FCC Should Admit Mistake in Latina Order, Pai Says
The FCC should protect Latina Broadcasters station WDYB in the incentive auction and admit it made a mistake trying to exclude the station, Commissioner Ajit Pai said in a speech to the Hispanic Radio Conference Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale. The…
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U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled the FCC must allow Latina to participate. Pai dissented from the order that disqualified Latina. The commission also should act this year on proposed changes to its rules for foreign ownership of broadcasting outlets, he said. Making it easier to secure foreign investment would be a boon to Hispanic stations and could help with efforts to revitalize the AM band, he said. According to Pai, the FCC has had more than 500 applications for FM translators from AM stations, and 400 of them have been granted. Pirate radio “needs to be a top priority” for the FCC Enforcement Bureau, Pai said. Unlicensed broadcasters “inflict economic damage on licensed radio broadcasters, and they also interfere with public safety communications, such as emergency alerts and weather forecasts,” he said. Congress should give radio broadcasters power to “directly sue” pirates interfering with their signals, Pai said. “No longer would a broadcaster need to wait for the FCC to take action,” he said.