• Not Again: House Subcommittee Moves to End Public Media Funding

    Josh Stearns
    July 18, 2012

    There’s a new plan in the U.S. House to cut funding for public media in the United States. In the newest version of the spending bill that funds the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a House subcommittee has proposed three major cuts over the next three years. These cuts would leave local NPR and PBS stations with no federal funding by 2015.

  • Hey, Tribune and Hearst: Local Means Local

    Libby Reinish
    July 17, 2012

    Moments ago, Free Press volunteers visited Tribune Tower in Chicago, delivering over 20,000 signatures with a simple message for Tribune and other media giants:

    Don’t sell out local journalism. Stop outsourcing local news and put out-of-work local journalists back on local beats.

    We want news produced by local journalists and coverage of the issues our community cares about. When you outsource local reporting to underpaid overseas workers, everyone in the community loses.

  • Free Press Staffer Josh Stearns Wins Media Ally Award

    Amy Kroin
    July 17, 2012
    Free Press Journalism and Public Media Campaign Director Josh Stearns recently won the Lew Hill Media Ally Award, named for the founder of Pacifica and KPFA, the nation’s first listener-supported radio station. Press Pass TV gave Stearns the award in recognition of his work chronicling the arrests of journalists covering the Occupy Wall Street protests. Since last September, Stearns has tracked those arrests on both the Free Press site and at Storify. He has documented the arrests of 83 journalists in 12 cities around the country.

  • Vermont Public Access Advocate Recalls George Stoney

    Lauren-Glenn Davitian
    July 17, 2012

    George Stoney, unflagging champion of free speech, open media and opportunity for all, died in his home in New York City on July 12. George was 96 and actively producing movies and supporting public access advocates until the end.

    At the time of his death, George was working with David Bagnali and Dave Olive on an in-depth documentary on the life of Paulo Freire, the late Brazilian educator and activist.

  • Censorship = Freedom?

    Timothy Karr
    July 16, 2012

    Think you have the right to speak freely via cellphones, websites and social media? Well, the companies that provide you with access to the Internet don’t.

    The framers drafted the First Amendment as a check on government authority — not corporate power. But whether we’re texting friends, sharing photos on Facebook, or posting updates on Twitter, we’re connecting with each other and the Internet via privately controlled networks.

  • Patrick Leahy Hearts Batman

    Amy Kroin
    July 12, 2012

    Patrick Leahy, the senior senator from Vermont, has appeared in four Batman movies, including the forthcoming Dark Knight Rises.

    Warner Bros. produced all four of these movies.

    Time Warner owns Warner Bros.

    During his 2010 reelection campaign, Leahy received more money from Time Warner than any other member of Congress.

  • Justice Department: Political Ads Threaten Public Media's Character

    Josh Stearns
    July 10, 2012

    In April, in what seemed at first to be an April Fool’s joke, a federal appeals court in California ruled that noncommercial public broadcasting stations should be allowed to air political ads. The ruling struck down a longstanding ban on such ads, arguing that it infringed on free speech. The court upheld the ban on commercial ads. 

  • Private Eyes. They're Watching You

    Amy Kroin
    July 10, 2012

    The next time you send a text, consider this: The government may be watching you.

  • Open Internet Champ Rep. Issa Signs the Declaration of Internet Freedom

    Josh Levy
    July 9, 2012

    The movement to protect the open Internet got a big boost today, as Rep. Darrell Issa — a staunch opponent of SOPA and PIPA — joined thousands of others in signing the Declaration of Internet Freedom.

    The Declaration nicely complements the Digital Citizens' Bill of Rights, a set of similar principles Rep. Issa and Sen. Ron Wyden released last month. 

  • 10 Ways to Tell Whether Your Local News Has Been Outsourced

    Josh Stearns
    July 3, 2012

    Who produces the local news you read, see and hear? Has it been outsourced to people in another state, or maybe even another country? How can you tell?

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