Washington Beat

A Conservative Think Tank is the latest organization to voice its support for the bipartisan "AM Radio For Every Vehicle Act," and it wants the lower body of Congress to get the bill passed over vociferous opposition from the Consumer Technology Association and the auto industry.

The FCC will lift its freeze on major modification applications for Class A, Low Power Television (LPTV), and TV translator stations on August 20. All stations must use 2020 Census data for interference analyses as of Thursday (8/1), or risk application dismissal.

The U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee has proposed level funding of $535 million for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for fiscal year 2027 and $60 million for public media stations’ interconnection system for fiscal year 2025. This yielded cheers from America’s Public Television Stations.

On June 27, a novel new over-the-air television brand that seeks to bridge the divide between Republicans and Democrats with “bite-sized videos and informational text” to the “purple majority” made its debut. The man behind it, Matthew Davidge, shares his thoughts on the launch and more in this InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.FM.

The parent company of NBCUniversal has named a new Executive Vice President of Federal Government Affairs and Head of the Washington, D.C. office. He reports to Chief Legal Officer Tom Reid at Comcast Corporation and once worked for Sen. Joe Manchin.

The Media Bureau on May 20 opened up a pair of dockets that are designed to update the Commission’s rules as it pertains to low-power television stations. One of the two dockets also impacts TV translator and Class A TV stations. The National Religious Broadcasters is displeased with the effort.

Nestled between outdoor adventurist hub Bend, Ore., and the Columbia River Gorge is tiny Shaniko, Ore. Radio choices are limited to eight FMs and two distant AM radio stations — or at least they should be. There's also a local radio operation. But, there's just one problem: it's a pirate station.

The proposal, the Commission's majority asserts, "aims to increase transparency by having those who already have legal duties to file information about their TV and radio advertisements with the FCC to indicate if AI is being used and make on-air disclosure of AI use."

One is an FM translator serving the Mississippi city of Canton. The other is an FM translator licensed to an institution of higher learning in Chattanooga, Tenn. Each have received notices of apparent liability for forfeiture for being late with their respective license renewal applications. 

The Commission previously adopted requirements that users must be able to customize caption displays by changing the font, size, color, and other caption features, but many consumers have had difficulty accessing these caption display settings. The Order takes steps to alleviate this problem.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel on Wednesday confirmed that the Commission will vote on final rules that she believes will improve transportation safety and mobility by integrating advanced communications technologies into vehicles and infrastructure.

The training will educate and coach up to 225 public media entities and station leaders and staff to develop "an audience-first, multi-platform approach to their organizational strategies, operations, and culture." The virtual training will be funded by a CPB grant of up to $5 million.

It was 17 years ago that the Audio Division of the FCC's Media Bureau blamed "an unanticipated computer problem" for erroneous power level data associated with pre-sunset and pre-sunrise wattage allowed for "certain qualifying AM broadcast stations." Now, a fix has finally arrived.

Public media stations in Alaska, South Texas and rural areas of Upstate New York have been awarded Corporation for Public Broadcasting funding that is designed to upgrade their equipment to provide enhanced emergency alerting.

How much federal funding should the Corporation for Public Broadcasting be entitled to receive in fiscal 2025? If it were up to Republican leaders on the House Appropriations Committee, the answer would be zilch.