Washington Beat

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai on Friday announced the appointment of 31 members to the Advisory Committee on Diversity and Digital Empowerment (ACDDE), which will meet for the first time on Monday, Sept. 25, in the Commission Meeting Room at the FCC Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

When it comes to modernization, some may think of the coolest new digital gadgetry coming from Silicon Valley. Or, they may consider a shopping spree in Adams Morgan at Hudson & Crane. For the FCC and its Chairman, Ajit Pai, modernization means regulatory weight loss, and trimming the fat. 

What is officially known as MB Docket No. 13-249 will be considered by a full five-member Commission presided by Chairman Ajit Pai at its September Open Meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 26. That's the Third Report and Order that will relax — or eliminate — certain rules pertaining to AM broadcasters employing and maintaining directional antenna arrays.

The six noncommercial TV stations licensed to Maryland Public Broadcasting have entered into a Consent Decree with the FCC's Media Bureau to resolve an EEO investigation, which on Sept. 5 was formally terminated.

Despite what President Trump may desire with respect to future funding — or lack thereof — for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Congress appears to have its back. The U.S. House and Senate Appropriations Committees on Thursday each approved legislation that gives CPB millions of dollars in Federal funding through the end of 2020.

What's the best piece of advice for owners of AM and FM radio stations with respect to the potential impact of the post-FCC Spectrum Auction repack process? Get an auxiliary site now.

Radio deregulation seems to be on the fast track with the new FCC. That seemed to be the biggest takeaway from a Thursday morning 2017 Radio Show breakout session at which the FCC's Peter Doyle, Chief of the Media Bureau's Audio Division, seemed to reiterate FCC Chairman Ajit Pai's remarks made during his Wednesday luncheon keynote address. 

The House of Representatives on Wednesday unanimously passed H.R. 3388, the "SELF DRIVE Act of 2017," by voice vote. This is good news to columnist and blogger James Pethokoukis, who shares his thoughts on why the act is beneficial to all Americans. Could it be great news for broadcast media companies, or a harbinger to AM and FM station owners that increased competition for attention is on the way?

More than two decades ago, RBR+TVBR featured columnist Ken Benner was invited to the office of the president of a state broadcasters' association. He was told that a new means of compliance certification was being considered. It sounded like a good idea to Ken. Was it?

One of the first things FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said in his keynote address during the 2017 Radio Show luncheon had nothing to do with regulation, or government. He immediately congratulated Entercom President/CEO David Field for "the well-deserved honor of receiving the National Radio Award." That set the tone for an address that was well-received by all.

A word that some may have wished should never be uttered during the radio industry's biggest annual convention parted from the lips of more than one of the panelists participating in the one 2017 Radio Show session focused on the current state of ad dollars flowing to radio. That word is "tepid," and it was repeated throughout Pillsbury's Broadcast Finance 2017. We've got a full report from Austin.

As FCC Chairman Ajit Pai assesses the damage caused by Hurricane Harvey first-hand today in Houston, Democratic Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel has called on the agency to study the storm's impact on communications infrastructure in the Louisiana and Texas counties stricken by Harvey.

The Commission has just changed the date of its October Open Meeting. This comes after a date change of its September Open Meeting, and just after the FCC postponed the opening of the 2017 biennial filing window for the submission of broadcast ownership reports on FCC Forms 323 and 323-E.

Just before the start of the Labor Day holiday weekend, the Commission on Friday appointed six additional members of its Consumer Advisory Committee. The mission of the Committee is to make recommendations to the Commission regarding consumer issues within the jurisdiction of the Commission and to facilitate the participation of consumers in proceedings before the Commission.

The Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, chaired by Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), will delve into the how the post-FCC Spectrum Auction repack process is unfolding.