STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER DEBORAH TAYLOR TATE
AT MEDIA OWNERSHIP HEARING
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
NOVEMBER 9, 2007
 I appreciate the hospitality of the City of Seattle in hosting the FCC’s sixth and final media ownership 
hearing. As a Commissioner, it is my professional and legal responsibility to implement policies that are in the 
public interest, which of course may mean different things to different people. That’s why I strongly supported 
the open and transparent process we have employed over the past 12 months, holding public hearings in every 
corner of America, truly from sea to shining sea, to seek input from interested citizens like you.
 Throughout these hearings, one resounding theme has been the call for local news and information, 
tailored specifically to the needs of each city, town, and community. I am impressed by Seattle’s efforts in this 
area, particularly with the Seattle Channel, the award-winning local television station that airs informational 
programming on the many cultural and educational opportunities available in “The Emerald City.” I am also 
impressed that the Seattle Channel is available worldwide on streaming video.
 This is just one example of the alternative formats and technologies through which local news is delivered
to citizens today. Whether Seattle, the 14th largest media market in the country, or a small, rural town in my 
home state of Tennessee, America no longer relies solely on the local paper, or even the local television or radio
station, for weather, sports, community events, and emergency alerts. Instead, local news is available online, 
whether written, audio or video, as well as in print and over the air, and even on our mobile devices. In addition, 
it is clear that the news-gathering habits of the younger generation are vastly different than those of my 
generation. Having grown up on the internet, this “I-generation” relies on global, digital, personalized, mobile 
information sources, whenever and wherever they may be.  We must take these changes into account when 
fashioning media ownership rules which will take us into the next decade, where an even more tech-savvy 
generation awaits.
 I appreciate all of our esteemed panelists, as well as the many members of the public who have taken time 
to participate in this process, and I look forward to your remarks.