A while back I was having a conversation with one of my sports fan friends, and we wondered why it is that in pro sports such as basketball, football or baseball:
1) Owners are organized and represented by lawyers;
2) Players are organized and represented by unions and agents (and lawyers);
3) Advertisers (spammers) are organized and have clout and representation through their marketers and ad agencies;
4) Mass media is organized and has representation through leveraging their corporate backing and monopoly on the airwaves (courtesy of the FCC);
BUT,
5) Fans are completely UN-organized and lacking in representation.
"Fans Union" - FU ;) - is a necessity to level the playing field. And if it's true for sports, it's too true for consumers in general. Here's a group I stumbled upon - let me know if you think they're doing something worthwhile.
and for their podcasts:
-jp