Product Description When a train derailment on Jan. 18, 2002, sent a cloud of poisonous gas drifting toward Minot, ND, it s fire and rescue departments attempted to use local radio to warn residents of the approaching threat. But, no one was at the six local commercial stations, all owned by Clear Channel, to take the call. The result: one death and more than a thousand injuries. This book takes us into the world of empty TV news stations, preprogrammed radio shows, and copycat newspapers to show how conglomerate ownership of all media has harmed American political and cultural life -- and how malign neglect by the fed. gov't. allowed it to happen. Also reveals a rising generation of citizen journalists who are insisting on the local coverage we need and deserve. Review ''Eric Klinenberg has written an extraordinary and powerful account of the devastating elimination of localism in U.S. media and journalism, and how Americans from all walks of life are rising up to challenge the great media crisis that grips our nation today. Brilliantly written and tightly argued, Fighting for Air is the perfect book for anyone wanting to understand what is going on in this country, and why it is so important to our future.'' --Robert W. McChesney, author of The Problem of the Media ''Eric Klinenberg has given us a chilling report on how the American news media, increasingly concentrated, have made a mockery of the commitment to operate 'in the public interest, convenience, and necessity.' Admirably researched and lucidly written, Fighting for Air should serve as a wake-up call on the deafness of radio and television to communal needs.'' --Daniel Schorr, Senior News Analyst for National Public Radio