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Your television will go black…and other scary stories --- Michael Hedges - November 15, 2007
It’s the week to watch if you’re in Geneva or Brussels. Television, they say, is sure to suffer if nameless, faceless Eurocrats and functionaries have their way. Why can’t things be like the old days?

BBC 1 Controller Resigns Over Queen Fiasco --- Philip M. Stone October 8, 2007
The controller of the BBC’s primary terrestrial channel, BBC1, has resigned as heads begin to roll over Buckingham Palace’s fury at the public broadcaster showing the media a trailer for a documentary that edited video out of context and embarrassed the Queen.

The rising star of the competition czar --- Michael Hedges - September 19, 2007
The European Commission and European national regulators celebrated Monday’s court ruling against Microsoft. Big companies with legions of lawyers have met their match. EC Competition Commissioner Neeley Kroes squashed Microsoft like a bug.

News radio stations targeted by media law --- Michael Hedges - August 6, 2007
Private sector broadcasters venturing into news content often find themselves targets. Most prefer programming lots of music without any talk bordering on the controversial to avoid government wrath. The new Greek media law provides yet another example of State control.

Don’t blame the independent producers --- Michael Hedges July 23, 2007
The agonized whinging from BBC critics, honorably not other broadcasters, bemoan the lost days when broadcasters produced everything they aired. That system ended sometime in the last century. That day came when one general director after another asked that very important – and so very ‘80’s – question: What business are we in?

WIPO Broadcasting Treaty Dead…For Now --- Michael Hedges - June 25, 2007
Major treaties, internationally binding, are consecrated every so often, typically years in the making. In this digital age, that’s a problem. WIPO’s Broadcasting Treaty might be dead, for now, but it remains a problem looking for a place to happen.

Broadcasters Network for Solutions --- Michael Hedges - May 29, 2007
Networking is the essence of Brussels. As the seat of the European Commission (EC) and home to hundreds of non-governmental organizations (NGO) and associations seeking to impact European and world-wide policies, Brussels is seen as the place to debate.

Peering Into Rule Makers Mirror On The Wall Media Industries See Ugly, Step-Sisters --- Michael Hedges - March 21, 2007
Media industry groups are up in arms over the encroaching future. It’s bad enough that media consumers have been enticed by every digital evil. Now – horror of horrors – the rule makers won’t stop reality.

Further Complicated: Advertising, Children and Television --- Michael Hedges - March 19, 2007
Childhood obesity will be a significant issue for the European Commission in the coming year as well as among many national governments. The picture is painful and troubling. The narrative blames advertising and television.

Critics Split Over “American” TV Rules --- Michael Hedges - December 18, 2006
American television – its style and language – strikes Europe’s culture protectors with horror. Ads, ads more often, ads for fast food, ads for SUVs – the narrative bleeds together. Ads on television are in and of themselves corrupting in countries where ad spending is still highest in dead-wood media.

EuroParl TV Rules Vote Changes Direction --- Michael Hedges - December 14, 2006
Europe-wide television and advertising rules will take a decidedly liberal turn as members of the European Parliament voted (Wednesday December 13) to overhaul of the Television Without Frontiers Directive.

Germany’s Digital Free-For-All – Nothing Will Be Free --- Michael Hedges October 23, 2006
Mobile media is all the rage. Telecoms and hand-set makers say it’s the future, a pay-to-play future. Even Germany’s conservative publishers are throwing their weight around. It could be another one-way trip, say German broadcasters, with a wink and a nod: remember the 300 million receivers already in households.

Mix Culture and Economics, Then Half-Bake --- Michael Hedges - October 12, 2006
The bomb shell that was DG Info Commissioner Reding’s first draft revising of the parchment era Television Without Frontiers directive a year ago still spews its’ sparks. European media rules, it seemed, will be platform neutral. The sub-text, of course, was to bring on-line media in line with all the broad EU level rules, enforced or not, that make European media the unique creature it is.

Hungarian and Czech Parliaments Faulted for Digital Delay --- Michael Hedges February 13, 2006
The European Commission’s 2012 deadline for digital TV conversion only gets closer. And with RRC-06 looming large, digital frequency allocations are threatened by a lack of national legislation.

Everybody And Everything Competes, Rules To Follow --- Michael Hedges September 27, 2016 - Follow on Twitter
Repurposing rules for the digital age is, at best, a tedious, time consuming job. But necessity is the mother of regulation. The media sector is particularly susceptible to digital anxieties in the midst of competition unforeseen only a few years ago, or moments, as the case seems to be. Those designing new media rules are sensitive to this. Competitive advantage is always suspect, though not well understood.

Boiling The Copyright Oil --- Michael Hedges November 9, 2010 - Follow on Twitter
Nothing hastens policy makers’ blood more than causes on principle. The bigger, more complicated the better because small stuff is so irritating. Copyright, privacy and net neutrality all boil together in these digital times. Some tough old boars might get stewed.

What Is What And When It's Not --- Michael Hedges April 10, 2015 - Follow on Twitter
Propaganda is meant to sow discontent. Censorship is meant to stifle debate. Both are meant to harm. In the idealistic realm of free speech and free expression values arguing what is or what is not propaganda and censorship only raises intellectual resistance to justice. Patience resolves many things, not this.

Rottweillers, Blank Pages And McJournalism --- Michael Hedges December 13, 2010 - Follow on Twitter
News media, whether Web-based, television or newspapers, have come in for sharp criticism beyond the usual and customary complaints. Policy makers and media watchers speak disparagingly of 'tabloidization' and demand curbs. At the same time broadcasters and publishers see an onslaught of censorship, certainly bad for business.

Consternation Befits The Independent Regulator --- Michael Hedges July 6, 2015 - Follow on Twitter
There's a reason politicians need to be kept a safe distance from media regulators. Actually, there are several. Tempted as they are by everything, politicians like rules administered conveniently. Interests must be served. And so many politicians reward themselves for electoral success with a hammer, terms in office spent searching for a nail.

So Many Questions, So Little Time --- Michael Hedges April 29, 2013 - Follow on Twitter
Among physicists there is a natural attraction to grand unifying theory. In the public sphere, media policies notably, the same motivation endures. Connecting everything is good because the alternative, after all, is frightening. Different, though, are strings attached.

Hertz Battle Hurts Broadcasters --- Michael Hedges March 31, 2010 - Follow on Twitter
Radio frequencies are, of course, where most broadcasters live. Other services occupy the spectrum space, too. Every stakeholder, new and old, has deep and abiding interest in promoting their need for digital space, spectrum being limited by physics.

Media Rules Ever Changing, Out of Focus --- Michael Hedges November 2, 2010 - Follow on Twitter
Digital media’s rise has profoundly affected radio, television and newspapers. There have been so many new things to learn. Politicians seem slower than most. But they’re getting the idea.

The Essential Issue Is Getting The TV Signals To Viewers --- Michael Hedges January 28, 2019 - Follow on Twitter
News media has been talking about Brexit - the UK leaving the European Union - for what seems forever. Much has been written and spoken on this subject. Much of that, foreign and domestic, has been fake news, particularly ahead of the infamous referendum. It is the peril of the post-truth age. Brexit was founded on fear, loathing and a large dose of misinformation. Reality as the deadline looms large is guaranteed of disruption.

The Perils of Constantly Rethinking --- Michael Hedges February 3, 2010 - Follow on Twitter
Financing public broadcasting has become enormously complicated. Chasing a 21st century business model for a big part of the media sector has government planers trying new ideas. Unintended consequences befall those who fail to think things through.

Lawmakers Set Media Support Priorities, Focus On New Normal --- Michael Hedges September 7, 2020 - Follow on Twitter
Media operators of all shapes and sizes have been wracked by financial consequences of the coronavirus pandemic. In quick review: the coronavirus outbreak last January spread quickly throughout the world over a few weeks bringing illness taxing public health services leading to necessary restrictions on daily life, including economic. People everywhere, often locked in the homes, devoured information sources to assess personal consequences.

Raging At And For Ownership Rules --- Michael Hedges March 25, 2013 - Follow on Twitter
Long accepted economic theory holds that actors in specific market sectors seek to consolidate, as those sectors mature, in search of economies of scale. Consolidation is self-limiting, though, because monopolies are inefficient. The media sector, it's often argued, is different, not like airlines, oil, banks or pizzas.

New Media Law A Source Of Considerable Distress --- Michael Hedges June 3, 2022 - Follow on Twitter
To say media law is constantly evolving misses the reality. With newer technologies, business models and consumer preferences competing and conflicting at a bruising pace a bit of order is, to say, in order. For more than two decades this yearning for order has crashed into the stasis of rule making.

Thumbs Down For Roman Internet Circus --- Michael Hedges January 25, 2010 - Follow on Twitter
Internet access, rights to and fro, is a hot topic, the cyberwar between China and Google grabbing recent attention. Leaders of governments with a particular orientation have become obsessed with internet because of its wealth and its power. It’s all about control.

Brexit Could Be Rotten, Like Johnny Rotten --- Michael Hedges March 30, 2017 - Follow on Twitter
There have been rumbles, off and on for some time, concerning the effect of Brexit on the UK’s media sector. Brexit is, for those sleeping soundly for the last couple of years, is the popular handle for the process of the UK leaving the European Union (EU). It began officially this week and will be negotiated over the next two years, perhaps longer.

Radio license dispute condemned by US Congress --- Michael Hedges December 11, 2009 - Follow on Twitter
The dispute over national radio license renewals in Hungary, with suspected political intrigue, has spilled over to the United States Congress. Political and media watchers in Hungary have been surprised by international expressions of concern after US-based broadcaster Emmis International and Austrian investment fund Accession Mezzanine Capital lost license renewal applications. While both firms pursue legal remedies the political heat on the Hungarian government is rising.

With Breathless Abandon New TV Rules Adopted --- Michael Hedges October 8, 2018 - Follow on Twitter
Ask a person to close their eyes and think of culture their senses are likely drawn to memories; usually pleasant or comforting and always emotional. People adopt culture based on ethnicity, geography and whatever spiritual context is relevant. It is learned and represents an inherent identity. We think of works of art, languages, even behaviors as culturally significant.

New Media Rules To Be Presented, Targets Obvious --- Michael Hedges September 14, 2022 - Follow on Twitter
Major lawmaking is a tough process, particularly when policy decisions are involved. It’s one thing to change automobile speed limits through towns and villages but quite another to replace the automobiles. The basis for most lawmaking comes from a perceived need overriding the ambiguous or antiquated. But some people are averse to change.

Adaptation Is Not Transformation --- Michael Hedges May 29, 2017 - Follow on Twitter
Revising media rules from the depths of the last century for today's digital consumer preferences challenges the best and brightest legal minds. There is great and valuable logic in adapting what has gone before, not to forget warm fuzzy comfort. But rule makers are inevitably frustrated when the world changes before the ink dries on their latest remedy. A linear process disintegrates in complexity.

Worrying Situations, There Are Several: Strong Rules Required --- Michael Hedges May 5, 2021 - Follow on Twitter
Multi-state agreements come together only after a problem situation is widely accepted. Long arduous negotiations run through details, risks and compromises. With forbearance - and luck - an acceptable document is signed. If not, the problem only grows, possibly infecting others.

Broadcaster losses better than expected, dread remains --- Michael Hedges February 18, 2010 Follow on Twitter
We are now accustomed to great cheering when a media company posts smaller than expected losses. Stock, however that’s viewed, generally rises. Mix in a contentious new media law and there’s no good news.

Ashes for Free – Dust for Murdoch --- Michael Hedges November 16, 2009 Follow on Twitter
Television, sports and money fit together nicely. They form an eternal triangle, feeding each other and feeding on each other, rising higher, getting richer. Everybody’s happy when they get what they want.

Odds Still Good on Product Placement --- Michael Hedges January 13, 2010 Follow on Twitter
For television producers, product placement is like having your cake and eating it too. Widely considered financial salvation, the fine art of sticking a branded product in a TV show has more critics. But even advertising people are wary.