Regulation

The FCC earlier last week posted on its blog an article from the chief of its Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau about state EAS plans, stressing how important these plans are to making sure that any emergency message conveyed through an EAS alert is properly transmitted to all who are supposed to receive it, so that it ultimately reaches the members of the public who should be aware of the emergency situation which triggered the alert.  The article contains a link to all of the state EAS plans that have been submitted to and approved by the FCC. Is your station doing what it’s supposed to be doing?

On Tuesday, July 9, Jane Hinckley Halprin will preside over her first hearing as the FCC’s administrative law judge to determine a series of questions regarding the role of a convicted felon in the ownership of four AM radio stations.  Given the absence of any record on which to evaluate Judge Halperin’s style on the bench, we thought it would be a good time to take stock of what we can learn about Judge Halperin from her initial actions as an ALJ.

The FCC has taken flak for trying to free up spectrum in a band (2.5 GHz) used — or FCC Republicans would argue, underused — by educational broadband services (EBS), but Republican commissioner Brendan Carr says that some “national organizations” may be “siphoning millions of dollars” for purposes other than providing the teaching or educational material required, including for political activity.

If the Department of Justice is going to allow T-Mobile to merge with Sprint, it’s going to need more concessions from Deutsche Telekom. The German telecommunications company that will control a combined T-Mobile/Sprint is in talks with both Dish Network and the DOJ on the parameters of a divestiture and spectrum-hosting agreement that will prop up Dish as a new U.S. wireless competitor. Deutsche Telekom, Dish and the DOJ are close to an agreement, and a deal could be finalized by next week, according to people familiar with the matter.

As legislation is being proposed to regulate Big Tech, broadcasters should realize that any regulation involving use of the internet by business will eventually affect television stations, particularly any encroachment on the First Amendment. This is a genuine concern because one of the bubbling issues is who can post what information.

When the FCC initiated its most recent EEO audits, we mentioned that the commission was planning a rulemaking to review the effectiveness of its EEO rules for broadcasting and multichannel video operators. The FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking to review these rules has now been released. This review was prompted by complaints raised in connection with the abolition of the FCC Form 397 Mid-Term EEO Report that the rules were not doing enough to foster minority hiring.

Laurie Luhn, the former Fox News staffer who made sexual abuse allegations against Roger Ailes, has dropped a $750 million lawsuit against Showtime over the forthcoming miniseries The Loudest Voice.

Last week, Senators and Democratic presidential nomination rivals Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and Cory Booker called on the DOJ and FCC to investigate Sinclair’s purchase of 21 regional sports networks from Disney. Why single out Sinclair? Because they don’t like Sinclair’s right-wing, pro-Trump politics. And another thing, it’s hard to see how the FCC can single out Sinclair for doing something (circumventing ownership limits) that many other broadcasters have done with impunity.

Here’s a list of some of the upcoming FCC-related broadcast and telecom deadlines for July through September.

The Supreme Court, in a 5-4 opinion written by Justice Kavanaugh, who was joined by the court’s four traditionally conservative justices (Roberts, Thomas, Alito and Gorsuch), preserves editorial discretion for public access channels.

The FCC has opened an inquiry into Sinclair over its aborted effort to buy the Tribune stations and whether it mislead the commission about who would actually be controlling the stations it was spinning off as part of the deal.

As promised at a recent hearing, Rep. Doris Matsui, co-chair of the Congressional Spectrum Caucus, has released a discussion draft of a C-Band repurposing compromise bill, the Wireless Investment Now in 5G Act, that would have the FCC auctioning some or all of the (3700-4200 MHz) midband spectrum in its effort to free up more airwaves for next-gen wireless broadband.

The White House will hold a summit on social media next month amid growing criticism from President Donald Trump and some in Congress. White House spokesman Judd Deere said the July 11 gathering “will bring together digital leaders for a robust conversation on the opportunities and challenges of today’s online environment.” The White House did not say who will take part and major social media firms did not immediately confirm they will take part.

Former evening anchor Sandra Maas is McKinnon Broadcasting’s San Diego independent KUSI for $10 million. In her lawsuit, Maas alleges retaliatory termination and violation of the equal pay act.

Global online piracy costs the U.S. economy at least $29.2 billion in lost revenue each year. That’s according to a new study, Impacts of Digital Piracy on the U.S. Economy, which was jointly conducted by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Global Innovation Policy Center and NERA Economic Consulting.

ACA Connects says Gray Television’s contractual prohibition on granting carriage of a TV station to MVPD C Spire Fiber makes a mockery of the FCC’s good faith retransmission consent negotiations and market modification process. That came in comments to the FCC on C Spire’s retrans complaint and request for declaratory ruling.

A trio of Democratic Senators/presidential candidates — Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker and Bernie Sanders — has asked both the FCC and Justice Department to take a hard look at Sinclair’s purchase of Disney’s (formerly Fox’s) 21 regional sports networks (RSNs), saying they are worried both about Sinclaircombining the RSNs with its TV stations to raise the price of carriage for the latter, and about the “danger” of Sinclair’s “partisan political” programming getting a wider audience.

Stephanie Grisham, a top aide to First Lady Melania Trump, will be the next White House press secretary, replacing Sarah Huckabee Sanders and taking on an elevated role as President Donald Trump’s communications director.

The Supreme Court struck down a section of federal law Monday that prevented businesses from registering trademarks seen as scandalous or immoral, handing a victory to California fashion brand FUCT.

Trump has changed the role of White House press secretary to the point where it’s no longer necessary, say experts.

Last week, the FCC proposed new children’s TV rules, giving broadcasters much greater flexibility in meeting their quota (three hours a week on average). But the new rules, like the old ones they will replace, will not make our kids smarter. They will only salve the consciences of policymakers who feel they need to do something for children by making broadcasters do something to show they are “paying” for their spectrum.

A judge has appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the decision by Cook County prosecutors do dismiss all charges against Jussie Smollett.

Locast, a startup that provides streaming access to local TV channels in a growing number of markets, continues to succeed where others, such as Aereo and Ivi, crashed and burned. It’s still early days, but Locast appears to have found a way to stream access to those channels without having to dodge the crushing legal hammer of powerful U.S. broadcasters.

It looks like the days of certified mail carriage elections are going the way of the pony express. The FCC will vote July 10 on adopting a broadcast and cable compromise approach to carriage elections notifications, as well as extending it to DBS carriage elections. It is expected to be approved.

The Federal Trade Commission is in the late stages of an investigation into YouTube for allegedly violating children’s privacy, according to four people familiar with the matter, in a probe that threatens the company with a potential fine and already has prompted the tech giant to reevaluate some of its business practices.

The House has approved funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the independent agency that dispenses federal money for noncommercial media. The $495 million in funding, which was not only full funding but an additional $50 million, is for 2022. CPB is forward funded in an attempt to depoliticize the process.