Political Broadcasting

FCC Repeals COVID-Era Accommodation that Allowed Broadcasters to Offer Businesses Free Advertising Time Without LUC Implications

By David Oxenford|2023-05-16T21:47:57-05:00May 16th, 2023|Legal News|

Yesterday, the FCC’s Media Bureau released a Public Notice announcing that it was repealing the COVID related guidance released in March 2020 that allowed broadcasters, local cable operators, and other media companies subject to the requirements that political candidates be offered Lowest Unit Rates during pre-election periods, to offer free advertising time to advertisers and... Continue Reading…

Fox-Dominion Settlement Focuses Light on Defamation Claims – Broadcasters Beware of Airing Untrue Political Ads

By David Oxenford|2023-04-27T03:53:23-05:00April 27th, 2023|Legal News|

Last week’s announcement of the settlement between Fox News and Dominion Voting Systems certainly dominated the popular press and the discussions among most TV pundits, highlighting the law of defamation for anyone who follows the news. While the case illustrates the principles that we have written about many times on this blog (see, for instance,... Continue Reading…

Looking at the Some of the Policy Issues for Media and Music Companies From the Expanding Use of Artificial Intelligence

By David Oxenford|2023-03-29T08:48:55-05:00March 29th, 2023|Legal News|

Artificial intelligence has been the buzzword of the last few months. Since the public release of ChatGPT, seemingly every tech company has either announced a new AI program or some use for AI that will compete with activities currently performed by real people. While AI poses all sorts of questions for society and issues for... Continue Reading…

This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: March 20 to March 25, 2023

By David Oxenford and Robert Primosch|2023-03-26T10:19:59-05:00March 26th, 2023|Legal News|

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. Continue Reading…

Are Issue Ads By Non-Candidate Groups Entitled to Lowest Unit Rates Just Because a Candidate Approves the Ad? The FCC Is Asked for Its Opinion

By David Oxenford|2023-03-22T10:29:18-05:00March 22nd, 2023|Legal News|

In the 45 days before a political primary and the 60 days before a general election, ads by political candidates (federal, state, or local) airing on a broadcast station or inserted by a local cable system into the programming it transmits to the public are entitled to “lowest unit rates” (LUR). That means that candidates... Continue Reading…

This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: March 13 to March 17, 2023

By David Oxenford and Robert Primosch|2023-03-19T09:34:21-05:00March 19th, 2023|Legal News|

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. Continue Reading…

March Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – Comment Dates on FCC Ownership Rules, FTC Proposed Ban on Noncompete Agreements, and TV Captioning Rules; Higher FCC Application Fees; Daylight Savings Time Adjustments for AM Stations; and More

By David Oxenford and Robert Primosch|2023-02-27T11:10:47-06:00February 27th, 2023|Legal News|

March may not have any of the regular FCC filing deadlines, but there are still plenty of regulatory activities going on this month that should grab the attention of any broadcast or media company. Initially, there are several FCC proceedings in which there are dates in March worth noting. Initially, there are comments in the... Continue Reading…

Broadcasters’ Calendar – A Look Ahead to the Regulatory Dates for 2023

By David Oxenford|2023-01-11T09:36:53-06:00January 11th, 2023|Legal News|

2023 has begun – and everyone is speculating as to what the New Year will bring. Last week, we published an article looking at some of the regulatory issues that the FCC will potentially deal with this year. But some regulatory dates are already on the calendar, and broadcasters need to be aware of the... Continue Reading…

Looking Into the Crystal Ball – What’s Coming in Broadcast Regulation in 2023 From the FCC

By David Oxenford|2023-01-05T09:18:54-06:00January 5th, 2023|Legal News|

It’s a new year, and it’s time to look ahead at what Washington may have in store for broadcasters this year. The FCC may be slow to tackle some of the big issues on its agenda (like the completion of 2018 Quadrennial Review or any other significant partisan issue) as it still has only four... Continue Reading…