This Week in Media 

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PATV.TV

You Don't Know What You Got Til' It's Gone...

Public Access Television is facing a number of battles in the House and Senate. 

Today, February 13, is the last day for submitting your concerns to the FCC.

Click here to submit your letter.

Click here for a complete listing of pending legislation.

The telephone companies want to do away with local video franchise agreements between local municipalities and video providers.  Local video franchising agreements are the mechanism by which municipalities ensure that cable and telecommunications companies doing business within the community are accountable to the local public interest.

Video franchise agreements are also the only mechanism that protects and ensures the existence of Public Access TV channels.  We must ensure that local municipalities have the authority to require local video franchising.

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If you would like to be part of organized media reform efforts in Iowa, please consider joining Iowans for Better Local TV or Rapid Response Iowa.

  What You Can Do To Ensure Reliable Elections in Iowa

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OpEdNews

Last Thursday, Blog for Iowa asked you to contact your state representatives in Des Moines to demand verifiable elections in Iowa.   Today, we are asking Blog for Iowa readers to help pass HR 550 in Washington.  Please pass this on to everyone you know,  regardless of party affiliation or (non-affiliation), who think Democracy is a good thing.  There are 161 co-sponsors to date, none so far from the great state of Iowa!  Let’s get after the people who are supposed to be representing us to co-sponsor this bill that will ensure Democracy lives to see another election.  

PASS H.R. 550 / VOTER VERIFIED PAPER BALLOTS

By Allen L. Roland, PhD

One bill - H.R. 550 - could be the most important bill your Representative co-sponsors this year.

The "Voter Confidence and Increased Accessibility Act" (H.R.550) is the "gold standard" of voter verifiability legislation, requiring not only voter-verified paper records but also mandatory manual audits to confirm that voting machines are working properly.

The voter-verified paper record is the "bottom line" ~ without it we can't have reliable elections. This bill continues to gain momentum, with 156 Republican and Democrat co-sponsors to date, but more co-sponsors are needed. More than half of the states already have enacted voter-verified paper record requirements, but to protect all votes we need this bill.

You can help: please make sure your Representative co-sponsors H.R. 550 immediately.

Take action - click here to contact your local newspaper or congress people

Click here for the story at OpEdNews

Click here to check out a great new non-partisan blog, Iowa Voters for Open and Transparent Elections

Click here for more information.

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Voting reform and media reform go hand in hand.  If you would like to be part of organized media reform efforts in Iowa, please consider joining Iowans for Better Local TV or RapidResponseIowa.