Briefings Led by Clarke, PK War Over Merits of Set-top NPRM
Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., used her formation of the Congressional Caucus on Multicultural Media to slam the FCC set-top NPRM. She gathered Congressional Black Caucus Chairman G.K. Butterfield, D-N.C., and industry stakeholders in Rayburn Thursday for a news conference where she repeated her calls for FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler to pause the proceeding until the Congressional Research Service and GAO finish impact studies looking at its effect on diverse programming. If the set-top proceeding is expedited, “I don’t believe legislation would be out of the question,” Clarke said. Public Knowledge hosted a call later Thursday countering the criticisms.
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“What’s the rush, FCC?” Clarke asked, saying it has meant a lot for her to see more diverse content in media. “As an adult, I would hate to see such hard-fought progress be entirely undone.” She insisted she’s not siding with any one industry. The NPRM shouldn't be viewed “solely through the lens of greater competition and market innovation,” she said. “While I understand the optimism, I’m not convinced, at least for now,” she said of the NPRM.
“We worry that the set-top box plan risks the progress,” Butterfield agreed of possible effects on diverse programming. He backs “a clear-eyed approach” that requires “unique coordination.” The formation of the caucus means a “strong coalition” with an eye toward “long-term solutions,” he said.
Both Clarke and Butterfield are members of the Commerce Committee. The Congressional Caucus on Multicultural Media also has as members Reps. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo.; Steve Cohen, D-Tenn.; Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas; Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.; Robin Kelly, D-Ill.; and Bobby Rush, D-Ill. Clarke told us last month that when Wheeler privately addressed the House Democratic caucus, she wasn't satisfied with his answers about the proceeding (see 1604280071). The FCC defended the NPRM, as have some Capitol Hill Democrats including Communications Subcommittee ranking member Anna Eshoo, D-Calif. (see 1605180036).
“There’s no way to fix [the NPRM] right now,” said CEO Debra Lee of BET, owned by Viacom, which has concerns about the set-top proceeding (see 1604220063). “It’s offering our programming for free.” Lee said BET spends “hundreds of millions” of dollars annually to create its content and if that model is undermined, “we can’t do our jobs. … The focus should be on getting it done right, not getting it done fast.”
“The market is robust enough as it is,” said CEO Alfred Liggins of TV One, a venture with Comcast, which also opposes the NPRM (see 1604270064). Liggins called the NPRM a “government-assisted effort to unbalance that ecosystem” that's "going to degrade the value of that content over time.” The proceeding needs a pause, said Vme TV Senior Vice President Victor Cerda. “It just is not a fair deal.”
Pay-TV arguments that the set-top proposal will hurt diversity in media are a cynical attempt to derail a plan that will increase opportunity for diverse programming, said three African-American programmers during a news-media call held by Public Knowledge Thursday after Clarke's event. It's “shameful” that cable companies are enlisting minority-owned companies such as TV One and the Congressional Black Caucus to fight the set-top plan, said Peggy Dodson, CEO of Urban Broadcasting. Dodson was one of several minority programmer signatories to a letter sent to the CBC Wednesday, asking for support for the FCC plan.
Arguments that the FCC proposal would hurt minority programmers are “hypocritical,” said the letter to the CBC. “Exclusively protecting the handful of minority programmers that currently have carriage on cable is extremely shortsighted.” Cable carriers are “the true beneficiaries” of efforts to stop the set-top proposal, the letter said. The proposal allows minority programmers to compete with cable for viewers without having to sell out to larger companies, the letter said. “Obviously, this fear of competition is striking a chord!” the letter said. “We urge the Congressional Black Caucus to lead the way in advocating for the new opportunities created by the FCC’s proposal.”
The CBC is bowing to large companies that have the most lobbying dollars, such as Comcast, said National Black Programming Consortium Chairman Eric Easter. BET founder Robert Johnson also signed the letter to the CBC. Minority programmers who support the proposal aren't seeking to compete with TV One and the few other minority-owned programmers carried on cable, said Global Fusion Network TV CEO Cliff Franklin. “Everyone needs more choices” for minority programming, Franklin said. “I'm tired of seeing The Jeffersons and Good Times, there's more beyond that,” Dodson said.
Calls for a study of how the proposal would affect existing minority programmers are a delaying tactic, Dodson said. It's hypocritical for pay-TV carriers to demand a study in this instance but also argue that the FCC should wait and see how the app market evolves before taking action, Easter said. The congressional mandate to create competition for set-top boxes has been around for decades, said Public Knowledge Vice President-Government Affairs Chris Lewis. “It's time to move forward at a proper pace.”