Month: June 2020

Reps. Ask FCC to Table Broadcast Reg Fee Hike

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Said that is needed COVID-19 aid for key players in national pandemic response

A bipartisan House duo has asked the FCC to cut broadcasters some slack when it comes to regulatory fees given that TV and radio are critical components of COVID-19 response and that their ad revenue has taken a big hit.

Reps. Ann McLane Kuster (D-N.H.) and Chris Stewart (R-Utah) wrote FCC chair Ajit Pai to ask the FCC not to increase annual broadcast regulatory fees during the pandemic.

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FCC General Counsel Warns 5G Conspiracy Theories Threaten U.S. Economy

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In an editorial, Thomas M. Johnson Jr. writes worries about 5G are “long on panic and short on science”

WASHINGTON—Conspiracy theories regarding the safety of 5G threaten the U.S. economy and run contrary to the findings of the Food and Drug Administration, Thomas M. Johnson Jr., FCC general counsel, wrote yesterday in a Washington Post opinion piece.

“Conjectures about 5G’s effect on human health are long on panic and short on science,” wrote Johnson.

The FCC recently reviewed its RF emissions standards, which Johnson called “the most stringent in the world.” The review drew on work of the FDA that found “the weight of scientific evidence has not linked cell phones with any health problems” and that existing cell phone RF limits protect the public.

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Planning a Studio Reopening? Recording Academy Has Some Tips

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Document lays out a bunch of good ideas that have application in radio too

What considerations should you weigh before reopening your studios?

Helpful guidance comes in the form of a document from the Recording Academy Producers & Engineers Wing. While it targets recording and production studios, most of the advice has direct relevance to radio as well.

Just a sampling:

  • Evaluate rooms in the studio facility and make necessary adjustments to ensure social distancing.
  • Consider requiring individuals to wear cloth face coverings while inside the entire facility; in some parts of the country, face coverings may be required by law in outdoor areas as well.
  • Have work that cannot be performed with face coverings take place in an isolation room or an otherwise empty studio.

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More than 60 reporters attacked, arrested or harassed since George Floyd protests began, group says

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The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) said it has tallied more than 60 incidents in which journalists covering demonstrations over death of George Floyd during the course of his arrest by Minneapolis police were attacked, arrested or harassed by protesters or police in the past 48 hours alone.

RTDNA Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer Dan Shelley called the situation “calamitous” and “harming the public at large.”

“Journalists shouldn’t be the story,” Shelley said. “It is calamitous to see all of these journalists who are merely serving the public by covering these incidents of civil unrest being wantonly attacked. … Journalists are representatives of the public and are there to serve the public and to tell the stories of the protesters and of the elected and other public officials trying to deal with the situation.”

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