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.
- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit vacated the FCC’s decisions in the 2018 Quadrennial Review to retain the Top-4 Prohibition (prohibiting broadcasters from owning two of the top-4 affiliated TV stations in a DMA) and to close the “Note 11 loophole” to the TV ownership rule (adding LPTV stations and multicast streams to the prohibition on broadcasters acquiring another in-market station’s Top 4 network affiliation). This action will mean that the Top 4 rule will be gone, unless the FCC can, within 90 days, find evidence that it previously overlooked to show that retention of the cap was reasonable. The court upheld the FCC’s decision to retain its radio ownership caps and refused to change the rule limiting TV owners to two stations in any market. FCC Chairman Carr issued a statement praising the court for vacating rules which “only made it harder for trusted and local sources of news and information to compete in today’s media environment.” We further discussed the Court’s decision on our Broadcast Law Blog, and what actions the FCC may take next on broadcast ownership deregulation (particularly regarding radio) following the decision.
- The FCC issued an Order approving, by a vote of 2-1, Skydance Media’s acquisition of control of Paramount. In September 2024, Skydance and Paramount filed applications with the FCC proposing that Skydance’s principal David Ellison acquire a controlling stake in Paramount and become its Chairman and CEO (see our discussion here, here, here, here, here, here, and here). The FCC dismissed concerns regarding the merger’s anticompetitive effects, and its alleged negative impact on localism, jobs, and national security. The FCC also accepted Skydance’s “firm and definite” commitments to ensuring that CBS’ news and entertainment programming embodies a of viewpoint diversity across the political and ideological spectrum, and appointing an ombudsman to handle bias complaints against CBS. The FCC further found that Paramount’s elimination of its DEI initiatives and its corresponding changes to its leadership structure, training, corporate sponsorships, supplier selection, hiring, career development resources, and public and internal messaging were in the public interest. FCC Chairman Carr and Commissioner Trusty issued statements supporting the decision. Commissioner Gomez dissented based on Paramount’s “baseless” settlement of the Trump lawsuit about the 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris during the 2024 election and its other “troubling concessions” made to secure approval of the deal.
- At its July Open Meeting, the FCC adopted its first Direct Final Rule in the Delete, Delete, Delete proceeding, eliminating 18 rules that the FCC deemed obsolete or outdated. The only rule that dealt with broadcasting was its closed captioning decoder requirements for analog TV receivers. As we noted here, the direct final rule process allows the FCC to vote to delete a rule with no prior public comments, but allowing a 10-day comment period after the deletion order where, if substantive negative comments are filed, the FCC will then implement regular notice and comment procedures before the deletion becomes effective. The final version of the FCC’s Order on the Direct Final Rule process and the 18 deletions has yet to be released, but comments will be due 10 days after its publication in the Federal Register.
- The FCC’s Media Bureau announced that July 25 was the effective date of certain rules adopted in the November 2024 Order in which the FCC permitted FM broadcasters to originate limited amounts of programming on their FM boosters to allow for insertions of unique program material such as localized advertising or news breaks (see our discussion here). These rules required Office of Management and Budget’s approval before taking effect, which has now been obtained. The rules include political file requirements for FM boosters that originate programming, Quarterly Issues/Programs lists requirements, interference protection and complaints procedures, and requirements to notify the FCC and state EAS plan administrators before a booster starts to originate programming. Stations must now use FCC Form 336 to notify the FCC when they originate programming on FM boosters.
- The Media Bureau also announced that more of the FCC’s actions eliminating or amending many of its cable rate regulations taken in a June Report and Order will become effective August 13 after they received OMB approval this week. These rules became obsolete or unworkable due to the end of most rate regulation years ago.
- FCC Commissioner Trusty followed FCC Chairman Carr and Commissioner Gomez (see our notes here) by releasing her own statement regarding Congress’ rescission of $1.1 billion in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (an action signed into law by the President this past week), thereby cutting funding to many NPR and PBS stations. Trusty stated that since “Americans are increasingly skeptical of media institutions,” it was not “unreasonable for taxpayers to expect transparency, accountability, and balance from any outlet receiving federal support.” Trusty also stated the funding rescission “does not signal the end of public media,” but instead it “presents an opportunity for innovation, partnerships, and more localized decision-making.”
- Comments were filed responding to the FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposing to require certain FCC-regulated entities and auction applicants, including all broadcast licensees and permittees, to file a certification stating if they are owned or controlled by a foreign adversary (see our discussion here and here). The NAB, the only major commenter addressing broadcaster issues raised in the NPRM, argues that these certifications are unnecessary, burdensome, and contrary to the FCC’s recent deregulatory initiatives, and therefore should be limited to entities with controlled by a foreign adversary. The NAB also argues that the proposed streamlined license revocation procedures for entities failing to report ownership by foreign adversaries violate the Communications Act, which entitles broadcasters to a hearing before their stations’ licenses are revoked. Instead, the NAB suggests that the FCC should revoke licenses only when an entity’s failure to comply is willful or presents national security concerns.
- The Media Bureau entered into three Consent Decrees with several TV stations to settle investigations of violations of the children’s programming commercialization limits:
- The Media Bureau entered into a Consent Decree with Univision to settle an investigation into its TV stations’ ad limit violations during Pokémon and Pocoyo programs, as disclosed in its license renewal applications. Univision reported that on several occasions, 41 of its stations aired a Pokémon program containing 3 minutes and 45 seconds of ads over the 12-minute per hour limit. Univision also reported that on several occasions, 36 of its stations aired a Pocoyo program containing 40 seconds of ads over the limit, and displayed for three seconds a URL for a website where show-related products could be purchased, which the FCC’s rules also prohibit. The Consent Decree requires Univision to make a $300,000 “voluntary contribution” to the U.S. Treasury and to implement a compliance plan.
- The Media Bureau entered into two Consent Decrees (here and here) with three TV stations to settle a September 2024 Forfeiture Order imposing $20,000 monetary penalties for their program length commercial violations during a Hot Wheels program (a decision we noted here). Similar to the Consent Decrees that the Bureau entered into last week with other TV station owners (which we noted here), these Consent Decrees eliminate the licensees’ financial penalties, and required the licensees to implement compliance plans. The Bureau also entered into a Consent Decree last month with Sinclair, which originated the Hot Wheels program that aired on these stations, to settle its $2.6 million penalty under the Forfeiture Order, along with other issues, through a $500,000 payment and a compliance plan (see our discussion here).
- The Media Bureau and Office of Managing Director revoked a Kentucky AM station’s license for failure to pay its delinquent regulatory fees or show cause why payment should be waived or deferred. In April, the station was issued an Order to Pay or Show Cause requiring the station, within 60 days, to either pay its delinquent regulatory fees or explain why the fees could not be paid. The station’s license was revoked after it neither timely responded to the Order nor paid its delinquent fees. The station currently has an unpaid regulatory fee debt totaling $9,261.41 for fiscal years 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2022, and 2023.
- The Media Bureau dismissed a Florida LPFM construction permit application based on objections that the applicant failed to meet the FCC’s LPFM localism requirement. The Bureau found that the multiple addresses submitted by the applicant that could be its headquarters were all located more than 10 miles from the proposed station’s transmitter site (the limit for LPFM applicants within one of the top 50 urban markets). Following the application’s dismissal, the Bureau granted an objector’s mutually exclusive application.
