FCC Releases Draft Order to Abolish Main Studio Rule – To Be Considered at its October 24 Meeting

The FCC yesterday released the agenda for its October 24th Open Meeting, as well as draft orders of the matters to be considered at that meeting. For broadcasters, the single most significant proposal was a draft order (available here) to abolish the requirement that a broadcast station maintain a main studio in close proximity to its city of license that is open to the public and staffed during normal business hours.

Shooting in Las Vegas

From the Nevada Broadcasters Association
We are heartbroken by the mass shooting in Las Vegas and our hearts and prayers go out to the victims, their families and to the City of Las Vegas and the state of Nevada.
In an effort to assist in the dissemination of information, The Nevada Broadcasters Association, along with our partner Gacovino & More, are opening our multimedia studios to local media,

October Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Quarterly Issues Programs and Children’s Television Reports, EEO Obligations, Repacking Reports and More

The beginning of a calendar quarter always brings numerous regulatory obligations, and October is one of those months with a particularly full set of obligations. All full-power broadcasters, commercial and noncommercial, must complete their Quarterly Issues Programs Lists and place these reports into their public inspection files by October 10. These reports are the FCC’s only official record of how a station served its community.

List of Mutually Exclusive Applications for FM Translators to Rebroadcast AM Stations Released By FCC – Settlement Window Through November 29

The FCC yesterday released a Public Notice providing the details for its settlement window for mutually exclusive applications for new FM translators to rebroadcast AM stations. The settlement window will run through November 29. The mutually-exclusive applications (applications which conflict with each other as they cannot both operate without creating prohibited interference) are listed on an appendix available here.

FCC Chairman Calls Apple to Activate FM chips in iPhones

This morning, Chairman Pai called on Apple to activate FM chips in iPhones. His tweet: https://twitter.com/AjitPaiFCC/status/913419619527995395
Our @NVBroadcasters tweet, which the Chairman liked: https://twitter.com/NVBroadcasters/status/913420219145768962.

From RadioWorld.com
by Paul McLane
Ajit Pai just weighed in more forcefully on the FM chip debate, and did something unusual, calling out an electronics manufacturer by name.
Pai — chairman of the Federal Communications Commission and already something of a hero to many U.S.

Update: FCC Approves Changes to AM Proofing Requirements

The week before last, we summarized an FCC draft order to relax rules on proofs of performance for AM stations – lessening the number of monitoring points needed in traditional partial proofs of performance, and relaxing a number of previous-imposed limitations on the use of Method of Moments proofs (see our post here for more details). While this decision,

Puerto Rico’s WKAQ-AM shows unwavering dedication in the face of Hurricane Maria

By Patricia Mazzei
pmazzei@miamiherald.com
 
September 20, 2017 4:03 PM
SAN JUAN Normally, Rubén Sánchez would not interrupt a live interview with as prominent a newsmaker as Gov. Ricardo Rosselló.
But Wednesday was anything but normal.
Less than an hour after Hurricane Maria plowed into Puerto Rico, Rosselló was updating Spanish-language radio listeners by phone on the Category 4 storm’s destructive path when host Sánchez suddenly interrupted.

Third Quarter FCC Deadline Advisories

It’s end of quarter time again, which brings with it various FCC deadlines. To assist in continuing to keep all our members up to speed, below are links to three recently published Pillsbury Advisories. For your convenience.
2017 Third Quarter Children’s Television Programming Documentation
2017 Third Quarter Issues-Programs List Advisory for Broadcast Stations
Annual EEO report deadlines for multiple states and U.S.

Help for Victims of Harvey and Irma


 
 
 
Our thoughts go out to all of the victims who are suffering through the horrific tragedy of hurricanes Harvey and Irma. To show your support or for more information click HERE to be redirected to the American Red Cross/Harvey page and HERE for the American Red Cross/Irma page.