Say Big Tech is draining off critical ad dollars
Local broadcasters are urging the Senate to provide tax credits to stations that staff up their newsrooms, citing, in part, Big Tech’s “devouring” of their local ad market. In a letter to Senate leadership, all 50 state broadcaster associations called for passage of the Local Journalism Sustainability Act.
People of color own and control 6% of the nation’s full-power TV stations, 7% of commercial FM radio stations and 12% of commercial AM radio stations but make up more than 40% of the U.S. population.
Congressional leaders and a media advocacy group are urging the Federal Communications Commission to examine how policy decisions and programs have disparately harmed Black Americans and other communities of color.
In a letter sent to the acting FCC chair, Democratic U.S. Reps. Jamaal Bowman of New York, Yvette Clarke of New York and Brenda Lawrence of Michigan along with Media 2070 said the FCC should conduct an assessment to “address and redress” the harm the agency’s policies and programs have caused Black and brown communities and identify “affirmative steps the agency commits to taking to break down barriers to just media and telecommunication practices.”
The National Association of Broadcasters is doubling down on its position that Big Tech companies should pay annual regulatory fees to the Federal Communications Commission. In reply comments filed Friday, the trade group says a June 4 DC Circuit Court decision gives the agency the authority to do so.
The FCC has proposed to hike annual fees by an average of eight percent as it aims to collect $374 million from all the industries it regulates. Some fees will go up by as much as 15% in what would be a third consecutive year of broadcast owners being asked to dig deeper.
The NAB’s position is the FCC has the authority to ensure that all industries pay for their fair share of the Commission’s indirect costs and should charge big tech companies and other unlicensed spectrum users regulatory fees to more accurately reflect the work the Commission performs.
Now the trade group is calling on the Commission to issue a Further Notice Of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on charging regulatory fees for Big Tech and other unlicensed spectrum users.
INSIDE RADIO
One year after the pandemic sidelined the now-annual national test of the Emergency Alert System, the Federal Emergency Management Agency expects to return to form this summer. Sources say FEMA is tentatively planning to conduct the national EAS test on Wednesday, Aug. 11 with a backup date of Wednesday, Aug. 25 to be used if any unforeseen circumstances – such as a hurricane – requires a two-week delay.
Insiders say FEMA is planning to conduct a national test similar to what was done in 2019. Two years ago, the government leaned on broadcasters and the daisy-chain system for distributing messages during a national emergency. It will also be a gauge of whether federal efforts to beef up PEP stations – the network of 77 mostly AM stations that have a direct connection to FEMA and act as a primary broadcast source for national EAS messages – have improved the reliability of the system. Unlike the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS), the PEP system does not rely on internet delivery. The addition of new stations has improved PEP’s direct coverage from 67% of the U.S. population in 2009 to more than 90% today.
Washington, D.C. — National Association of Broadcasters President and CEO Gordon H. Smith announced today his plans to transition to an advisory and advocacy role effective Dec. 31, 2021. The organization’s Chief Operating Officer Curtis LeGeyt has been named the next president and CEO of NAB effective Jan. 1, 2022.
In a video message to members, Smith said, “It has been my great honor to give the lion’s roar for broadcasters – those who run into the storm, those who stand firm in chaos to hear the voice of the people, those who hold to account the powerful – and to stand with those of the fourth estate who have the hearts of public servants.”
NAB Joint Board of Directors Chairman Jordan Wertlieb, president of Hearst Television, thanked Smith for his service to the industry. “Gordon is the ultimate statesman, bringing people together from both sides of the aisle to discuss ideas, find common ground and lead NAB to success on countless fronts,” said Wertlieb. “On behalf of the leadership of NAB, we extend our sincere gratitude for more than a decade of service to the broadcast industry. We look forward to continuing to work with Gordon and benefiting from his guidance for years to come.”
Wertlieb noted that Smith worked closely with the board leadership on a succession plan that will enable him to continue to serve NAB in a special advisory role through December 31, 2024, which includes lobbying on behalf of the broadcasters.
The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a move by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) to relax media ownership rules, handing down a unanimous ruling that favors large broadcasters.
The decision dealt a blow to challengers who argued that laxer regulations could usher in more media consolidation at the expense of minority and female media ownership.
The justices found the FCC had acted reasonably in its 2017 regulatory rollback, which included scrapping a rule that had barred a single company from owning a radio or TV station along with a newspaper in a single local market.
Read more from The Hill: https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/545957-supreme-court-upholds-fcc-move-to-loosen-media-ownership-rules
Ajit Pai announced this morning that he will be stepping down as Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission on Jan. 20. In a statement he called his time at the agency “the honor of a lifetime” and noted that on his watch the Commission adopted more than 25 proposals to update media regulations. Pai, 47, was appointed by President Obama to fill one of the Republican-controlled seats. In 2017, when President Trump was sworn in, he turned to Pai to take over the agency. Pai’s departure will allow President-elect Joe Biden to name a new head of the FCC.
By Paige Albiniak | TV NewsCheck
Just like so many other things, the pandemic has forced much of TV stations’ hiring processes to go virtual. Stations have made it work, even when it comes to such challenges as hiring new leaders — and relocating them, which multiplies the degree of difficulty — and hiring entire rosters for such mammoth endeavors as launching a new network or a new show.
The good news is that TV stations are still hiring. In most cases, they aren’t expanding their teams or trying to grow, but they are maintaining head counts and filling spots that come open due to promotion or attrition. Part of that is because while local TV was hurt early in the pandemic due to the resulting advertising slowdown, much of that money came back when the election heated up in late summer and fall.
Familiar problems of tight-fisted lenders and new hurdles brought by the coronavirus, and the recent focus on racial justice dominated much of the conversation Friday as the FCC’s Diversity Advisory Committee put the focus on broadcast ownership. The daylong symposium was held virtually, a reflection of the current situation with COVID-19. Beasley Broadcast Group CEO Caroline Beasley, who chairs the FCC Diversity Committee’s Access to Capital Working Group, said their focus “shifted” this year as the impact of the pandemic on business became clear.
Much of the discussion centered on the ongoing problem of too little financing available for minority owners, which has prevented them from buying stations. FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said the pandemic has only made the problem worse for small business owners like radio station operators. “Many of them are in small markets where they operate on razor thin margins to be profitable. Unfortunately, some have had to shutter and hopefully more won’t before this is over,” he said.
Starks, like nearly all of the speakers, backed a revival of a minority tax certificate program, which has been long been endorsed by the Diversity Committee. The bill that use the federal tax code to incentivize current radio and TV station owners to spin-off stations to women and minorities was passed out of committee in September and there is hope it will be taken up by the House and Senate during the lame duck session.
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