Two of the Energy and Commerce subcommittees are holding sessions next week which bump up against broadcast territory. The first will be at the go-to Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet under the gavel of Ed Markey (D-MA), who actually has a piece of proposed legislation to work with: H.R. 5353, the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2008. It’s inked in for Tuesday 5/6/08 at 9:30 AM. Then, on Thursday, 5/8/08 Bark Stupak (D-MI) and his Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations is holding a session called Direct-to-Consumer Advertising: Marketing, Education, or Deception? It kicks off at 10AM.
RBR/TVBR observation: We have more than a passing interest in the future of the Internet, since the future is now under our own current business model. But the impact is being felt on all media. The Stupak session would appear to deal with pharmaceutical advertising, where contrasting concepts of medical ethics and the profit motive create yet another great big gray area that provides a perfect breeding ground for highly charged and emotional rhetoric. Oh, and a lot of advertising dollars may hang in the balance.
