Regulation

As the president searches for ways to respond to last month’s Florida school shooting, he was wading into this debate by bringing together representatives of the video game industry and some of their most vocal critics for a discussion Thursday at the White House.

Chairman Ajit Pai steps up the FCC’s efforts to help the island territories repair and expand wireless and broadband networks devastated by last year’s hurricanes.

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) introduced legislation on Wednesday to prohibit internet providers from blocking or slowing content, in an effort to restore some of the net neutrality rules repealed by the FCC in December.

The family of a woman who died three months after being injured in a fall from her wheelchair outside a venue where America’s Got Talent was being taped is suing the show and NBCUniversal for wrongful death.

Van Barnes, former assistant of Transparent star Jeffrey Tambor, appeared on Wednesday’s edition of NBC’s Megyn Kelly Today to detail the sexual harassment allegations she has leveled against the actor.

A House Democrat introduced a bill today that would allow media outlets to band together to negotiate for better terms with giant tech platforms that have been dominating the market for online ad revenue. Rep. David Cicilline’s (D-R.I.) Journalism Competition and Preservation Act would grant a temporary antitrust waiver for news publishers to collectively negotiate with companies like Facebook and Google.

President Donald Trump is reviving an old debate over whether violent video games can trigger violent behavior. There’s just one problem: Roughly two decades of research has repeatedly failed to uncover any such link.

The House on Tuesday voted to reauthorize the FCC, passing the bipartisan Ray Baum Act, legislation that includes increasing the funds available to broadcasters to offset costs incurred by the spectrum repack. Legislators working on a federal government “omnibus” spending bill will decide how just much additional will be provided for the repack beyond $1.75 billion that was in the original repack legislation. The bill also aims to boost the development of 5G networks. 

A bill that bans non-compete clauses in television news contracts is on its way to the Utah Senate floor for a vote.

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway violated the Hatch Act on two occasions, the Office of Special Counsel informed the Trump administration Tuesday. Appearing in her official capacity, Conway endorsed and advocated against political candidates, the watchdog said, referring its findings to President Trump “for appropriate disciplinary action.”

WXYZ Detroit anchor Malcom Maddox repeatedly propositioned a colleague for “deviant” sex, according to a sexual harassment lawsuit filed Tuesday. Former reporter Tara Edwards sued the station and parent company Scripps Media, in federal court, four months after Maddox temporarily was placed on administrative leave amid allegations involving an unnamed colleague.

On Monday, Washington became the first state to set up its own net-neutrality requirements after U.S. regulators repealed Obama-era rules that banned internet providers from blocking content or interfering with online traffic. “We know that when D.C. fails to act, Washington state has to do so,” Gov. Jay Inslee said before signing the measure that lawmakers passed with bipartisan support. “We know how important this is.”

A former analyst at ESPN has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit, claiming anchor John Buccigross repeatedly made unwanted sexual advances toward her. Adrienne Lawrence says she was terminated after complaining about his behavior and that of other men at ESPN.

The FCC last week released its tentative agenda for its March open meeting. On it was a single item dealing with broadcast issues, a draft Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing to ease the paperwork involved in the sale of a satellite TV station. This proposal is a small step to reduce burdens on a small class of broadcasters — but at least it is another step that is being taken in this initiative. The draft proposal will be considered at the FCC’s meeting scheduled for March 22.

Six technology companies including Kickstarter, Foursquare and Etsy have launched a lawsuit against the FCC in an effort to preserve net neutrality rules. The companies, which also include Shutterstock, Expa and Automattic, on Monday filed their petition with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A major Middle Eastern satellite network now believed to be majority-owned by Saudi Arabia has stopped airing Turkish soap operas, the latest entertainment casualties […]

Both the House and Senate Commerce Committees have agreed to bring the FCC reauthorization bill, “Ray Baum’s Act,” to the House floor for a vote next on March 6. The bill includes the repack fund that will compensate radio stations, translators, and LPTVs for costs related to displacement and reduced power while TV stations are “repacked” on the spectrum, and adds elements of the Senate’s Mobile Now Act promoting the development of 5G networks.

President Trump has invited representatives of the video game industry to a meeting at the White House next week, days after he suggested a link between violent games and a recent spate of deadly school shootings including in Parkland, Fla.

The Wall Street Journal reports that YouTube last year stopped hiring white and Asian males for technical positions because they didn’t help the company achieve its goals for improving diversity, according to a civil complaint filed by a former employee. Journal subscribers can read the full story here.

In an attempt to restore the net neutrality rules, consumer advocacy group Free Press Thursday filed suit against the FCC. Free Press argues that the FCC can’t support Chairman Ajit Pai’s claim that the former rules resulted in a drop in investment by carriers.

Public broadcasters have asked the FCC to exempt noncommercial TV statiions from a regulation requiring them to broadcast using two different standards during rollout of the new ATSC 3.0 standard.

The departure of one of the president’s longest-serving advisers, who worked as a one-woman communications shop during his winning campaign, came as a surprise to most in the White House — and cast a pall over the West Wing at a tumultuous time. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

The attorneys general say that the FCC lacks authority to raise the nominal 39% cap, but it does have the power to eliminate the UHF discount and it should exercise that power to prevent all stations groups from exceeding 39%. “[L]ifting or eliminating the national audience reach limit threatens diversity, competition, and localism,” they say.

With primaries in some states happening as soon as March, the 2018 election cycle is certain to be contentious and hard-fought. Now is the time for broadcasters to review their systems to ensure that they will be in compliance with the FCC’s political advertising requirements. The FCC’s political broadcast rules generally cover: 1) who is entitled to access to broadcast advertising time; 2) how much they pay for that time; and 3) disclosure and recordkeeping requirements. Here’s a look at each of those areas.

On Friday, the FCC announced its first EEO audit of 2018. The notice itself was not sent by mail, but instead by email, the first time that email has been used to for EEO audits. Also, the procedure for responding to the audit is different. No longer does the broadcaster subject to the audit have to submit paper copies of all of its documents to the FCC through the FCC Secretary’s office. Instead, the response will be filed in the station’s online public file.

A top Democratic super PAC is spending $250,000 on a television ad buy to boost Democratic candidate Conor Lamb ahead of next month’s Pennsylvania special election.