Washington Beat

As previously reported, the House Energy and Commerce Committee will be holding an FCC oversight hearing on Thursday, March 31. New information about the upcoming affair has been released.

Arthur Liu has been visibly silent as furor over the use of the AM for the Voice of Russia in English, "Radio Sputnik," continues. The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America has now stepped in, and wants Liu-led Multicultural Radio Broadcasting to be stripped of its license for not only WZHF-AM, but all of Liu's stations.

If you happen to receive a letter soon from the FCC's Enforcement Bureau, you could be the leader of one of the randomly selected radio and TV stations to be audited in its 2022 review of Equal Employment Opportunity enforcement.

"This is a critical component of the FCC and NTIA’s Spectrum Coordination Initiative under which they are taking actions to strengthen the processes for decision making and information sharing and to work cooperatively to resolve spectrum policy issues," the agencies note.

The three-hour event, which will be held on April 24, is designed to help broadcast organizations develop corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) strategies and embrace diversity in media and the workplace.

One week ago, the newest Commissioner on the FCC participated in a virtual “fireside chat” at the National Religious Broadcasters Christian Media Convention in Nashville. Now, the Commission is sharing details of Nate Simington's appearance at the event, and how his remarks focused on "the regulatory burdens faced by small broadcasters."

Does your broadcast media station air any programming provided by a foreign government or their representatives via a leased time arrangement? New FCC sponsorship identification requirements are now in effect — effective today.

It's "an authentic Reggio Emilia inspired preschool that educates and enriches the minds and lives of our young learners." Come March 21, it will be available for all federal employee families and the public, thanks to none other than the FCC.

The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday said yes to a more than half-billion-dollar advance funding funnel for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in fiscal year 2024. It's part of a 2022 omnibus appropriations package that includes a sizable chunk of money to establish at FEMA the "Next Generation Warning System."

The only national distributor of Spanish-language news in public radio has signed off on a Consent Decree with the FCC's Audio Division Chief, Al Shuldiner, that absolves the licensee of non-compliance with the Commission's Public File Rule.

That's a question MMTC’s President Emeritus and Senior Advisor David Honig, President/CEO Robert Branson and Tech and Telecom Policy Counsel Danielle Davis asked, among others pertaining to Equal Employment Opportunity, during a March 1 Zoom call with members of the FCC.

Fresh off of her excursion to Barcelona to deliver a short keynote address at the GSMA's MWC 2022, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has made an addition to the Office of Legislative Affairs. She's welcoming a Director to the office.

It is the belief of the organizers of this week's GSMA MWC Barcelona 2022 conference that high speed capacity networks, 5G and data-driven technologies like AI and IoT "underpin the transformation as companies across sectors look for digitally enabled and bespoke solutions." Among those actively seeking solutions are U.S.-based broadcasters. This explains Jessica Rosenworcel's presence in Catalonia.

While calling out the White House for a lack of Latino representation across D.C., the USHCC has taken particular aim at FCC Commissioner nominee Gigi B. Sohn — largely for her support by the news organization led by Christopher Ruddy.

Local radio and television broadcasters from across the nation gathered on Monday in Washington, D.C. for the NAB's annual State Leadership Conference. The convention featured speeches from several members of Congress about issues affecting the broadcasting industry and preparations for attendees’ meetings with legislators and regulators on March 1.