The FCC shouldn’t renew licenses of 8 TV stations in and around P...

for Media & Public Affairs found that 4.9% of news during the 4 weeks before the election concerned the campaign. Of the 25.5 hours of such coverage, 78% focused on the presidential race, the study found. The findings are similar to those in studies by the Center of TV news in Chicago and Milwaukee, cited in separate petitions to deny renewals (CD Nov 2/05 p5). Broadcasters have said such studies undercount election coverage by not taking into account such events as commercial-free coverage of political debates. The Ore. study likewise should have taken such debate coverage into account, said Dennis Wharton, NAB exec. vp: “That’s just absurd on its face.” Of the results overall, he said, “I don’t consider that a failing of the system,” because Portland-area TV stations seem to have covered hot topics like a medical marijuana state ballot initiative and the presidential campaign since Ore. was a tossup state. Stations licenses in Ore. and Wash. are up for renewal by the FCC in Feb. The stations listed in the Alliance’s petition to deny renewal are: KATU, KOIN, KGW, KPTV, KNMT, all in Portland; KPXG and KRCW in Salem, Ore.; and KPDX Vancouver, Wash. The group said it works to promote “public-interest media.” The Commission typically doesn’t grant such license denial requests based on news coverage alone, said Wharton, citing the agency’s recent denial of another request in Chicago. “It would be unprecedented for the FCC to reject a license renewal based on election coverage,” he said. He said industry polling supports the claim that “by and large, broadcasters do a tremendous job of covering elections.”