News – Page 159 – Tennessee Association of Broadcasters

Facebook Not Fact-Checking Candidate Ads – Looking at the Contrast Between Online Political Ads and Those Running on Broadcast and Cable

By David Oxenford|2020-01-13T11:02:42-06:00January 13th, 2020|Legal News|

This weekend, the New York Times ran an article seemingly critical of Facebook for not rejecting ads from political candidates that contained false statements of fact. We have already written that this policy of Facebook matches the policy that Congress has imposed on broadcast stations and local cable franchisees who sell time to political candidates... Continue Reading…

PIRATE Act Passes Senate, and Now on to the President for Signature – Provides for Big Fines and Enforcement Sweeps in Big Markets

By David Oxenford|2020-01-10T10:53:12-06:00January 10th, 2020|Legal News|

The PIRATE Act, to crack down on pirate radio, passed the Senate this week after having passed in the House of Representatives last year. It now goes to the President for signature. We’ve written about this legislation several times before (see for instance, our articles here and here). In this final version, it provides more... Continue Reading…

Radiofrequency Exposure Limits Revised: FCC Proposes Expanding Rules to Cover Higher Frequencies

By Peter Tannenwald|2020-01-09T11:45:09-06:00January 9th, 2020|Legal News|

The Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) has resolved many of the issues that it has been considering since 2013 with respect to limits on exposure of human beings to radiofrequency (“RF”) energy. An important aspect of the decision is that existing exposure limits will not be tightened. However, the environmental rules dealing with RF exposure have...… Continue Reading

A Broadcaster’s 2020 Regulatory Calendar – Looking at Some of the Important Dates for the Year Ahead

By David Oxenford|2020-01-09T08:23:47-06:00January 9th, 2020|Legal News|

Here we are, more than a week into the New Year, and already we’ve written about a host of regulatory issues that will be facing broadcasters in the first month of the year (see for instance our articles here and here). But what about the rest of the year? As we do most years, we’ve... Continue Reading…

University Pays $76,000 Fine to Settle Complaint About Underwriting Announcements on Noncommercial Station that Went Too Far

By David Oxenford|2020-01-08T11:25:40-06:00January 8th, 2020|Legal News|

Every noncommercial station, including LPFMs, that accepts underwriting announcements should be concerned about making sure that the announcements meet FCC guidelines and remain truly non-controversial. An FCC Order was released yesterday announcing a consent decree entered into between the University of Arkansas and the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau. The Order illustrates what can happen if noncommercial... Continue Reading…

FCC Sets Comments Deadline for Retransmission Consent Proposal

By FHH Law|2020-01-08T10:55:56-06:00January 8th, 2020|Legal News|

On January 2, 2020, we wrote about an FCC proposal to modify the present requirement for cable TV systems to give 30 days’ notice to subscribers when a program channel may be removed because of failure to agree on retransmission consent terms. The deadlines for Comments and Reply Comments have now been announced. Initial Comments...… Continue Reading

FCC Wants You to Dial 988 Before It’s Too Late: Abbreviated 3-Digit Access to Suicide Help Line Proposed

By Peter Tannenwald|2020-01-07T11:30:49-06:00January 7th, 2020|Legal News|

The Federal Communication Commission (“FCC”) has proposed to establish “988” as a nationwide abbreviated telephone dialing code to reach the National Suicide Prevention and Mental Health Crisis hotline. An 800 number (1-800-273-TALK) already universally connects to suicide counselors, but people facing a suicide crisis might not remember such a long number. The same hotline will...… Continue Reading

Comments Due March 9 on FCC Proposal to Allow All-Digital AM Stations

By David Oxenford|2020-01-07T09:50:42-06:00January 7th, 2020|Legal News|

The FCC’s proposal to allow AM stations to voluntarily transition into all-digital operations (see our post here for a summary of the FCC’s proposal) was published in the Federal Register today. That sets the comment deadlines in this proceeding – with initial comments due March 9, 2020 and reply comments due by April 6. AM... Continue Reading…

Welcoming Thomas F. Urban II to Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth, P.L.C.

By FHH Law|2020-01-07T08:31:16-06:00January 7th, 2020|Legal News|

Washington-area based telecommunications, media, and technology law firm Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth, P.L.C. is pleased to announce that Thomas F. Urban II has joined the firm as Of Counsel. Tom has experience representing clients in everything from business disputes and class action cases to RICO actions and complex mortgage fraud cases. When it comes to...… Continue Reading