Broadcasters just got their first real refresh of self-inspection checklists in more than two decades, as NAB and the Society of Broadcast Engineers rolled out new self-inspection guides for AM and FM stations, filling a gap the FCC left untouched since 2003.
NAB and SBE developed the guides jointly to give stations standardized, up-to-date guidance for staying compliant with FCC rules and policies, the kind of document a chief engineer or GM can actually walk a station through rather than parse from scattered rule text.
The FCC published its own self-inspection checklists until 2003, then stopped, even as its rules and policies kept evolving; NAB and SBE’s version is meant to close that gap for the stations that have been operating without an updated reference for more than 20 years.
The guides also serve a second audience: contract inspectors working under the Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program, which most state broadcaster associations administer on the FCC’s behalf. That dual use, station self-checks and third-party inspections, gives the new guides a shot at becoming the default reference for AM/FM compliance across the industry.
Access is a member benefit. NAB and SBE members can download the guides through the NAB member portal or directly from SBE.
