O'Rielly Lambastes FCC's Media Ownership Rules Action

The FCC's "thoughtful and collaborative" AM revitalization process is in stark contrast to its "misguided, partisan decision" in media ownership rules, Commissioner Mike O'Rielly said Tuesday at the International Broadcasters IdeaBank Conference in Buffalo, New York, according to a transcript online. With the FCC having been in court in the past over its handling of the quadrennial review of media ownership rules, O'Rielly said, "the unrealistic nature of the latest attempt" will likely meet the same fate. "It is incomprehensible and patently unfair that broadcasters alone should be kept on this particular regulatory leash, while their competitors roam the radically expanded landscape relatively free of Commission interference," O'Rielly said. He also urged the agency to "take a more realistic view" of the media market by including nonbroadcast and non-newspaper competitors in its analysis: "An updated market definition could set the table for us to better promote localism, competition, and diversity by thoughtfully removing outdated restrictions to media combinations." O'Rielly and Commissioner Ajit Pai unsuccessfully supported more-relaxed newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership rules in the media ownership order (see 1608250063). O'Rielly also said he hoped the FCC's update of contest rule will lead to broadcasters' ability to use the internet for fulfilling other regulatory requirements like sponsorship identification and broad advertising of employment opportunities.