Some great news stories about the music industry, radio, the Internet,
and artists' rights.
Want more? Check out our library for an in-depth
list of suggested articles, reports and books, or FMC
in the News for more current articles.
DECEMBER 2002
FCC Member Eyes Media Ownership Review New FCC Member Wants More Public Comment on Media Ownership Review Associated
Press, December 10, 2002
Music industry fight to block Net access hits new lows Editorial: Just ask any teenager: Nobody who's anybody pays retail
for music. Thanks to software that is readily available on the Internet,
free music files can be easily downloaded. USA
Today, December 9, 2002
Pay to play on Spanish-language radio By Jordan Levin Miami
Herald, December 8, 2002
Recording Industry Practices Hearing Summary
By Senator Kevin Murray State of California, 26 District Chair, Senate
Select Committee on the Entertainment Industry December
3, 2002
NOVEMBER 2002
FCC's Copps to Take Media Hearings On the Road
The lone Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission said Thursday
he will hold hearings outside Washington on media ownership regulations
that are under review at the agency -- and will do so himself if necessary.
By Todd Shields Mediaweek,
November 21, 2002
Universal Music to Redo Royalties Firm becomes second to respond to concerns about the industry's
accounting practices.
By Chuck Philips LA
Times, November 28, 2002
Congress Gives Webcasters a Break
Smaller Internet music broadcasters will be allowed to pay lower copyright
royalty fees than they do now under legislation Congress passed on Friday.
Wired.com,
November 15, 2002
Playing by the Rules? Top song on Radio Disney is by a Disney Channel actress under
contract to a Disney label. Critics call for more disclosure from the
parent company.
By Chuck Philips LA
Times, November 8, 2002
Online Music Sales Dive From 2001 Figures appear to support record labels' contention that free
swapping networks such as Kazaa and Morpheus are undercutting sellers.
By Jeff Leeds LA
Times, November 4, 2002
Cox Radio Rejects Payola-Like Practice The station chain owner will stop accepting fees from independent
record promoters.
By Jeff Leeds LA
Times, October 18, 2002
Radio killed the radio star Consolidation has resulted in 10,000 layoffs, the demise of
a beloved trade magazine, and a decline in programming quality. But
industry execs are fat and happy.
By Todd Spencer Salon.com,
October 1, 2002
SEPTEMBER 2002
Companies Settle CD Price-Fixing Suit The five top U.S. distributors of compact discs and three large
music retailers have agreed to pay $143 million in cash and CDs to settle
charges they cheated consumers by fixing prices.
By Larry Neumeister
Salon.com, September 30, 2002
Janis Ian on Life in the Music World Folk singer/activist Janis Ian answers all your music questions
in her characteristically straight, informed style. A great read! Slashdot,
September 23, 2002
Rights issue rocks the music world Record companies see it as mutiny. Musicians call it an overdue
rebellion. Either way, the artists' rights movement has set the stage
for combat that could revolutionize the music industry.
By Edna Gundersen USA
Today, September 16, 2002
The Recording Industry is Trying to Kill the Goose That Lays the Golden
Egg A great research-based piece about CD pricing and sales that
challenges the RIAA's claim that the drop in record sales can be attributed
to "piracy".
By Dan Bricklin September
9, 2002
A Nation of Thieves Commentary from The Artist Currently Known as Prince NPG
Club Site
AUGUST 2002
Killing the College Radio Star New federal rules that require radio stations to track and
pay royalties on all webcast music may force shoestring university operations
off the air. By Brad King. Wired,
August 29, 2002
Why telecoms back the pirate cause An interesting interview with Verizon VP Sarah Deutsch on
digital rights management and control of content
By Declan McCullagh CNET
News.com, August 27, 2002
State Senate to Examine Music Firms Royalties: A second hearing on recording industry accounting
is planned to probe allegations that artists are being cheated.
By Chuck Philips LA
Times, Aug 26, 2002
Study Says Net Could Benefit Music Firms Web: Sales are down because of the weak economy, report says, but
consumers are buying CDs after hearing new bands online.
By P.J. Huffstutter LA
Times, August 14,2002
A Chorus of Angry Piggies Web Broadcasters Endangered by Royalties, KPIG Fans Say
By Jonathan Krim Washington
Post, August 10, 2002
Radio's titan hits the skids After replacing a high-profile exec, Clear Channel, the 800-pound
gorilla of the entertainment industry, suddenly faces a lot of banana
peels.
by Eric Boehlert Salon.com,
August 7, 2002
The empire strikes back
As the music industry's "pay-for-play" scandal deepens, the
big five record labels try to crush the expanding power of the dreaded
indie promoters.
By Eric Boehlert Salon.com,
August 7, 2002
Musicians fight for right to royalties
Record companies are being pressured to atone for decades of pay inequities
By Susan Whitall Detroit
News, August 5, 2002
Fallout - A follow up to The Internet Debacle By Janis Ian August
1, 2002
Artists Slam Music Industry Reporting By Jim Wasserman AP,
July 25, 2002
Labels to Net Radio: Die Now You’d think the record companies would love Internet tunes—instead
they’re trying to kill them
By Steven Levy Newsweek,
July 15, 2002
JUNE 2002
Is Clear Channel selling hit singles? Insiders suggest that the broadcasting giant gave an obscure singer
major airplay to promote its pricey new market-research program.
By Eric Boehlert Salon.com,
June 25, 2002
Webcasters' Fees Slashed in Half CARP's decision on webcasting rates.
By Brad King Wired,
June 20, 2002
File sharing: Innocent until proven guilty An economist says music piracy should be hurting the recording industry,
but it isn't -- and he doesn't know why.
By Damien Cave Salon.com,
June 13, 2002
On the Media: Clear Channel Memo Max Robins and Brooke Gladstone have a discussion about an internal
Clear Channel memo regarding employee contributions to its own PAC. On
the Media (WNYC), June 7, 2002
MAY 2002
Why I Voted for Nader:
Ticketmaster's Stranglehold over Music and Politics by Dave Marsh Counterpunch, May
27, 2002
Music Industry to Call for a Federal Probe of Radio Payola By Chuck Philips LA
Times, May 23, 2002
Ask the Artists: Ian MacKaye and Mike Watt A fantastic interview with punk/DIY icons Ian MacKaye (Dischord
Records/Fugazi/Minor Threat) and Mike Watt (Minutemen, fIREHOSE) about
the current state of the music industry. Starpolish,
April 2002
Rocking radio's world Commercial radio may be in its worst shape ever, with listeners
tuning out and legislators calling for investigation into corporate
control of public airways
By Greg Kot Chicago
Tribune, April 14, 2002
Washington Tunes In Critics accuse Clear Channel of shady radio deals and nasty concert
business. Now the government is starting to pay attention.
By Eric Boehlert Salon.com,
March 27, 2002
Clear Channel Drawing Static
Radio: No. 1 broadcaster disputes critics who say it conceals stations
to evade FCC ownership caps.
By Jeff Leeds LA
Times, March 12, 2002
Radio Exec's Claims of Payola Draw Fire
Music: Critics say the pay-for-play allegations ignore a new spin on
the industry practice by the official's own company.
By Chuck Philips LA
Times, March 7, 2002
House Rep's Rap: Unshackle the CD "Music CDs equipped with copy protection will, if Rick Boucher
gets his wish, soon be as obsolete as eight-track cassettes. The feisty
Democratic congressman from Virginia says he plans to introduce legislation
banning, or at least regulating, compact discs outfitted with anti-copying
technology."
By Declan McCullagh Wired,
March 7, 2002
Auditors Put New Spin on Revolt Over Royalties Music: Some artists are enlisting outside help to scrutinize their
labels' accounting practices
by Chuck Philips LA
Times, February 25, 2002
Grammys Find Sales in a Funk Music: Industry's awards show arrives with a lack of new stars and
a bleak outlook for CDs.
by Greg Boucher LA
Times, February 24, 2002
Behind the Grammys, Revolt in the Industry
"..this is the first time in recent memory that everyone across the
board -- artists, executives, fans and industry observers --seems cynical
about the very future of record labels as we know them."
By Neil Strauss New
York Times, February 24, 2002 (registration required)
Napster Wins Round One in Music Case
"America's major record companies, which successfully sued to shut
down the online music-swapping service Napster, suffered a setback as
the judge in the case allowed Napster to seek evidence that the record
companies colluded to monopolize the digital music market."
By Matt Richtel New
York Times, February 23, 2002 (registration required)
Judge: If You Own Music, Prove It "In a stunning turnaround, a district court judge ruled Friday
that the five major record labels must prove they own thousands of music
copyrights. And prove those copyrights weren't used to monopolize and
stifle the distribution of digital music."
By Brad King Wired,
February 22, 2002
Webcasters Learn Cost of Music
"The U.S. Copyright Office ended years of haggling between webcasters
and the recording industry by declaring that webcasters would pay .0014
cents per use of every song. Commercial radio stations that simulcast
their broadcasts over the Internet will pay half that rate."
By Brad King Wired,
February 21, 2002
Supreme Court to Intervene in Internet Copyright Dispute "The Supreme Court agreed Tuesday (Feb 18) to intervene in
a fight over copyrights, deciding whether Congress has sided too heavily
with writers and other inventors. The outcome will determine when hundreds
of thousands of books, songs and movies will be freely available on
the Internet or in digital libraries."
Associated Press New
York Times, February 19, 2002
Also see the OpenLaw
website on Eldred v. Ashcroft, sponsored by Harvard's Berkman Center
Record Labels' Answer to Napster Still Has Artists Feeling Bypassed "Last December, the major record labels responded with two
Internet services of their own where fans pay monthly fees to download
songs. Under this arrangement, however, the performers still don't get
a dime: for each song downloaded, they stand to get only a fraction
of a cent, according to the calculations of disgruntled managers and
lawyers."
by Neil Strauss New
York Times, February 18, 2002 (registration required)
Take This Media...Please!
Commentaries on the impact of media consolidation by Al Franken, Ani
DiFranco, Danny Goldberg and others. The
Nation, January 7, 2002
Some Great Sites for News and Info on Music, Technology,
Media and Activism
TECHNOLOGY/POLICY
Politech
Run by journalist Declan McCullagh, Politech is a fantastic moderated
mailing list of politics and technology. Topics include privacy, free
speech, the role of government and corporations, antitrust, and more.
MUSIC and ADVOCACY
Music for
America is a nonprofit organization striving to get young people
involved in the political process. Using music, media, the internet and
live shows, they're reaching out to demonstrate the connection between
culture and politics.
Punkvoter's
goal is to educate, register and mobilize over 500,000 of today's youth
as one voice. They plan to use the 2004 federal election as a way to get
our fans engaged in politics and evolve into a movement that can get involved
locally to affect real change nationally.
Recording
Artists Coalition
The group started by Don Henley, Sheryl Crow and others, the RAC is working
on many legislative issues that impact recording artists.
Artist
Empowerment Coalition
AEC is a non-profit coalition of recording and performing artists as well
as music supporters formed to promote changes in the relationships between
artists and the companies that exploit, market and distribute their creative
work.
