Join our fax brigade!
This is really getting ridiculous! We beat the broadcast flag in Federal Court, we beat it in the Appropriations Committee, but the MPAA is giving it another try. This time, they’re allying with the RIAA and asking for more: not just a flag for digital broadcast television, but even broader FCC power in the name of “protecting” digital radio, to boot!
This new legislation to give the FCC the power to adopt the broadcast flag will likely be attached to the digital television (DTV) bill. The Commerce Committee is where all of this will go down in the Senate. Any Senate flag language would be attached to a DTV policy bill, and likely be done behind closed doors: without so much as a public hearing or debate. Similar language could be made as an amendment to the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s version of the DTV bill. That’s why voicing your opinion now with your Representative and Senators is vital.
You know the drill. Click the link below to contact your congress members. After you’ve sent a letter, using the talking points below, try giving your members’ offices a call and tell them why the broadcast flag is a bad idea. This is especially important for those of you who have a member on the appropriate committee (see the list below). If you don’t have a member on either of the committees, your letter will go to the chairmen and ranking members.
Once again, thank you for your effort! The Public Knowledge Team
Senators on the US Senate Commerce Committee:
Chairman Ted Stevens - Alaska
Hart 522
202-224-3004Senator John McCain - Arizona
Russell 241
202-224-2235Senator Conrad Burns - Montana
Dirksen 187
202-224-2644Senator Trent Lott - Mississippi
Russell 487
202-224-6253Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison - Texas
Russell 284
202-224-5922Senator Olympia Snowe - Maine
Russell 154
202-224-5344Senator Gordon Smith - Oregon
Russell 404
202-224-3753Senator John Ensign - Nevada
Russell 364
202-224-6244Senator George Allen - Virginia
Russell 204
202-224-4024Senator John Sununu - New Hampshire
Russell 111
202-224-2841Senator Jim DeMint - South Carolina
Russell 340
202-224-6121Senator David Vitter - Louisiana
Hart 516
202-224-4623Ranking Member Daniel K. Inouye - Hawaii
Hart 722 202-224-3934Senator John D. Rockefeller IV - West Virginia
Hart 531
202-224-6472Senator John F. Kerry - Massachussetts
Russell 304
202-224-2742Senator Byron L. Dorgan - North Dakota
Hart 322
202-224-2551Senator Barbara Boxer - California
Hart 112
202-224-3553Senator Bill Nelson - Florida
Hart 716
202-224-5274Senator Maria Cantwell - Washington
Hart 717
202-224-3441Senator Frank Lautenberg - New Jersey
Hart 324
202-224-3224Senator E. Benjamin Nelson - Nebraska
Hart 720
202-224-6551Senator Mark Pryor - Arkansas
Russell 217
202-224-2353
House Energy and Commerce Committee:
Is your Representative on the Energy and Commerce Committee?
To find out, follow these steps:
If you don’t know your Zip+4, either find it on a subscription magazine or Go to the US Postal Service to find your Zip+4 from your home address.
Go to the US House of Representatives website, and at the top, enter your newly discovered Zip+4 to find your Representative. Remember your Rep’s name.
Now go here for a list of the House Energy and Commerce Committee Members. If your member is listed, click on his or her name to find a phone number, and then call using the talking points below.
