Washington Beat

There's a new Chief Information Officer at the Commission, and it sees the former Chief Digital Officer at the Food & Drug Administration take responsibilities for setting and overseeing the overall technical vision of the agency led by Brendan Carr.

Political advertising remains healthy for broadcast radio and TV. However, Brian Wieser of Madison and Wall predicts 2026 will bring tempered growth. That's due, in part, to the ongoing desire among marketers and consumers to shift to digital and social media platforms when it comes to visual entertainment.

As 2026 began, the Enforcement Bureau notified the individual identified as the operator of an unlicensed FM radio station that he would face a possible fine for $20,000 for his illegal activity. The Commission has just affirmed that proposed fine, while simultaneously issuing two proposed forfeiture notices to a pair of other radio pirates.

The noncommercial media organization devoted to covering the activities of the U.S. Congress created by Brian Lamb has creating a new senior leadership position focused on expanding philanthropic support.

The upcoming incentive auctions threaten to disrupt local broadcast television, and it might profoundly disrupt stations near one of America’s international borders. Members of...

Doug Collins (R-GA) believes the FCC and its Chairman, Tom Wheeler, overreached

A January 23 “OTT Summit” has been scheduled by the NAB’s PILOT initiative and the LMA

For the first time in six months, the FCC Chairman and all Commissioners participated in a Senate Commerce Committee Oversight Hearing led by Sen. John Thune (R-S. Dakota). From the get-go, Thune expressed his pleasure with the leadership of new Chairman Ajit Pai -- and wasn't shy in expressing his displeasure with the overall atmosphere created by Pai's predecessor. Ranking Member Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) was quick to express his "continued frustration that Jessica Rosenworcel is not sitting before us today as a commissioner."

For the last decade, musicFIRST has made it its mission to establish itself as the No. 1 advocate for artists’ rights. These efforts have been stepped up in a big way since the arrival in January of Chris Israel. Who is he, and why is he leading a push on Capitol Hill that has captured the attention -- and support -- of such House members as Darrell Issa, Marsha Blackburn and Ted Deutch? This RBR + TVBR INFOCUS pieces reviews Israel's rise, and that of musicFIRST.

The Communications Director for Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) has taken over as Director for the FCC's Office of Media Relations. The move results in the return as Deputy Director of Acting Director Mark Wigfield.

The acting is over for Michelle M. Carey. The FCC has chosen to make the six-year deputy chief of its Media Bureau its official chief, making her the successor to Bill Lake.

In the latest action that indicates the FCC's quest to quash pirate broadcasters is being invigorated, Enforcement Bureau Regional Director Dave Dombrowski on Monday sent a Forfeiture Order to an individual in Paterson, N.J. in the amount of $25,000 for his unlicensed activities. The pirate was using a signal reserved for a translator some 15 miles away.

Since stepping down as FCC Chairman on Inauguration Day in January, Tom Wheeler has been relatively mum on what's transpiring at his ol' stomping grounds since becoming a senior fellow at Washington, D.C. think tank The Aspen Institute. Wheeler broke his silence on what the Commission is plotting following his exit in a big way last week, by way of a "Techtank" column appearing at the Brookings Institution's website.

Attention, Northwest Florida radio listeners. You are about to witness the birth of a brand-new radio station. As a result, you are about to witness the death of an FM translator presently using the signal to bring "AM revitalization" to an Urban AC. That's because a full-service station on that frequency is being added to the FCC's FM Table of Allotments.