In culmination of its work over the last year, the FCC Working Group on the Information Needs of Communities delivered a report on June 9, 2011 addressing the rapidly changing media landscape in a broadband age. In 2009, a bipartisan Knight Commission found that while the broadband age is enabling an information and communications renaissance, local communities in particular are being unevenly served with critical information about local issues.
Soon after the Knight Commission delivered its findings, the FCC initiated a staff-level working group to identify crosscurrent and trend, and make recommendations on how the information needs of communities can be met in a broadband world.
Download the Full Report (5 MB) or Download by Chapter
Executive Summary & Overview
Part One — The Media Landscape
Commercial Media
Nonprofit Media
- Public Broadcasting
- Public, Educational, and Governmental (PEG) Access Channels
- C-SPAN and State Public Affairs Networks
- Satellite
- Low Power FM
- Religious Broadcasting
- Nonprofit Websites
- Foundations
- Journalism Schools
- The Evolving Nonprofit Media
Non-Media Players
Key Cross Cutting Issues
- News Consumption
- Types of News
- The Media Food Chain and the Functions of Journalism
- Diversity
- People with Disabilities
- How Big is the Gap and Who Will Fill It?
Part Two – The Policy and Regulatory Landscape
- Broadcast Radio and Television
- Cable Television
- Satellite Television and Radio
- The Internet and Mobile
- Ownership
- Nonprofit media
- Advertising Policy
- Copyright and Intellectual Property
Part Three – Recommendations
Related Material
Launch Events
- The Impact of Technology on the Information Landscape of Communities
- June 2011 Open Commission Meeting
Background Documents
- News Release
- Chairman Genachowski Remarks at Columbia School of Journalism, NY
- Chairman Genachowski's Statement
- Commissioner Copps' Statement
- Commissioner McDowell's Statement
- Commissioner Clyburn's Statement
- Fact Sheet
Blog
- Media Literacy in the Digital Age
- A Collection of Studies on the Future of Media
- From the Public Comments: Should the FCC Lift Restrictions on Underwriting for Religious Broadcasters?
- ...More from the Blog
Workshops
- Arizona Field Event - October 3, 2011
- Public and Other Noncommercial Media in the Digital Era
- The Future of Media & Information Needs of Communities: Serving the Public Interest in the Digital Era
Discussion
- Share stories about media in your community
- What government policies could improve the news and information media?
- How should media
companies change their approach to delivering news and information?