But last spring, when the Federal Communications Commission voted to loosen rules governing media ownership, the opposite proved true. More than 2 million citizens bombarded the five-member FCC with written comments. The vast majority of them demanded that commissioners refuse to let conglomerates like Clear Channel--which already owns hundreds of radio stations nationwide, including five in Portland--grow even bigger, and add newspapers and other news outlets to their empires.

It was an unprecedented outpouring of public concern about this arcane topic. Not that it mattered. Led by FCC chairman Michael Powell, son of Secretary of State Colin Powell, the commission voted 3-2 to make it easier for media megacorps to hog the airwaves.

Critics, including the two commissioners who defied Powell, called the vote a disaster. This week, they'll press their case at the Oregon Convention Center. The two dissident commissioners, Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, are stars of the show.

Since the 2003 vote, Copps and Adelstein have become a barnstorming act of sorts, travelling the country to tap into public agita about media concentration. Though the Portland "town meeting" isn't an official hearing, the two commissioners will enter open-mic testimony into FCC records to join the chorus of protest.

"I think what's finally happened is the FCC has pissed enough people off," says Bruce Fife, an official with the local musicians' union who will take part in a panel discussion at the event. "These are the public's airwaves, and there needs to be a responsibility to serve the public's interests."

In addition to public comments, the panel will give activists like Fife a chance to sound off about pet issues. The musicians' union hates the way Clear Channel--an aggressive player in the concert business--uses its control over venues and radio stations to bully musicians. Nigel Ballard of the Personal Telco Project (see "Free For All," WW, June 9, 2004) will focus on the potential of wireless technology to bridge the digital gap between rich and poor. Other speakers include Michael Powell (the Portland bookseller, not the FCC kingpin), cable-industry regulator David Olson and rock promoter David Leiken.

Can a seminar on media consolidation fill a 500-seat hall? Organizers wax optimistic--and hope the event amps up the pressure on politicos. Congress is likely to tackle new telecom legislation next year. Both Oregon senators, Democrat Ron Wyden and Republican Gordon Smith, sit on the Senate Commerce Committee, which will hear new legislation governing TV and radio.