Legal File
June Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – EEO Public File Reports, Rulemaking Comments, Political Deadlines and More
Though school is out for many, the FCC does not take a summer recess. Instead, regulation continues. In addition to the regular EEO Annual Public Inspection File Report deadline for broadcasters in a number of states, there are several comment deadlines in June on issues that directly impact broadcasters
Read MoreFCC to Consider Disclosure Requirement for AI-Generated Content in Political Ads
This past Wednesday (5/22), FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel proposed requiring disclosure of content generated by artificial intelligence (AI) in political ads on radio and TV. Rosenworcel is asking her colleagues to vote to advance a proposed rule that would require disclosure of AI content in both candidate and issue advertisements.
Read MoreDon’t Start Counting Marijuana Advertising Dollars Yet – Cautions Despite Possible Changes in Its Federal Classification
In recent weeks, we saw press reports on a recommendation from the Attorney General to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana – reclassifying it by moving it off Schedule I (an illegal controlled substance with no medical uses and a high degree of potential abuse) to Schedule III, where many other drugs, including some requiring a prescription, are listed.
Read MoreMay Regulatory Dates for Broadcasters – EEO Audit Responses, Comment Deadlines on Emergency Broadcasting Matters, Effective Date for Zonecasting with FM Boosters, LUC Windows, and More
While May is one of those months that does not have any routine, scheduled FCC filing deadlines, there are still a number of regulatory dates and deadlines for broadcasters that are worthy of note.
Read More11 States Now Have Laws Limiting Artificial Intelligence, Deep Fakes, and Synthetic Media in Political Advertising – Looking at the Issues
Artificial Intelligence was the talk of the NAB Convention last week. Seemingly, not a session took place without some discussion of the impact of AI.
Read MoreHow 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
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