Bi-Partisan Bill Introduced To Repeal Cross-Ownership Rule

Legislation was introduced on Wednesday to eliminate a 41-year-old ban on common ownership of a newspaper and radio or TV station in the same market, according to Variety.

Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.), the incoming chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ky.), are co-authors of the legislation to repeal the ban.

The broadcast and newspaper industries have long argued that the ban is outdated, particularly as daily publications struggle in a market with shrinking ad dollars and declining print subscribers.

The FCC has kept the ban in place despite reviews of media ownership rules, including ones completed this past summer.  Media companies can still obtain waivers, and FCC chairman Tom Wheeler said that exceptions could be made for failing entities.

“Eliminating this relic of the disco era will provide much needed flexibility to the many newspapers and broadcasters throughout the country that provide important local news coverage and encourage greater investment in original journalism,” Walden said in a statement. “We want what’s best for consumers and this bill provides a thoughtful solution that puts the public’s interest first.”

The legislation could be a prelude to further deregulation, given the Republican majority in the next Congress and the incoming Trump administration. Republicans will have a majority of the commissioners on the FCC.

Gordon Smith, the president of the National Association of Broadcasters, said in a statement that “for too long, radio and television broadcasters have been saddled with archaic regulations preventing them from investing in newspaper ownership. Striking this cross-ownership ban would save journalism jobs, create more investigative reporting and provide communities with greater local news.”