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Full-Text Articles in Law
A Tale Of Three Cities: “Diverse And Antagonistic” Information In Situations Of Local Newspaper/Broadcast Cross-Ownership, David Pritchard
A Tale Of Three Cities: “Diverse And Antagonistic” Information In Situations Of Local Newspaper/Broadcast Cross-Ownership, David Pritchard
Federal Communications Law Journal
For more than half a century, a desire for "diverse and antagonistic sources" has been a fundamental principle of communications policy in the United States. Many question, however, whether current FCC policies intended to foster diversity of news and views in the content of the mass media actually do so. Nowhere is this issue raised more starkly than with respect to the Commission's controversial 1975 rule that prohibited the common ownership of a daily newspaper and a broadcast station in the same market. This Article examines the results of a study of diversity of information and viewpoints about the 2000 …
Legacy Of Lost Opportunity: Designated Entities And The Federal Communications Commission's Broadband Pcs Spectrum Auction, A, Mark W. Munson
Legacy Of Lost Opportunity: Designated Entities And The Federal Communications Commission's Broadband Pcs Spectrum Auction, A, Mark W. Munson
Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review
The Federal Communications Commission's ("FCC") designated entity policy has challenged the efficiency of the use of auctions to allocate spectrum licenses. As an alternative to comparative hearings and lotteries, auctions provide an effective solution to the costs, administrative burdens, and delays associated with apportioning spectrum. Congress required the FCC to allow firms to participate in the auctions even if they had difficulty in obtaining financing. The FCC gave these firms, known as "designated entities," set-asides and other preferences to assist them in the competitive bidding process. In the broadband Personal Communications Services ("PCS") auctions, however, designated entities frequently were unable …
The Public Interest Standard: Is It Too Indeterminate To Be Constitutional?, Randolph J. May
The Public Interest Standard: Is It Too Indeterminate To Be Constitutional?, Randolph J. May
Federal Communications Law Journal
This Article argues that the congressional delegation of public interest authority to the FCC likely violates the nondelegation doctrine that inheres in the constitutional separation of powers scheme and that, even if the courts do not hold the public interest delegation unconstitutional, Congress should revise the Communications Act to set forth more specific guidance for the FCC. In today’s environment of “convergence,” in which competition is flourishing across communications sectors, Congress should not shirk its responsibility to establish fundamental policy for an industry that contributes so much to the overall health of our economy. This Article argues that Congress should …
The Fcc’S Main Studio Rule: Achieving Little For Localism At A Great Cost To Broadcasters, David M. Silverman, David N. Tobenkin
The Fcc’S Main Studio Rule: Achieving Little For Localism At A Great Cost To Broadcasters, David M. Silverman, David N. Tobenkin
Federal Communications Law Journal
Localism, the communications law policy that requires spectrum licensees to serve the needs of local communities, represents a bedrock concept in the Communications Act and the Federal Communications Commission’s jurisprudence. The Commission’s sixty-year-old main studio rule provides a vivid example of this principle. Broadcasters often find compliance with this rule difficult and an exercise in form over substance, raising legitimate questions about the continued need and rationale for the rule. This Article examines the rule’s evolution and its current problematic state, and analyzes whether its modification or elimination would better conserve the resources of both broadcasters and the Commission, without …