[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 77 (Thursday, May 22, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6971-S6972]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FCC VOTE ON OWNERSHIP RULES
Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I want to state my opposition to the
Federal Communications Commission's scheduled June 2nd vote to overhaul
current broadcast media ownership rules of newspapers, television ,and
radio stations. I am disappointed that FCC Chairman Michael Powell has
refused to hold a single public hearing regarding the proposed changes
to these rules, or to entertain further public comment on what is
turning out to become a historic rulemaking.
The public needs to be heard from, and the public needs to know what
will happen if the changes that Chairman Powell has proposed become
reality. The biennial review required by the 1996 Telecommunications
Act requires the FCC to review its rules every 2 years, but this review
should not be used as an excuse to radically alter the way our
constituents receive their news from the media.
Not only am I disappointed at how this situation has come to pass,
but I am also dismayed at what the FCC proposes. There are a number of
changes that I disagree with--and this is just from what we have
learned last week.
For instance, we have learned that the FCC is considering to allow
the major broadcast networks to purchase more television stations and
strip them of local control. The FCC is also proposing to ease ``cross-
ownership'' rules and allow a media company to own a newspaper and
television company in the same community.
I urge everyone to reflect on this and how this will impact
communities throughout this country. In my State of Vermont, we have a
very proud tradition of grassroots activism. Our local Vermont media
knows this and reports the day's events with a Vermont audience in
mind. If more Vermont media companies are controlled by out-of-state,
or out-of-country owners, I fear a significant deterioration in the
coverage of local news.
The Vermont Press Association and the Vermont State Legislature have
concerns similar to mine. The Vermont Press Association has written a
letter to the FCC explaining its position, and the Vermont State
Legislature passed unanimously a joint resolution regarding this
matter.
I ask unanimous consent that both documents be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Vermont Press Association
Colchester, VT, May 16, 2003.
Hon. Michael Powell
Chairman, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Powell: The Board of Directors of the Vermont
Press Association, which represents the interests of the 10
dailies and four dozen non-dailies circulating in Vermont,
endorses a Joint Resolution passed May 13th by the Vermont
Legislature. The resolution, which I include at the end of
this letter (an official copy is to be sent to you by Vermont
Secretary of State Deborah Markowitz), urges the Federal
Communications Commission to provide for a public comment
period prior to the adoption of any changes to the broadcast
media ownership rules.
We urge you to give serious consideration to this Joint
Resolution and allow for a public comment period, including
Congressional hearings, prior to issuing any new rules
concerning cross ownership.
Although FCC rules are a federal matter, what we read in
newspapers, hear on the radio and see on television is a
local and state issue. There is too much consolidation in the
news business and too few independent voices; relaxing cross
ownership rules even more will hurt all citizens. As a board,
we support increased diversity in media ownership, not less.
Thank you for your consideration of this press
association's viewpoint, and for taking into account the
resolution passed by the Vermont Legislature. We would
appreciate it if you would enter this resolution into the
public record on this issue.
Sincerely,
Ross Connelly,
President, Vermont Press Association,
Editor & Co-publisher,
The Hardwick Gazette.
____
Joint House Resolution 18
Whereas, pursuant to the provisions of 47 C.F.R.
Sec. 73.3555, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has
established a series of ownership rules for radio and
television stations in a designated market area (DMA), and
Whereas, these rules were intended to prevent a
monopolization of media voices within a community, and
Whereas, over the last several decades, the number of
commercial radio stations a single entity may own in a DMA
has risen dramatically, from the former universal limit of
one AM and one FM, to, depending on the total number of local
radio stations in the DMA, as many as eight, with no more
than five on either the AM or FM broadcast band, and
Whereas, the number of local television stations a single
entity may own in a DMA has risen from one to two, depending
on technical considerations, and nationally, the number has
risen from a total of 7-35 percent of the aggregate national
audience, and
Whereas, the significant relaxation of multiple broadcast
media ownership restrictions has led to the creation of a
small number of national media conglomerates, including
Viacom (owner of CBS), General Electric (owner of NBC),
Disney (owner of ABC), and Clear Channel Communications, each
of which owns large numbers of broadcast stations, often
including multiple radio stations
[[Page S6972]]
in the same DMA in addition to national programming services,
and
Whereas, this concentration in the corporate ownership of
commercial broadcast media, both locally and nationally, has
severely limited the diversity of perspectives offered on
important issues, and also has resulted in a significant
reduction in local radio news coverage, and
Whereas, in an unusual, but nevertheless poignant, impact
of concentrated media ownership in a single community, public
safety officials in Minot, North Dakota, where all six
commercial radio stations are owned now by the same national
chain, were unable to reach anyone at the designated
emergency radio station when a train derailment resulted in
anhydrous ammonia fertilizer being released over the city,
and
Whereas, until now, the existing prohibition on daily
newspapers owning an AM, FM, or television station whose
primary signal serves ``the entire community in which such
newspaper is published,'' 47 C.F.R. Sec. 73.3555(d), has
remained in place, and
Whereas, under Sec. 212(h) of the Telecommunications Act of
1996, P.L. No. 104-104 as amended, the FCC is directed to
review biennially all of the broadcast media ownership rules,
and
Whereas, there are strong indications the commission's
current review will result in the further relaxation of the
existing ownership rules, possibly allowing newspapers to
purchase radio or television stations in their publication
communities, and
Whereas, FCC Chair, Michael Powell, has announced the newly
revised ownership rules will be released in final form on
June 2 without an opportunity for public or congressional
comment, and
Whereas, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators, Olympia
Snowe, Republican of Maine, Byron Dorgan, Democrat of North
Dakota, Ernest Hollings, Democrat of South Carolina, and
Trent Lott, Republican of Mississippi, has written to
Chairman Powell requesting that Congress and the public be
afforded an opportunity to review any proposed changes before
they take effect, and
Whereas, both the potential substantive changes in the
media ownership rules and the lack of a public comment period
are greatly disturbing, now therefore be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives: That
the General Assembly strongly urges the Federal
Communications Commission to refrain from relaxing further
the restrictions on broadcast media outlet ownership, and be
it further
Resolved: That the General Assembly urges the Federal
Communications Commission to provide for a public comment
period prior to the adoption of any changes to the broadcast
media ownership rules, and be it further
Resolved: That the Secretary of State be directed to send a
copy of this resolution to Michael Powell, Chair of the
Federal Communications Commission, and to each member of the
Vermont Congressional Delegation.
____________________