The FCC’s Local Radio Ownership Rule has drawn a steady stream of visitors to commissioners’ offices this summer. Now Cox Media Group is the latest broadcaster to press the case for looser radio ownership rules directly to commissioners.
On August 11, Cox Media Group Radio President Rob Babin, Senior Vice President and Associate General Counsel Alysia Long, and Corporate Counsel Taylor Lamb met with Marcus Maher, the Senior Legal Advisor in the office of FCC Commissioner Olivia Trusty.
That’s the same advisor representatives from Beasley Media Group met with several weeks earlier. And, Cox Media Group’s argument largely follows that of Beasley and of Connoisseur Media, who met in June with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr and his staff ahead of meetings with Commissioner Trusty and her senior legal advisor.
For CMG, the local radio ownership caps are relics of a marketplace that no longer exists, as broadcast radio now competes with streaming audio, podcasts, satellite radio, social media, and digital advertising companies that face no comparable ownership restrictions. Thus, that disparity makes it harder for local broadcasters to grow audiences, compete for advertising dollars, and invest in the local news, emergency coverage, and community service that underpin their public-interest obligations.
The CMG team also met separately with Deena Shetler, Chief of Staff and legal advisor to Commissioner Anna Gomez.
The meetings are part of the FCC’s long-delayed 2022 Quadrennial Review, which the Commission voted 3-0 to restart in September 2025. The proceeding also covers the Local Television Ownership Rule and Dual Network Rule. Public comments closed in December, with reply comments following in January. The rulemaking remains pending, however, and the FCC’s ex parte rules continue to give broadcasters and other interested parties a chance to make their case directly to commissioners and staff.
