HJL WEBSITE'S LETTER TO FCC AND ELECTED OFFICIALS REGARDING MEDIA DEREGULATION

Variations of the following letter were submitted, along with petitions, to FCC Chair Michael Powell, U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Hillary Clinton of New York, and Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy of the 4th Congressional District of New York.  Updated and expanded versions (some of which included the issues at stake) were submitted to those elected officials following the FCC's 3-2 decision in favor of deregulation on June 2, 2003.  The U.S. Congress now has the option of passing legislation to overturn the FCC's decision.

Dear Federal Communications Commission and U.S. Congress:

On behalf of the Harvey J. Levin Communications Economics Website (www.harveyjlevin.com) and its affiliates, we emphatically oppose the FCC's plan to deregulate media ownership.  Such deregulation would lead to media consolidation and monopoly, preventing the diversity, competitiveness, balance and fairness in media essential to a democratic society.

The late Dr. Levin's exhaustive research, publications, and testimony before government and industry officials over the course of forty years illustrated the economic viability of media ownership diversity, and was cited as a basis for the U.S. Telecommunications Act of 1996. Accordingly, our opposition to the proposed deregulation should be given serious consideration.

Sincerely,

Adam R. Levin
Director
Harvey J. Levin Communications Economics Website
www.harveyjlevin.com