Viral politics and the National Association of Broadcasters

The credibility of a self-proclaimed consumer advocate group based in Washington DC, and now possibly that of a professor at Georgetown University, has been destroyed by their link to the NAB, a political lobbying group tied to American TV and radio broadcasters.

First, some background. Back in February of this year, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Raio announced their intention to merge. My guess is that they've done their homework, or they would not have announced the deal - complete with 6-figure penalties if either company pulled out. More is available on Wikipedia and on Wikinews.

Recently, after Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite radio declared their intention to merge, a group calling themselves the Consumer Coalition for Competition in Satellite Radio released a statement opposing the satellite radio merger. The group claims to be a group of law students who are subscribers to both companies' products and who don't believe a merger would be good for consumers.

For a moment, let's look at a seemingly unrelated situation: the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has been buying advertising space in Washington DC newspapers. The controversial ads are aimed directly at the satellite radio companies, and attempt to "use Karmazin's words against him." A little research in to the NAB's web site shows that the NAB has opposed satellite radio every step of the way: images from the ad campaign and FCC filings are available via the site's search engine. The NAB certainly has the right to oppose satellite radio. Satellite radio poses a threat to the traditional business model that has been in place since the 1930's.

The nasty business comes in when it's discovered that the C3SR is really a front group for the NAB. While not all of the details are clear yet, it does appear that the NAB is providing material support to the C3SR. Read the Orbitcast article here.

To further muddy the waters, edits are starting to crop up on Wikipedia by a user named "Antitrustbust". These edits cite J. Gregory Sidak as a source. As it turns out, he is an antitrust activist and professor at Georgetown University in Washington DC. Guess where the C3SR is based? That's right: Georgetown.

I don't have a problem with groups that are geunuinely interested in protecting the public welfare. I don't have a problem with groups that attempt to preserve and defend their own industry. But when political lobbying groups are secretly funneling money in to consumer advocacy groups, I get worried. How far will the NAB go? While there may be no legal conflict here, I see an ethical one. When does this go from being a minor ethical breach straight in to outright bribery? Lies? What will the NAB do to protect their domination of the public airwaves?

The issue here is no longer one of monopoly or antitrust. It's about one organization abusing the rights of the American public and our system of law to protect their own business model. Sirius and XM may indeed become a monopoly, but you can always choose not to subscribe. But we rel on broadcast radio every day, and if they kill off their only competition (satellite radio), where does that leave us? It leaves us with a situation that's every bit as real as the one they're fighting against. If the NAB accomplishes its goal of killing satellite radio, then the consumer will be in a position where big media has more power over us than ever. Don't let that happen. Write the NAB at nab@nab.org and let them know how you feel about dishonest practices and "viral politics."