Low-power TV (LPTV) broadcasters said in FCC comments that their industry is dying, and ATSC 3.0 won’t be enough to save it. Those comments, in docket 25-168, were in response to HC2’s petition proposing LPTV stations be allowed to switch to 5G broadcast. NAB disagreed, saying 5G broadcast advocates haven’t done enough to show that it won’t cause unacceptable interference.

Federal budget-cutting could mean degraded quality and timeliness of emergency alerts during major storms and disasters, emergency response and weather experts tell us. A number of advocacy groups, from the Urban Institute to the Natural Resources Defense Council, have raised concerns about budget cuts for the Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster response. Others say budgetary issues won't harm emergency alerting, and the system remains robust.

Members of the House this week asked FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to send to the Federal Register for publication rules for new multilingual templates for wireless emergency alerts (WEA), which the Public Safety Bureau released in January (see 2501080029).

NPR and three public radio stations filed a lawsuit Tuesday that asks the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block a White House executive order cutting funding for NPR and PBS (see 2505020044).

NAB said in reply comments filed last week that the FCC should proceed with a rulemaking on software-based emergency alert systems over the objections of EAS equipment manufacturer Digital Alert Systems (see 2505050055). “The record consists of nearly unanimous support, with only one self-interested detractor,” NAB said, adding that the agency can explore DAS’ objections over the course of the rulemaking process. “NAB has full confidence that the Commission, with input from industry experts, will be able to identify and properly address such issues."

CTIA told the FCC there appears to be broad agreement (see 2504210013) that the commission should move carefully as it considers changes to wireless emergency alerts, which were proposed in a February Further NPRM. Replies were due Monday in dockets 15-94 and 15-91. The FNPRM proposed allowing more flexibility in issuing alerts using a “Public Safety Message” classification (see 2502270042).

NAB’s FCC petition on allowing broadcasters to use software in place of physical emergency alert system (EAS) equipment is “premature,” and granting it would be a “sweeping regulatory shift without the necessary technical, legal, or operational foundation,” said major EAS box manufacturer Digital Alert Systems in comments filed in docket 15-94 by Friday’s deadline. Nearly every other commenter in the docket -- including broadcasters, NCTA and the Society of Broadcast Engineers -- strongly endorsed NAB’s petition.

CTIA and other industry commenters urged the FCC to proceed with caution as it considers changes to wireless emergency alerts (WEAs) that were proposed in a February Further NPRM. Comments were due last week in dockets 15-94 and 15-91. The FNPRM proposed allowing more flexibility in sending out alerts using a “Public Safety Message” classification (see 2502270042).

President Donald Trump intends to request that Congress claw back about $1.1 billion in advance CPB funding as part of a broader $9.3 billion funding rescission package, White House OMB Director Russell Vought confirmed Tuesday. Set for later this month, the proposal reportedly targets $535 million in advance annual funding for CPB in fiscal years 2026 and 2027, which Congress allocated as part of an FY 2024 appropriations package (see 2403210067) and March continuing resolution that extended the allocation through Sept. 30. Congressional Republicans have shown growing interest since January in ending federal funding for public broadcasters amid rancor over what they perceive as pro-Democratic bias in news coverage (see 2502030064).

Broadcasters called for the FCC to “delete” nearly every reporting and filing obligation the agency imposes on them in scores of comments posted in docket 25-133 Monday, but the agency should roll back ownership rules first, NAB said. Multichannel video programming distribution (MVPD) interests and allies repeatedly argued that the highly competitive video distribution marketplace necessitates doing away with rules they claim tip the competitive scales. The docket also received many comments from space interests and the telecom industry (see 2504140037 and 2504140046).