22 US senators to FCC Chairman Pai: wait for courts on Sinclair-Tribune merger

Twenty-two senators sent a letter to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai urging him to pause FCC actions related to media consolidation – including the Sinclair-Tribune merger – pending a thorough review of the broadcast and media industry. In particular, the senators told Pai that “the FCC should not adopt any additional changes to its media ownership rules, it should not implement any changes adopted over the last several months and it should not approve any pending” mergers or acquisitions.

Chairman Pai has been a one-man media regulation wrecking crew. Late last year, Pai reinstated the UHF discount, a technically obsolete method of measuring audience reach, opening the door to the Sinclair-Tribune combination. Consumer advocates challenged this decision in court. Pai also opened a proceeding to reduce the 39 percent national ownership cap, which many – including eight state attorneys general – believe only Congress has the authority to change.

Pai directed the FCC to gut other broadcast ownership regulations. The FCC released an Order on Reconsideration to eliminate the newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership rules – which guard against one media company monopolizing news in a community. He also proposed eliminating the attribution rule for television joint service agreements, removing what little accountability remains surrounding the job-killing, rule-skirting practice.

Much of this was seen to benefit Sinclair’s proposed acquisition of Tribune.

“Until the FCC completes a more comprehensive look at the state of broadcasting and the court renders its [UHF discount] decision, the agency should cease all rulemaking activity related to media ownership, including its questionable review of changes to the national ownership cap,” the letter reads. “The FCC also should pause consideration of all pending broadcast mergers, given that granting those mergers could give companies competitive advantages in the market once any new rules are adopted. These steps are necessary in the public interest to ensure fairness in the market and to remove any cloud of uncertainty over the agency’s decisions making in these matters.”

Link:

22 US senators’ letter to Chairman Pai on media consolidation and the Sinclair-Tribune merger (Apr. 26, 2018)

UHF discount gets its day in court (Speed Matters, Apr. 20, 2018)

Eight state AGs call for strict national audience reach limits (Speed Matters, Feb. 28, 2018)