Washington Beat

After several years of silence — at least that’s what it seemed like from the outside — FCC economists again have a voice, says a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. In this column, Mark Jamison argues that the communications industry will benefit from this return of economic voices.

With Tribune Media now heading to Nexstar, the Office of Inspector General revealed that it has wrapped up its follow-up investigation of the now-aborted marriage of Tribune and Sinclair Broadcast Group. Once again, Ajit Pai appears to have done no wrong.

What is the common denominator to successfully serve its community of license for any broadcast operation? Here's the answer, courtesy of featured columnist Ken Benner, who has tallied at least 2,000 station visits.

A Class A FM serving an area of Massachusetts near the Vermont border since 1995 has accrued regulatory fee debt since 2014. The Commission is now taking action, and wants its money -- or a worthy explanation as to why this licensee didn't pay up on time.

Pencil Thursday, Dec. 6 on your calendar if you're one of the many media companies invested in the end to the nation's "digital divide." It will likely be one of the last hearings to be chaired by Tennessee Republican Marsha Blackburn.

Chairman Ajit Pai will moderate panels, which include experts from academia and technology companies, for an in-depth discussion of the future of these technologies and their implications for the communications marketplace.

An LPFM serving a popular destination for NASCAR fans and beach revelers was granted to this city in March 2014. It was never built by September 2016, when an initial permit expired. A six-month extension wasn't met. As such, the LPFM saw its permit cancelled. A reconsideration was sought — again.

A topic not much discussed among broadcasters, but one that noted D.C. attorney David Oxenford says should be paramount in the future planning of all broadcast companies, is insuring the security of their stations and the safety of their employees. "This is an issue on which all broadcasters should be focusing," he writes.

An award established to recognize those who “reflect the values embodied in the Wisconsin broadcast industry of promoting economic vitality, engagement in civic affairs, advocacy for the First Amendment and dissemination of community information and community service, and support of diversity and a better Wisconsin” has its first-ever recipient.

The policy director and counsel for communications and technology for the Senate Commerce Committee has been promoted to Deputy Staff Director for the full committee.

The NAB is releasing a "robust" Broadcast Cybersecurity Certificate Program for engineering and information technology professionals. The online program is specifically tailored to the needs of the broadcast industry.

The newest member of the team of legal associates at D.C. communications law firm Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth is an alumnus of the FCC's Media Bureau and the office of former FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn.

Steve Lemay lost his life while conducting work on the broadcast tower housing the transmitter for Ozarks Public Television‘s KOZK-21 in Springfield, Mo. The tower crashed to the ground in the horrific April 2018 incident. Now, OSHA has determined that the collapse of the tower was caused by contractors' errors.

Call it "The Continuing Saga Of MB Docket No. 13-249." On October 5, the Commission adopted and released a Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the Revitalization of the AM Radio Service proceeding. Comment and Reply Comment Dates have now been released.

What do "junk faxes" have to do with the level of acquiescence to federal agencies -- including the FCC -- in interpreting the statutes they administer? As Boston College Law School associate professor and AEI visiting scholar Daniel Lyons writes, it has everything to do with FCC deference.