2007’s grandstanding of the year award goes to the Seattle Times for its “The Democracy Papers” series. The Democracy Papers? Gee, thanks Publius. (I apologize for linking it.)

This is where they take the brave stance of being against media consolidation!!! (BTW: It’s in The Seattle Times interest to kill the FCC’s proposal to ease restrictions on media cross ownership, because the PI’s super rich owner, Hearst, will be able to exploit the changes and dominate the market.)

Anyway, yeah yeah, I’m against the rules changes too. Duh. It’s bad. But this self-righteous pontificating on the issue is grating.

And besides, even if these rules weren’t changed, the media is already consolidated anyway.

How easy is it to grandstand on this issue? Easy. Super Republican Rep. Dave Reichert is taking advantage of this non-controversial freebie even more than the silly Seattle Times. Yesterday, Rep. Reichert (on a bit of a “lefty” run lately ), co-sponsored legislation with Rep. Jay Inslee to counter the FCC’s rules changes.

One of my favorite moments this year was when all the huffing and puffing, self-righteous lefties were treated to Republican Rep. Dave Reichert’s anti-media consolidation speech at last month’s FCC hearing at Town Hall. The room’s “dissident” anger sorta dissipated when they realized Reichert shared their views. (I’ve linked his speech in the jump.)

“Relaxing restrictions on media ownership is clearly not in the public interest. It seems strange that we must create rules in order to maintain diversity, yet, as Americans, we all know that freedom is not free. Our Founding Fathers had the foresight to create a great foundation of democracy in this country, and I’m proud to contribute my time working to protect those freedoms. American corporations create opportunities for us, creating jobs, fueling the economy and keeping our country competitive in this globalized era. But when it comes to media ownership, allowing these companies to simply take over can have the adverse effect of limiting the information available to local consumers.

“Localism and diversity are the cornerstones of our democratic society. Localism enhances the public’s informed participation in our democracy, and a diverse media market reduces the risk that news will be censored or slanted by a few controlling interests. As the Supreme Court has stated, “the purpose of the First Amendment [of the Constitution] is to preserve an uninhibited marketplace of ideas in which truth will ultimately prevail,” and the right of the public to receive unbiased access to news and ideas should not “abridged by either Congress or by the FCC.” It is essential to the health of our democracy to ensure that this right is protected.

“Today is the sixth and final public forum being conducted by the FCC on media ownership issues, prior to a potential vote later this year on new rules that will govern media consolidation. The rules adopted by the FCC will have a tremendous impact on the news coverage and variety of information available to communities across the United States. It is fitting that this final forum is being held here in Seattle, home to one of the largest remaining family and locally owned newspapers in America, The Seattle Times, which has exemplified commitment to and the power of localism. I thank the Commissioners for holding these forums. It is essential that the concerns of the American public be considered before making any changes to our current laws.”