Washington Beat

It says it is the radio operation "with the power of heaven" and holds four construction permits for new noncommercial FMs across Nevada, California and Utah, respectively. Two of those CPs are mutually exclusive, and the FCC was asked to resolve the matter. The result? Three of the remaining four CPs are going to Remanente Broadcasting Network.

Huntley, Mont., a community near the city of Billings, is getting its first local service. At the same time, a license modification of another FM is transpiring. Call it a win for Matthew Wesolowski.

The FCC has formally unveiled the tentative selectees from 93 groups of mutually exclusive applications for new low-power FM station construction permits filed during a December 2023 window.

The NAB has again addressed a FCC plan that would impose political AI disclosure rules on broadcasters by claiming the NPRM’s loudest supporters’ arguments are “inapposite or nonsensical.” The voice of radio and TV in Washington also has support from every state broadcasters association, and the top radio station ownership groups.

The Commission has started to accept applications from graduating law students, recent law school graduates, and current judicial clerks for its Fall 2025 Attorney Honors Program. The application window closes on Thursday, November 21.

Amid broad discussions on AI's impact on media and journalism, NPR is the first major broadcast organization to submit reply comments to the FCC's proposed rules on disclosure of AI-generated content in political advertising.

A Class A FM radio station serving Allegan County, Mich., has entered into a Consent Decree with the FCC to settle violations associated with a switch in the board members of the noncommercial radio station's licensee — done without FCC authorization to make the change. There's more, and it involves a "ride" that should have never been taken.

The Chairwoman of the FCC on Thursday issued a statement in response to a second call by former President Trump to revoke the license of a broadcast station for what she views are political reasons. At issue: CBS's signature "60 Minutes," and how the former leader viewed an interview conducted with Kamala Harris.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has signed off on grant support of $2.65 million to increase and strengthen state government coverage provided by public media in seven U.S. states. The coverage generated will be shared with public media stations as well as other media organizations across the states. 

The FCC has released its latest broadcast station totals, reflecting the three-month period ending September 30. The biggest takeaway? A wave of new FM noncommercial radio stations came to life in Q3, while the total number of AM radio stations declined for the second consecutive quarter.

As previously reported, the Chairwoman of the FCC on Friday traveled to Western North Carolina to get a firsthand account of communications recovery efforts in the storm-battered region.  At the same time, her chief legislative rival at the FCC also visited the state.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has handed a sizable multi-thousand dollar grant to a key public media distributor for a pilot that is designed to enable free access to the PRX digital platform for 30 non-commercial secular stations.

CPB has awarded a total of 30 grants to date through the first round of funding for the Next Generation Warning System grant program, funded by FEMA. Stations in Alabama, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri, Tennessee, and Virginia are the latest to receive funding to upgrade equipment for public safety.

The FCC’s Enforcement Bureau is bolstering its technical expertise with the appointment of a new Chief Technology Officer. In this role, the former Verizon Senior Director will provide strategic and technical guidance to support the Bureau’s work in privacy, data protection, cybersecurity, and network outage enforcement for cable and satellite providers.

Through attorneys Michael DelNero and John Cobb at Covington & Burling, The Walt Disney Company last week asked the FCC to dismiss DirecTV's "Good Faith" complaint without delay, slamming the company poised to merge with Dish for its "baseless" filing with the Commission.