roundtable: TCI Promotes Right-Wing Agenda
roundtable: TCI Promotes Right-Wing Agenda
TCI Promotes Right-Wing Agenda
John Schwartz (schwartz@usa.net)
Wed, 26 Jul 1995 10:17:53 -0600
Message-Id: <199507261613.KAA01584@earth.usa.net>
Date: Wed, 26 Jul 1995 10:17:53 -0600
To: roundtable@cni.org
From: schwartz@usa.net (John Schwartz)
Subject: TCI Promotes Right-Wing Agenda
Dear Roundtable subscribers: This 90's Channel press release may be
freely reposted, as long as it is sent in its entirely.
John
______________________________________________________________
John B. Schwartz schwartz@usa.net
P.O. Box 6060 voice 303-442-2707
Boulder, CO 80306 FAX 303-442-6472
_______________________________________________________________
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT:
JOHN SCHWARTZ (303) 442-2707
TCI USES ITS MUSCLE TO PROMOTE RIGHT-WING AGENDA,
PROGRESSIVE TV NETWORK CHARGES
Cable Giant to Produce a Daily Conservative TV News Show,
But Maneuvers to Dump the Progressive 90's Channel
BOULDER, COLORADO, July 25, 1995. The 90's Channel---the
nation's only full-time progressive television network---today
charged that Tele-Communications Inc. is trying to use its
position as the world's largest cable operator to promote a
conservative political agenda.
"TCI is going to produce a new daily political program at
the same time that it's maneuvering to dump our progressive TV
network," said John Schwartz, president of the Boulder-based 90's
Channel. "And the program's title says it all: Damn Right."
Details of TCI's new production effort were published in
Current, a telecommunications trade journal. According to
Current, the program will focus on such issues as "Privatizing
the Grand Canyon," and "The Case for Ending Income Taxes." It is
to be produced by Robert J. Chitester, whom Current describes as
known for his conservative programs, including the PBS series
Free to Choose with Milton Freedman. Executive Producer John K.
Andrews, Jr. was the 1990 Republican nominee for Colorado
governor.
Current reports: "Andrews, who is director of TCI's public
affairs operation, said the company wants to contribute to the
way Americans think about the issues. If this and other projects
take off, he adds, 'eventually the company may say we're in the
news business.'"
Damn Right is not TCI's only news-oriented project; TCI
recently purchased MacNeil/Lehrer Productions, the company which
produces the MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour for PBS.
Said Schwartz of The 90's Channel: "Our problem isn't what
Damn Right contains; it's that TCI is going into the right-wing
news business at the same time that it is maneuvering to drop The
90's Channel from its cable systems."
The 90's Channel leases full-time cable channels from TCI on
seven cable systems serving more than 600,000 subscribers. The
lease expires on October 31, and The 90's Channel is trying to
renew it.
"We sent five sets of FAXes and finally had to threaten to
file a regulatory complaint before TCI would give us lease
renewal rates for all seven systems," said Schwartz. "When we
finally got the figures, the total came to $2,889,257 a year.
Those rates will drive us out of business, for sure."
Schwartz declined to say how much The 90's Channel pays TCI
for carriage currently, citing a confidentiality provision in the
lease. But he described TCI's rate quote as "an astronomical
increase."
"TCI is headed by a very conservative group of people," said
Jeff Cohen, the executive director of FAIR, the New York-based
media watch group. "TCI President John Malone is an avowed
admirer of Rush Limbaugh. TCI's recent actions suggest that when
it says it wants to 'contribute to the way Americans think about
issues,' that means it will marginalize progressive ideas while
filling its channels with conservative ones."
"TCI provides the TV conduit into about one in four American
homes, so such use of corporate power to push a right-wing agenda
means that American democracy will pay a steep price," Cohen
added.
Since it went on the air in 1989, the Boulder, Colorado-
based 90's Channel has carried a diverse mix of controversial
programs with a progressive point of view. The network has
criticized the Persian Gulf war, revealed inhumane prison
conditions, reported on President Bush's Iran-contra ties,
championed the rights of gays and lesbians, backed trade union
organizers and exposed corporate polluters.
The network delivers its programs on videotape to each cable
system, and plays them on automated equipment. The channel
provides four fresh hours of material weekly, which is played
continually in rotation.
"TCI has criticized us for the volume of programming we
offer," says The 90's Channel's Schwartz. "But the fact is that
very few cable networks have average viewing time that even
approaches four hours weekly."
This is not the first battle The 90's Channel has fought
with TCI.
In August, 1992, TCI informed The 90's Channel of its
intention to drop the network on all its systems. The channel
took TCI to court and negotiated an agreement for carriage
through October 31 of this year.
In February, The 90's Channel blasted TCI for planning a new
political program tier which included two conservative networks
and two bi-partisan networks but no progressive network. One of
TCI's responses to that criticism was to explain that it is
legally obliged to have channels available to lease to The 90's
Channel.
"The astronomical increase in our lease rates exposes TCI's
prior statements as highly misleading," Schwartz said.
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Copyright 1995 Denver Area Educational Telecommunications Consortium, Inc.
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