According to USAToday, the National Association of Broadcasters, a trade group for TV station owners, "is cautiously optimistic a Trump FCC will take a fresh look at reforming outdated local broadcast ownership rules,” said Dennis Wharton, NAB's executive vice president of media relations. “These are 'I Love Lucy' era rules in a 'Modern Family' world.”
The rules, devised in 1975, specifically prohibit media companies from owning a newspaper and a TV station in the same local market. Companies are also barred from owning more than one top-4-in-ratings TV station in any market.
The FCC drafted the rules to prevent heavy concentration of local media market shares from being held by one company, asserting that such dominant ownership can inhibit diversity of opinions and raise prices for advertisers. Media companies have fought for years to loosen or eliminate the rules, arguing that they're outdated in the digital era and limit business diversification needed to enrich their revenues.
The FCC, which is directed by five commissioners appointed by the U.S. president, reviews the rules every four years to ensure they’re still relevant. After completing the review in August, the agency, in a partisan 3-2 vote, chose to retain the rules for the next four years, but provided an exception for "failed or failing newspapers" to receive investment from a TV business in their market.
The prevailing assumption on K Street is that President-elect Donald Trump -- even though he has publicly stated his opposition to AT&T's proposed $85.4 billion acquisition of Time Warner -- will look to loosen industry regulations.
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