Legal File
How an April Fools’ Day On-Air Prank Gone Wrong Could Result in FCC Issues
Every year at about this time, with April Fools’ Day right around the corner, we need to play our role as attorneys and ruin any fun that you may be planning by repeating our reminder that broadcasters need to be careful with any on-air pranks, jokes or other on-air bits prepared especially for the day. While a little fun is OK, remember that the FCC has a rule against on-air hoaxes, and there can be liability issues with false alerts that are run on a station.
Read MoreFCC Issues First EEO Audit Notice for 2024: 13 Michigan Stations Targeted
MAB FCC Washington Counsel David Oxenford reports that the FCC last week released its first EEO audit notice for 2024. The FCC’s Public Notice, audit letter, and the list of stations selected for audit is available here. The stations selected appear at the end of the release and your MAB notes 13 Michigan call letters associated with this audit.
Read MoreGuard Yourself Before Moving Forward When Accepting or Engaging in Advertising or Promotions that Use FINAL FOUR or Other NCAA Trademarks: 2024 Update – Parts One & Two
Each year, as the NCAA basketball tournaments get underway, my colleague Mitch Stabbe highlights the trademark issues that can arise from uses of the well-known words and phrases associated with the games in advertising, promotions, and other media coverage.
Read MoreReinstating FCC Form 395-B Reporting on the Race and Gender of Broadcast Employees – What the Action Means for Broadcasters
On February 22, the FCC released an Order reinstating the requirement for radio and television broadcasters, commercial and noncommercial, to annually file an FCC Form 395-B. All station employment groups with 5 or more full-time employees would need to classify all station employees, both full-time and part-time, by race or ethnicity and gender, as well as by the type of job they perform at the station.
Read MoreSports Rights, the Super Bowl, and the Perception of Local Over-the-Air TV
Last week, when the NFL playoffs and upcoming Super Bowl had everyone thinking football, Congress held a hearing on how streaming media has affected sports and other video programming rights. We noted that hearing in our weekly update this weekend. As we said in our update, the hearing touched on all the video media issues of the day – sports rights, retransmission consent, the changing balance between pay TV (cable and satellite) versus streaming, and similar issues
Read More2024 Update on Super Bowl Advertising and Promotions
Given the value of the Super Bowl franchise, it is not surprising that the NFL is extremely aggressive in protecting its golden goose from anything it views as unauthorized efforts to trade off the goodwill associated with the mark or the game. Accordingly, with the coin toss almost upon us, advertisers should take special care before publishing or engaging in advertising or other promotional activities that refer to the Super Bowl.
Read MoreFCC Imposes $26,000 Fine on Broadcaster for One EEO Annual Public File Report that was Uploaded Late
The full Commission this week issued an Order fining Cumulus Media $26,000 for its failure to upload one EEO Annual Public File Report to its online public inspection file until about 9 months after the due date.
Read MoreCopyright Royalty Board Starts WEB VI Proceeding to Set Webcasting Royalties Paid to SoundExchange for 2026-2030: Petitions to Participate Due February 6
The Copyright Royalty Board on Friday published in the Federal Register a call for interested parties to file Petitions to Participate in the proceeding to set the royalty rates to be paid by webcasters (including broadcasters who simulcast their programming through internet-delivered channels) in the period 2026-2030.
Read MoreBroadcast Regulation Does Not Take a Vacation: FCC Resolves 2018 Quadrennial Review with No Significant Changes in Ownership Rules; Proposes a Reporting System for Retransmission Blackouts; and Advances New EEO Reporting Rules
Well, there has been news, including the resolution of the FCC’s long-delayed 2018 Quadrennial Review of the broadcast ownership rules.
Read MoreThe 2024 Broadcasters’ Calendar – Regulatory Dates for the Coming Year, with Special Attention to Lowest Unit Charge Political Windows
2024 is almost upon us. At this time of year, everyone seems to be making a list of the best (or worst) events of 2023, or predictions for what the new year will bring. After the first of the year, we will dust off our crystal ball and look at some of the legal and policy issues that may be addressed in the new year. Today we will look at the dates that are already set for 2024.
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