Barack Obama

No Cuts to Public Media in the Next Budget

Stevie Converse — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 09:07:12 -0500

Full article: SavetheNews.org
Josh Stearns
President Obama recently signed next year's funding bill, which provides level funding of $445 million for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for fiscal year 2014 (the CPB budget is determined two years in advance). This is a huge win for the public. But the fight is not over. Snuck into the funding bill is a requirement that the CPB study alternative funding streams, signaling there may be future attacks on its federal support.

For First Time in Decades, Photojournalist Captures Images of Live Presidential Speech

Stevie Converse — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 11:27:41 -0400

Full article: Poynter Institute
Steve Myers
President Barack Obama's address on U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan marked the first time the press has photographed a president during a live speech in several decades. The address was the first since the White House decided to discontinue re-enacting speeches for still photographers, a practice that was brought to light after Obama’s announcement that the U.S. had killed Osama bin Laden.

Obama Promises to Stick to Big Broadband Investment

Stevie Converse — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 07:57:44 -0400

Full article: Computerworld UK
Leo King
President Barack Obama has insisted the U.S. government will invest aggressively in rolling out broadband, in spite of major spending cuts in other areas aimed at cutting $4 trillion from the country's deficit over 12 years. "I will not sacrifice the core investments that we need to grow and create jobs," said Obama, in a speech at George Washington University.

Obama Highlights $90 Million Ed-Tech Agency

Stevie Converse — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 08:48:59 -0500

Full article: eSchool News
Educational technology advocates applauded President Obama’s focus on college and career readiness and his call for a new federal agency devoted to ed-tech innovations.

Call It '3G' or '4G,' America's Wireless Networks Are Still Slow

Stevie Converse — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:48:25 -0500

Full article: Ars Technica
James Losey and Chienhyu Li
The whole country is moving to 4G -- next generation wireless -- and according to some carriers, this is our chance to beat the world in broadband. For Obama, it's a chance to Win the Future. It will certainly help us win a future -- but if this, as Obama said, is our "Sputnik moment," we are not reaching for the moon. The 4G-branded service available in the United States does not compete with 4G service offered elsewhere.

President's Budget Preserves CPB

Stevie Converse — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:33:22 -0500

Full article: Broadcasting & Cable
John Eggerton
The president preserved funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in the 2012 budget. That is funding Republicans are trying to zero out in their version of funding the government through the rest of this year.

Markey Praises Obama Budget for Protecting Public Broadcasting

Stevie Converse — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:33:17 -0500

Full article: The Hill
Sara Jerome
Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) praised President Obama for presenting a budget proposal that preserves public broadcasting, despite a call by House Republicans to stop government funding to TV and radio stations. Markey said that the President's budget "wisely increases funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which helps to support the production of high quality, informative and educational programming" that is produced locally and reaches virtually every household in the country.

President Obama's Christmas Gift to AT&T (and Comcast and Verizon)

Stevie Converse — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 07:50:08 -0500

Full article: TruthDig
Amy Goodman
One of President Barack Obama’s signature campaign promises was to protect the freedom of the Internet. Jump ahead to December 2010, where Obama is clearly in the back seat, being driven by Internet giants like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast. With him is his appointed chairman of the FCC, Julius Genachowski, his Harvard Law School classmate and basketball pal who just pushed through a rule on Net Neutrality that Internet activists consider disastrous.

Net Neutrality and the Base

Stevie Converse — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 16:32:25 -0500

Full article: Politico
Ben Smith
Like "don't ask, don't tell", "Net neutrality" is an important policy in its own right that has symbolic importance to people who don't see themselves directly affected by it, and today's FCC move is another one President Obama will point to as a sign that he's keeping faith with the base.

Obama FCC Caves on Net Neutrality -- Tuesday Betrayal Assured

Stevie Converse — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 07:28:32 -0500

Full article: Huffington Post
Timothy Karr
The FCC's Net Neutrality rule is so riddled with loopholes that it's become clear that this FCC chairman crafted it with the sole purpose of winning the endorsement of AT&T and cable lobbyists, and not defending the interests of the tens of millions of Internet users. For the first time in history of telecommunications law the FCC has given its stamp of approval to online discrimination.