favor corporate monopolies at the expense of local news outlets and diversity. The groups vowed to continue fighting to take back America's public airwaves by going to Congress and the courts to restore limits on what media giants can own.

"This is a dark day for American democracy," said Chellie Pingree, president of Common Cause. "The FCC has ignored mounting public pressure and given the green light to a handful of media moguls to control what the American public sees, hears, and reads. That is frightening prospect."

For the past month, the coalition engaged in a high profile campaign that included paid print and television ads and generated hundreds of thousands of email appeals and phone calls that resulted in crashing the FCC's server on Friday.

"Make no mistake, this corrupt process and ruling fly in the face of democracy and drowns out the voice of the little guy in favor of corporate monopolies," said Eli Pariser, Campaign Director of MoveOn.org.

"Just as other other successful movements have suffered setbacks at the hands of corrupt and shortsighted regulators, so did media reform today. However, we have been strengthened by this fight, and are now prepared to not only reverse these rules, but to begin securing media policies that will serve all Americans," said Free Press president Robert McChesney.

The TV and print ads can be viewed at: www.moveon.org.

Free Press is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Free Press does not support or oppose any candidate for public office. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media and universal access to communications.