MMTC Study Finds Cross-Ownership Impacts Negligible

Media cross-ownership has a “negligible” impact on minority and women broadcast ownership, said a Minority and Media Telecommunications Council Study submitted to the FCC Thursday (http://bit.ly/178iVhE). The commission delayed a vote on media ownership rules in February (CD Feb 27 p1) anticipation of the study’s completion. Several communications attorneys told us Thursday that even with the study done, it’s unlikely a vote will occur with a depleted commission and an acting chairwoman. Although MMTC President David Honig said the study satisfies a directive from 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to study the effects of cross-ownership rules, Free Press attacked the study for not being quantitative enough.

"The commission is going to have to vote with or without a study,” said MMTC President David Honig. “Even if the study doesn’t tie up every loose end, it’s an important piece."

The study polled 14 stations -- eight owned by minorities or women -- and asked questions about “competitive impacts” on their businesses, using “unaided recall” questions designed not to prompt specific answers. Only in one market did any stations mention media cross-ownership -— most responses concerned other stations in their markets or the ubiquity of other media sources, Honig said. “Their concerns were the normal ones you expect to hear from broadcast managers."

Covington and Burling attorney Jeff Kosseff, representing the Newspaper Association of America, said the study confirmed that “the FCC’s modest proposed relaxation of media ownership would have no impact on minority media ownership.” Though several communications attorneys said they didn’t know if the study would spur the commission to take up the media ownership rules, Kosseff said he hoped it would. “Newspapers can’t wait any longer for this regulatory relief,” he said. “I think the study was helpful to the deregulation side,” said another communications attorney who represents media companies.

Free Press Policy Director Matt Wood said the MMTC study didn’t use the correct methodology to study cross ownership. Wood said it “might have yielded some interesting anecdotes, but it’s not a substitute for real analysis of likely outcomes from the disastrous rule changes pushed by former Chairman Genachowski.” Honig said the small number of minority media owners precludes empirical studies of the type Wood wants, and said the study itself describes its results as “not dispositive.” Honig said he wants the FCC to request comments on the study, and Free Press has also said it would submit comments on the study if that happened.