Washington Beat

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.

A bipartisan bill supporting the safe development of self-driving cars is set to be considered on the House floor next week, once Congress returns from its summer recess. The House Energy & Commerce Committee's two top leaders applauded the announcement, putting the Self Drive Act (H.R. 3388) on a fast track that may result in a long-term impact on broadcast radio.

As students across North America head back to school (if they haven't done so already) and many of the radio industry's leaders travel to Austin, Texas for the 2017 Radio Show, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai will be heading to the Lone Star State to see first-hand what wrath Hurricane Harvey brought upon broadcast media in its path.

A Notice of Unlicensed Operation (NUO) was sent by the FCC's Enforcement Bureau to a Baptist temple in the 49th state of the union that's been involved in the community since 1956. Agents from the FCC's Los Angeles and San Francisco offices investigated.  RBR+TVBR spoke with an individual connected to the unlicensed signal, and we’ve got an update on the situation.

That's the question being asked by Roslyn Layton, a visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. In a column published today, she believes a review of the stories focused on the Ajit Pai-led FCC "exposes bias and misinformation."

Communications law firm Fletcher Heald & Hildreth has taken to its Commlawblog.com website to remind broadcast media owners to mark their calendars for FCC filing deadlines for broadcasting and telecommunications. While FHH's list is not comprehensive, we are pleased to share it with you as a strong guideline for what you and your stations should be working on today.

A man in Illinois has initiated a putative class action lawsuit against Spanish Broadcasting System for something that has nothing to do with what he heard on one of its radio stations or saw on its nationally distributed Mega TV platform. Rather, Adam Bugbee claims he received unsolicited text messages to his cell phone from SBS, even though he's on a national Do Not Call registry.

The Broadcasters Foundation of America is encouraging broadcasters who have been hit by Hurricane Harvey to find out if they qualify for emergency aid by completing an emergency grant request form on the non-profit organization's website.

For featured Media Information Bureau columnist Ken Benner, there is nothing more gratifying than lending a helpful bit of encouragement, information, or suggestion to a colleague in need of assistance. On the other hand, he notes, "there is nothing more disgusting than taking advantage of your colleague by picking his pocket for simple assistance." This sets the tone for his latest commentary.

The FCC's Media Bureau late Thursday released a public notice seeking the public's input on the state of competition in the video programming delivery marketplace. Specifically, it wants to know about MVPDs, online video distributors, and broadcast TV stations. Comments are due Oct. 10, and they could be numerous.

During the July confirmation hearing for the newest FCC Commissioner, Brendan Carr spoke about the important role that tech and telecom policies can play "in creating jobs, spurring investment, and growing the economy for the benefit of all Americans." It's one of the reasons why Carr has focused his attention on policies that can promote broadband deployment, and served as the focal point of his just-completed trek to North Carolina — which included a visit to American Tower.