With the court-ordered deadline for the FCC to complete the 2018 Quadrennial Review only days away, radio executives are trying to convince the Commission’s freshest face, Commissioner Anna Gomez, to relax the local ownership rules for broadcasters.
Connoisseur Media CEO Jeffrey Warshaw, Mid-West Family Broadcasting Madison President Tom Walker, and attorneys Jennifer Tatel and David Oxenford from Wilkinson Barker Knauer held a virtual meeting with Deena Shetler and Harsha Mudaliar from Gomez’s office. The discussion highlighted significant changes in the radio marketplace since the Telecommunications Act of 1996, especially from digital competitors.
In a summary of the meeting filed with the FCC, Oxenford pointed out that digital media, free from regulatory constraints, now captures the majority of local advertising revenue, a domain that traditionally supported local broadcasting services. Warshaw and Walker argued that the rise of digital platforms has halved radio’s share of both the local listening audience and local advertising revenue in the last 12 years. They also noted that the current revenue levels make it financially unfeasible for new entrants or small operators to maintain local services in radio markets.
They contended that the most feasible buyers in today’s market are existing broadcasters within the same market who can achieve scale through acquisitions. Walker cited examples of Spanish-language and farm programming in smaller markets as benefits of owning multiple stations, which would not be viable individually.
As the fifth seat on the FCC, Gomez could have the deciding say on the matter, although as a Democratic appointee any notions of further deregulation are considered unlikely by many. However, a Quadrennial ruling would not be the end of the debate. At Radio Ink‘s Forecast 2024, NAB President Curtis LeGeyt said once the 2018 Review was finalized, broadcasters would finally know what recourse was available in the year ahead.
