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May 2, 2003
Changes at the FCC and the USA Chart
I just received this:
WHY WORRY ABOUT WHO OWNS THE
MEDIA?
Move On Bulletin Op-Ed by Eli Pariser
It's like something out of a nightmare, but it really happened: At
1:30 on a cold January night, a train containing hundreds of
thousands of gallons of toxic ammonia derails in Minot, North
Dakota. Town officials try to sound the emergency alert system, but
it isn't working. Desperate to warn townspeople about the poisonous
white cloud bearing down on them, the officials call their local
radio stations. But no one answers any of the phones for an hour and
a half. According to the New York Times, three hundred people are
hospitalized, some are partially blinded, and pets and livestock are
killed. Where were Minot's DJs on January 18th, 2002? Where was the
late night station crew? As it turns out, six of the seven local
radio stations had recently been purchased by Clear Channel
Communications, a radio giant with over 1,200 stations nationwide.
Economies of scale dictated that most of the local staff be cut:
Minot stations ran more or less on auto pilot, the programming
largely dictated from further up the Clear Channel food chain. No
one answered the phone because hardly anyone worked at the stations
any more; the songs played in Minot were the same as those played on
Clear Channel stations across the Midwest. Companies like Clear
Channel argue that economies of scale allow them to cut costs while
continuing to provide quality programming. But they do so at the
expense of local coverage. It's not just about emergency warnings:
media mergers are decreasing coverage of local political races,
local small businesses, and local events. There are only a third as
many owners of newspapers and TV stations as there were in the 1970s
(about 600 now; over 1,500 then). It's harder and harder for
Americans to find out what's going on in their own back yards. On
June 2, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is
considering relaxing or getting rid of rules to allow much more
media concentration.
While the actual rule changes are under wraps, they could allow
enormous changes in the American media environment. For example, one
company could be allowed to own ABC, CBS, and NBC. Almost certainly,
media companies will be allowed to own newspapers and TV stations in
the same town. We could be entering a new era of media megaliths. Do
you want one or two big companies acting as gatekeepers and
controlling your access to news and entertainment? Most of us don't.
And the airwaves explicitly belong to us -- the American people. We
allow media companies to use them in exchange for their assurance
that they're serving the public interest, and it's the FCC's job to
make sure that's so. For the future of American journalism, and for
the preservation of a diverse and local media, we have the hold the
FCC to its mission. Otherwise, Minot's nightmare may become our
national reality. (End of this story)
You may want to peruse a related story here:
http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15796
What does the USA chart show?
Mercury rules communication. You may not know this, but the USA's
progressed Mercury began retrograde motion on Sept. 16, 1994 at 4:57
Pisces. This will last until August 2016 when it will station and go
into direct motion at 20:02 Aquarius. Anyone who knows even a little
about astrology knows that a retrograde Mercury can really foul up
communication! We will have to be extremely vigilant about our first
amendment rights during this time because many things pertaining to
the media could be out of sight and unknown. Furthermore, the things
that go on during retrograde Mercury times usually have to be
corrected later. The year 1994 was the time of Clinton's media
scandals.
That year the Whitewater situation surfaced. It was the year of the
Simpson/Goldman murders and the Nancy Kerrigan scandal. The media
had taken on the trappings of a soap opera. That is usually how it
is when Mercury changes direction. Everything seems exaggerated.
But, Mercury is not all there is to communication, and in a
particular chart several other things need to be assessed. The month
after Mercury began retrograde motion in 1994, the USA's progressed
Sun and Moon conjoined. Something began then that was to change the
course of the country dramatically. I just wish I knew what it was.
Now, we have just had the progressed Sun conjoin the natal Moon
about a year and four months ago. The retrograde Mercury will go
over that point in the next several months. Another momentous
event(s) will unfold that will change things drastically.
This time-frame is more important than any of us can imagine. The
USA natal Moon is in the Placidus third house, as is the progressed
Sun and Mercury. Third house is communication. The ninth is the
media. It is ruled by Mercury and the Sun since Leo is on the cusp
and Virgo is intercepted. In the ninth is Neptune. This tells us
right away that one of the country's potential problems would be
deception through the media. It is square Mars in Gemini in the
seventh. Gemini also rules communication; the seventh is the public.
This square shows potential deception of the public. Right now the
USA progressed Moon is just separating from a conjunction to that
Mars, exact a month ago and is only four minutes from squaring the
Neptune. The progressed Moon rules the 8th... other people's power
but also secret, manipulative behavior. Although not an alarmist by
nature, I fully believe we are being manipulated by the media, and
it is deceptive. Next year, Pluto will transit opposite this point
(the Mars position) and square the Neptune. We may not be aware of
what is happening because Pluto rules the 12th, which is also behind
the scenes behavior. I used to laugh at the old-fashioned
description of the 12th being "secret enemies." I'm not laughing
now.
I've written a lot of this Neptune/Mars square in the USA chart. It
can be the soul of sacrifice and spiritual activity when used nobly,
but it can also be the most insidious kind of deception masquerading
as the "good guy." The square aspect leans more to the latter. More
than ever we need to be vigilant. Our forefathers warned us of
taking freedom for granted. Let us hope we are alert enough to
recognize when we are being herded like sheep by the media.
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