Incumbent Senate Candidate Russ Feingold has a 4 to 1 fund raising lead over his Republican challengers, according to Graema Zielinski.
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Microsoft Monopoly Tactics in the Newspaper Business (“Old Media”?)
Local print media monopoly, Capital Newspapers (prints and generates advertising for the Wisconsin State Journal and the Capital Times) has announced a new weekly publication that targets long time, successful weekly Isthmus. Capital Newspapers, protected by a federally sanctioned joint operating agreement (Newspaper Preservation Act of 1970: the JOA allows two newspapers to “share” advertising, overhead and printing costs) is using those monopoly derived funds to compete with a traditional, non protected business – Isthmus publishing.
This is similar to a tactic that Microsoft used, illegally, to squish Netscape. See Lee Enterprise’s (owns 50% of Capital Newspaper) 2003 10-K (286K PDF) for a look at the Capital Newspapers (formerly known as Madison Newspapers Inc) local revenues (112M!) and net income of $16M (14%!).
Perhaps this is simply a negotiating/acquisition tactic? Capital Newspapers would likely enjoy acquiring Isthmus Publishing and thereby solidify control of the local print advertising business. This tactic has been used before, with a local business weekly and a children’s (Dane County Kids) publication.
What to do? Vince and Linda and the Isthmus have done a superb job for the community. Send a note to our representatives (Representative Tammy Baldwin | Senator Russ Feingold | Senator Herb Kohl) telling them that the time is long past to repeal the Joint Operating Agreement Statute. And cancel your subscription (if you have one) to the State Journal or Cap Times.
UPDATE – the act is certainly not helping quality, as Glenn Reynolds points out.
UPDATE2 – Perhaps this is the natural manifestation of the Clear Channel effect in Radio – played out in the newsprint business. Madison is fortunate to have two dailies – BUT – they should compete like anyone else, which would change things, significantly.
Fall Wisconsin Senate Race Poll
Incumbent Senator Russ Feingold is supported by 51% of Wisconsin residents in an early poll, according to Graeme Zielinski
By 51% to 29%, residents polled in March said they would like to see Feingold re-elected for his third term, with the remainder not answering the question or saying they didn’t know.
In a separate question, 47% said they had a favorable impression of Feingold, while 19% said their view was unfavorable, figures that have stayed relatively constant since fall. About a third said they didn’t know enough to have formed an impression.
Meanwhile, Feingold’s Republican rivals remained largely unknown, with neither state Sen. Bob Welch (R-Redgranite), construction executive Tim Michels or car dealer Russ Darrow registering with more than one in five residents.
Local Power Politics
Incumbent Seat 5 School Board Candidate Ruth Robarts forwarded me a note today that outlined MTI Voters (Madison Teachers, Inc. PAC) expenditures on behalf of her opponent, Alix Olson:
- Radio
- $3656.00
- $2700
- $150
- $3390
- $500
- Newspaper Ads:
- Badger Herald: $192.00
- Capital Newspapers [286K 10-K PDF]: $3,341
- Daily Cardinal: $152
- Latino Newspaper (did not get the title): $114
- Flyers: $2,767
This looks like a rather expensive election. Olson has raised nearly twice as much money as Robarts, according to recent campaign finance disclosure filings. MTI Voters had $47K on hand according to their March 25, 2004 campaign finance disclosure filing [116K PDF].
This campaign reminds me of Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold’s 1998 race vs. Mark Neumann. The Republican’s spent millions in soft (PAC) money in an effort to defeat Feingold (it should be noted that the Democrats planned to do the same but stopped after Feingold objected).
Leahy Shills for Copyright Cartel
Dan Gillmor is right on the money with his criticism of Vermont’s Patrick Leahy regarding his co-sponsorship of the “Pirate Act“. One would think our politicians have more important things to do (education, health care, terrorism, the economy) than carrying water for the Hollywood cartel.
s stunning, and disheartening, to see U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy, the Vermont Democrat who has been one of the champions of civil liberties on Capitol Hill, become a water-carrier for Hollywood and the music industry. But there’s no other interpretation for his co-sponsorship of what’s being called the PIRATE Act, a chillingly bad bill that would give the copyright cartel a gift for the ages.
The basics of this legislation are fairly simple: In a time when there are truly serious things on the minds of law enforcement, such as terrorism, Leahy and his colleague Orrin Hatch would send the FBI and Justice Department (Copyfight) after file-sharers. If this passes, look for a crackdown that makes today’s music-industry lawsuit frenzy look tame. And look for the end of most experiments in new media, because file-sharing networks are the only financially feasible way to distribute content for people who aren’t trying to corner a market.
If I still lived in Vermont, I would call Leahy’s office and ask anyone who’d listen how someone I’ve respected for years could do something so awful.
I’ve sent a note to Russ Feingold and Herb Kohl encouraging them to vote against this and any other similar nonsensical initiatives.
Feingold votes with the NRA?
Wisconsin State Journal Editorial page:
“Beginning in September, the gun industry can resume making, importing and selling military-style semiautomatic weapons that were outlawed a decade ago. And in a hard-to-understand flip-flop, U.S. Sen, Russ Feingold, D-Wis., stood apart from President Bush and a majority of Feingold’s Senate colleagues of both parties by voting to dump the ban on these weapons.”
I dislike any sort of political posturing via votes that our representatives make knowing a bill will die. Politics…..