Professor: FCC Can't End or Waive National Ownership Cap
The FCC doesn’t have the authority to do away with the national broadcast-ownership cap or waive it on a case-by-case basis, said Vanderbilt Law School professor Brian Fitzpatrick in a Nov. 3 letter posted Tuesday in docket 17-318. Fitzpatrick’s filing was amplified in a news release from Newsmax, which has opposed eliminating the cap. "Congress forced the Commission to adopt the 39% ownership cap in the 2004 amendments to the Telecommunications Act and further commanded that any entity that grew beyond that number must divest in a timely manner,” wrote Fitzpatrick. “The Commission cannot ‘waive’ these statutory commands. Nor can it circumvent them by manipulating the UHF discount or permitting sidecar deals.”
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FCC Chairman Brendan Carr told reporters Tuesday that he still believes the FCC has authority to alter the cap and that the cap has been “a detriment" to local broadcasters. In its release, Newsmax CEO Christopher Ruddy said the entire TV broadcasting industry opposed President Donald Trump’s reelection. "It shocks me [that] President Trump's FCC chairman has made his main priority giving the TV broadcasters more power and control, especially over local news." NAB declined to comment. Nexstar and Tegna asked the FCC to waive the cap in applications Tuesday (see 2511180064).