July is a big month on the Washington regulatory scene for broadcasters. There are, of course, the routine quarterly regulatory obligations. For all stations, commercial and noncommercial, Quarterly Issues Programs Lists, summarizing the most important issues facing a broadcaster’s community, and the programs that were broadcast in the prior quarter to address those issues, must be in a station’s public file (the online public file for all TV stations and for radio stations that have already converted to the online file) by July 10.…
First Annual Northern Golf Tourney a Big Success
The First annual golf tournament held on June 14th at the beautiful Grizzly Ranch Golf Club, 45 minutes north of Reno, was a big success. With the generous support from both the broadcast community and local businesses, the tournament raised over $25,000 for broadcast scholarships.
Thank you to everyone who came out and golfed, all those who help to organize and sponsor the event,…
Main Studio Rule Change
This rule change will affect many of our broadcasters. The FCC wants to know what they think about the proposal.
Released: 06/05/2017. MEDIA BUREAU ANNOUNCES COMMENT AND REPLY COMMENT DEADLINES FOR MAIN STUDIO RULE NPRM. (DA No. 17-547). Comments Due: 07/03/2017. Reply Comments Due: 07/17/2017. MB . Contact: Diana Sokolow at (202) 418-2120, email: Diana.Sokolow@fcc.gov https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-17-547A1.doc
https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-17-547A1.pdf…
FCC Releases Instructions for Window for AM Stations to File for FM Translators and Announces Translator Filing Freeze – Pay Attention to the Details!
Late yesterday, the FCC released the Public Notice setting out the instructions for the upcoming window for Class C and D AM stations to file for new FM translators. The window will be open for the submission of applications from July 26 to August 2 – and mutually exclusive applications filed during that window will be resolved by an auction if they cannot be resolved by settlements or engineering solutions.…
Comments on FCC Proposal to Abolish Broadcast Main Studio Rule Due July 3
In today’s Federal Register, the FCC has given notice of its proposal to abolish the main studio rule. That notice, here, sets the date for comments on this proposal as July 3. Reply comments are due two weeks later on July 17. We wrote about the FCC’s proposal and the questions being asked in this proceeding here and here.…
First Window for New FM Translators for AM Stations to Open July 26
The FCC released a Public Notice announcing that its window for Class C and D AM stations to file for new FM translators to rebroadcast their stations will open on July 26. The notice does not say much more except that there will be another notice coming soon providing more details on the filing process. This notice does not say whether applications will be processed on a first-come,…
FCC Proposes Regulatory Fees to Be Paid Later This Year – Questions about Allocation of Radio Fees, TV Satellite Stations, and Small Entity Exceptions
Each year, the FCC is required by Congress to collect regulatory fees to cover the costs of its operations. All entities regulated by the FCC contribute to the amount necessary to cover the FCC’s costs – fees being allocated by the proportion of the total number of FCC employees needed to regulate a particular service. Before requiring the payment of the fees (which is usually done in September,…
FCC Officially Starts Proceedings to Abolish Main Studio Rule and Review All Other Broadcast Rules
As expected, at its monthly open meeting yesterday, the FCC started two proceedings of particular importance to broadcasters. The first looks at the abolition of the main studio rules. The second asks for comments on all of the other rules affecting broadcasters and other media companies to see which are ripe for appeal. For the most part, the proposals as adopted mirrored the draft orders released for public review back at the end of April,…
Broadcasters Day in Carson City 2017
View pictures from the day here.
5/11/17…
Announcement of FCC Window for AM Stations to File For New FM Translators Coming Very Soon
At the NAB Convention, Chairman Pai announced that the promised windows for AM stations to apply for new FM translators would open this summer (see our article here). It now looks as if that promise is about to become a reality as on Friday the FCC added to its list of “items on circulation” a Public Notice announcing that window.…
5 Questions on the Meaning of the FCC’s Recent Ruling on Online Recruiting – How Does it Change a Broadcaster’s EEO Obligations?
The FCC recently issued a declaratory ruling (which we summarized here) addressing the requirement that broadcasters widely disseminate information about all of their job openings in such a way as to reach all of the groups within their communities. The recent FCC decision stated that a broadcaster can now rely solely on online sources to meet the wide dissemination obligation.…
Update: Comment Dates Set on Prometheus Petition for Reconsideration of Relaxation of Siting Rules for FM Translators Rebroadcasting AM Stations
Earlier this week, we wrote about a number of proceedings affecting FM translators, including the Petition for Reconsideration (available here) of the FCC decision relaxing the rules governing the locations at which AM stations using FM translators to rebroadcast their signal can locate those translators (see our summary here). Notice of that Petition has now been published in the Federal Register,…
