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Weak Standards Will Not Protect the Public

Posted December 2nd, 2007 by Craig Aaron

The ease with which waivers could be granted under Martin’s plan to eliminate cross-ownership is very troubling given the FCC’s record under the current, stricter standards.

Fact No. 4: FCC History Shows Weak Standards Will Not Protect the Public

The existing cross-ownership rule forbids newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership, but the FCC has still managed to grant “temporary” waivers indefinitely or to simply ignore the rule altogether. Friday’s FCC decision to grant further waivers to Tribune Co. is just the latest example — more on that soon.

The problem with waivers

By themselves, waivers are problematic. Waivers eliminate transparency. Citizens lack the time to follow hundreds of waiver cases in markets across the country. Waivers also require more resources than consumer groups can muster. Media companies can hire million-dollar lawyers for each application, while consumer groups and citizens cannot.

But the FCC’s record makes the prospect of more waivers even more discouraging. Since 2001, the FCC has never denied a request for a temporary cross-ownership waiver, even though citizen groups have challenged requests in at least eight cases in California, New York, Connecticut, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia and Tennessee.

FCC inaction

The FCC also grants “temporary” waivers requiring sales — but doesn’t force the companies to sell
when waivers expire:

In 2001, Tribune received a temporary waiver from having to sell a TV station or newspaper in Hartford, Conn. Tribune sold nothing. In 2003, after the waiver expired, a local citizen sued Tribune and a federal judge ruled against Tribune. Then the FCC stepped in and — instead of punishing Tribune — granted another two-year waiver, overruling the judge.
In 2001, the FCC gave Fox a “temporary” waiver to sell a newspaper or broadcast station in two years. Fox made no effort to sell. The FCC made no effort to enforce. In 2006, after three years in violation, the FCC gave Fox another two-year waiver.

Remember, these examples occurred under much stricter rules than Martin has proposed. Under the much weaker standard of “presumption,” we can expect the FCC to open the floodgates of consolidation permanently.

Over the next two weeks at StopBigMedia.com, we’ll be counting down the “10 Facts Kevin Martin Doesn’t Want You to Know” about his new media ownership rules, as exposed in our new report — Devil in the Details.

Next:Cross-ownership doesn’t create more local news.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 2nd, 2007 at 8:22 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.