Committee on Energy and Commerce
Rep. Henry A. Waxman, Chairman
WASHINGTON, DC — Today Senator John D. Rockefeller, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Rep.Henry A. Waxman, the Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Senator John F. Kerry, the Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet, and Rep. Rick Boucher,the Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Communications, Technology,and the Internet, announced they will start a process to develop proposals to update the Communications Act.
As the first step, theywill invite stakeholders to participate in a series of bipartisan,issue-focused meetings beginning in June. A list of topics fordiscussion and details about this process will be forthcoming.
Contacts:
Karen Lightfoot (Waxman): (202) 225-5735
JenaLongo (Rockefeller): (202) 224-7824
Whitney Smith (Kerry): (202) 224-4159
Courtney Lamie (Boucher): (202) 225-3861
Kamilla Kovacs
Communications and Development Director
Media Access Project
w. (202) 454-5685
c. (571) 426-0466
Watchdogs Oppose Relaxed Cross-ownership Rules
A coalition of public interest groups spearheaded by Media Access Project and the Institute for Public Representation is arguing that the FCC’s move to relax newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership restrictions under former Chairman Kevin Martin flies in the face of the FCC directive to increase ownership diversity and should be scrapped.
The gist of the argument focuses on these points: That the new rules are “marred by procedural irregularities, ambiguous provisions, and loopholes, all of which counter the rule’s stated purpose to increase diversity in the marketplace of ideas.”
They argue further that “The Commission also neglected to address whether its modification of broadcast ownership rules would harm minority and female media ownership – despite the court’s instruction to the Commission to promote such ownership. Further, the Commission put in place a standardless waiver that allows media outlets to merge based on promises that the FCC cannot monitor or enforce.”
MAP VP Andrew Jay Schwartzman said, “The Commission’s 2008 cross-ownership rule is fraught with loopholes that further limit diversity in our media environment. Given the Commission’s aims to increase diversity, the enactment of this rule was the antithesis of reasoned decision-making.”
The comments were included in a brief filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
RBR-TVBR observation: Think that things move slowly in Washington? Consider that the attempt to revise media ownership rules was essentially kicked off by Michael Powell in the fall of 2002 (and some would trace its origins further even further back into the past).
\It is now the spring of 2010 and the ball is still resting just about on the 50 yard line. This is particularly true in the case of cross-ownership, where numerous existing combinations have been trapped in a quarterly waiver renewal hamster wheel for the duration.
Public Interest Groups Request Reversal of Rules That Encourage Media Cross-Ownership
WASHINGTON — Media Access Project (MAP), the Institute for Public Representation (IPR), and a coalition of public interest organizations including Free Press filed a brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit today, stating that the Federal Communications Commission’s 2008 decision to significantly weaken its media ownership rules was unreasonable and against the law.
The brief challenged the 2008 Newspaper-Broadcast Cross Ownership rule (NBCO), under which any entity can own and operate both a newspaper and a broadcast station in a single media market and which was enacted by a 3-2 party line vote under the Bush-era Commission. MAP, IPR and the coalition seek a reversal of that decision.
In the brief, the groups argued that NBCO is marred by procedural irregularities, ambiguous provisions and loopholes, all of which counter the rule’s stated purpose to increase diversity in the marketplace of ideas. The Commission also neglected to address whether its modification of broadcast ownership rules would harm minority and female media ownership –despite the court’s instruction to the Commission to promote such ownership. Further, the Commission put in place a standardless waiver that allows media outlets to merge based on promises that the FCC cannot monitor or enforce.
Andrew Jay Schwartzman, MAP’s vice president and senior policy director and counsel for Prometheus Radio Project, said, “The Commission’s 2008 cross-ownership rule is fraught with loopholes that further limit diversity in our media environment. Given the Commission’s aims to increase diversity, the enactment of this rule was the antithesis of reasoned decision-making.”
Angela Campbell, counsel for Media Alliance and the Office of Communication of the United Church of Christ, Inc., said that “the Court should remand the case because the Commission completely failed to consider how to reduce media consolidation and increase opportunities for minorities and women to enter the broadcasting business.”
Corie Wright, policy counsel for Free Press, said, “A diversity of competing local voices in the media is a critical part of our democracy. The current rules have opened a back door to consolidation that could undermine these values.”
Under congressional direction, the Commission is also planning to conduct a new, separate review of its media ownership rules this year.
Public Interest Obligations
Media owners should not only deal fairly with their audiences, but should go the extra mile to serve their communities. FCC licensees bear certain legal obligations in this regard — such as public file obligations, or children’s TV requirements, and the other obligations stemming from the public interest standard under Title III of the Communications Act.
Many broadcasters say that certain public interest requirements violate their First Amendment rights as speakers, but MAP often disagrees with this view. After all, the airwaves, or “spectrum,” are a limited, very valuable public resource!
Indeed, the Supreme Court has supported and reaffirmed this rationale in every single case where it has been challenged since the landmark case Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. FCC.
Broadcasters volunteer to use this scarce natural resource, they are fully aware of the associated public interest requirements, and they still make very healthy profits.
Media Access Project (MAP) is a non-profit law firm and advocacy organization. Our attorneys work on behalf of the public to promote freedom of expression, independent media, and low-cost, universal access to communications services.
Help MAP Fight for Diverse Media
For over 35 years, Media Access Project (MAP) has worked to promote the public’s right to access a diversity of sources and viewpoints in electronic mass media. From protecting low power FM radio, to fighting media consolidation, to defending “open access” and network neutrality, MAP has provided critical legal representation for the media reform and public interest community.
As a non-profit public interest law firm, MAP does not generally charge its clients legal fees. Nor does MAP get large donations from industry donors. MAP relies primarily on donations from citizens like you, and on grants from public foundations.
If you support MAP and its mission, please let us know in the most powerful way possible, by sending a contribution. Even a small amount can make a big difference to an organization of our size. Media Access Project is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization, so your donation is tax-deductible.
MAP Board of Directors
Tyrone Brown, President, Media Access Project
Leo Hindery, Jr. Managing Partner, InterMedia Partners
Albert Kramer, Board Chair, Partner, Dickstein Shapiro LLP
Jorge Schement, Dean, School of Communication & Information, Rutgers University
Roanne Robinson Shaddox, SecretaryFormer Chief of Staff of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Mozelle W. Thompson, Thompson Strategic ConsultingFormer Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
Kathleen Wallman, Wallman Consulting, LLCFormer Chief of the FCC Common Carrier Bureau
Leo Hindery, Jr. Managing Partner, InterMedia Partners
Albert Kramer, Board Chair, Partner, Dickstein Shapiro LLP
Jorge Schement, Dean, School of Communication & Information, Rutgers University
Roanne Robinson Shaddox, SecretaryFormer Chief of Staff of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Mozelle W. Thompson, Thompson Strategic ConsultingFormer Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
Kathleen Wallman, Wallman Consulting, LLCFormer Chief of the FCC Common Carrier Bureau
Media Access Project
1625 K Street, NW
Suite 1000
Washington, DC 20006
Phone: 202.232.4300
Fax: 202.466.7656
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