On any proposed new media regulation, most particularly on conten...
On any proposed new media regulation, most particularly on content, FCC Comr. Abernathy said she always asks herself “how it will affect our First Amendment rights.” Speaking Wed. at Media Institute lunch, she said FCC “strays too far from…
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its enforcement obligations when we start making judgments as to what is good television and what is bad television. Or, what is good radio and what is bad radio. Or, when we speak out against a program merely because it has received press attention.” Abernathy said there’s “a market- based way of addressing our concerns… The ability to change channels has a far more immediate impact on broadcasts than government regulation does.” As for broadcasters’ public interest mandate, she said Commission shouldn’t establish specific types or categories of information that are necessary to meet that mandate. Abernathy said, however, she wouldn’t be opposed to requiring licensees to provide “greater disclosure” to demonstrate how they had served public interest in order to gain license renewal. And, she said, “it is important to remember that even without additional standards, broadcasters… overall… have a solid record of serving the public interest.”