Cost of Living Increases Announced for Music Royalties Paid by Webcasters to SoundExchange and by Noncommercial Broadcasters to SESAC and GMR

In Federal Register notices published this week, the Copyright Royalty Board announced cost-of-living increases for two sets of music royalties.  Webcasters, including broadcasters streaming their signals on the web or through mobile apps, will be paying more to SoundExchange for the public performance of sound recordings.  In addition, noncommercial broadcasters affiliated with educational institutions, but not affiliated with… Continue Reading…

December Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Biennial Ownership Reports, Annual EEO Public File Reports, LPFM Filing Window, LUC Political Windows for 2024 Election, and More

Even with the holidays upon us, regulation never stops.  There are numerous regulatory dates in December to which broadcasters need to keep in mind.  Furthermore, as the 2024 presidential campaign is already underway, there are political advertising deadlines to watch out for.  Here are some of the upcoming deadlines: December 1 is the filing deadline… Continue Reading…

This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters:  November 13 to November 17, 2023

Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the past week, with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations. Also, this week Congress averted a shutdown of the federal government by passing a continuing resolution to fund the government… Continue Reading…

Meta to Require Labeling of Digitally Altered Political Ads (Including Those Generated By AI) – Looking at the Rules that Apply to Various Media Platforms Limiting Such Policies on Broadcast and Cable

Facebook parent Meta announced this week that it will require labeling on ads using artificial intelligence or other digital tools regarding elections and political and social issues. Earlier this week, we wrote about the issues that AI in political ads pose for media companies and about some of the governmental regulations that are being considered… Continue Reading…

Artificial Intelligence in Political Ads – Media Companies Beware

In the Washington Post last weekend, an op-ed article suggested that political candidates should voluntarily renounce the use of artificial intelligence in their campaigns.  The article seemed to be looking for candidates to take the actions that governments have largely thus far declined to mandate.  As we wrote back in July, despite calls from some… Continue Reading…

Orson Welles’ War of the Worlds Turns 85 – Could the Panic It Caused Happen Today? 

Monday was the 85th anniversary of the Mercury Players broadcast of the Orson Welles production of The War of the Worlds – a radio broadcast that seemingly scared many Americans into thinking that the country was under attack by Martians, that my home state of New Jersey had been overrun, and that the rest of the country would soon… Continue Reading…

FCC Announces Second EEO Audit of 2023 – 150 Radio and TV Stations Must Report on Their EEO Compliance

The FCC this week released its second EEO audit notice for 2023.  The FCC’s Public Notice, audit letter, and the list of stations selected for audit is available here.  Those stations, and the station employment units (commonly owned or controlled stations serving the same area sharing at least one employee) with which they are associated, must provide… Continue Reading…