Center for Social Media prof suggests Congress revamp Broadcasting Act

Ellen Goodman, a Rutgers law professor and Fellow at the Center for Social Media, submitted comments to the Federal Communications Commission on the development of a national broadband plan, according to the Center, at American University. Her thoughts reflect research the Center has been doing for its Future of Public Media project. In her comments (PDF), Goodman notes various current pubmedia activities using high-speed connections, and suggests that further progress will only happen “if public media systems become more diverse, open, networked, innovative, technologically sophisticated, and focused on a service mission to meet public needs where the market will not go.” She echoes a common drumbeat of late, that pubcasting "has not performed adequately in catalyzing and assisting in local content creation. . . . Capacity-constrained and one-way, broadcasting alone has never been capable of truly engaging diverse local populations while also networking effectively nationally with a wide array of partners."