Headlines
SCOTUS Rules FCC Penalties Require Jury to Collect
The US Supreme Court issued a landmark curtailing of FCC power today, ruling 8-1 that the Commission’s forfeiture process does not violate the Seventh Amendment, but in doing so, the Court made clear that FCC fines are far less binding than regulators have long implied.
From Stations To Brands: How The Duopoly Is Rewiring Local Television
In the long history of American local television, the duopoly has always been something of a broadly accepted structural compromise — important to operators, largely invisible to viewers, and often discussed in regulatory rather than strategic terms.
BIA
BIA Says AI Could Become Radio’s Next Client Retention Tool
VP of Analysis and Insight Celine Matthiessen argued on pair of recent “Leading and Local Insights” podcasts that the shift extends beyond technology and is changing where consumers form opinions and make decisions.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Deal Digest: Chicago Translator Sells For $1 Million
Birach Broadcasting has filed a $1 million deal to buy the Park Ridge, IL-licensed translator W244BQ at 96.7 FM from Jim White’s Ohana Del Sol.
Television
TV Networks Hope Sports Catch Upfront Ad Cash Amid Budget Cuts
A number of top TV networks and streamers are making aggressive efforts to get advertisers to pay top dollar for sports even as Madison Avenue trims back the sizable sums it has given in the past to the usual fare, like dramas, comedies and reality programming.
A 5G Broadcast Standoff Emerges For America’s LPTV Community (RBR subscription required)
On May 12, the LPTV Broadcasters Association, through its chairman and founder “SuperFrank” Copsidas, sent an open letter to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr asking the Commission to formally recognize the 3GPP 5G Broadcast standard as a voluntary transmission option under Part 74 for Low Power Television stations.
Print Media
The Minnesota Star Tribune will cut 15% of its staff — and may become a nonprofit
Just a month after winning a Pulitzer Prize for breaking news reporting, The Minnesota Star Tribune will offer buyouts and lay off up to 15% of its staff, the company said Tuesday.
FCC
FCC’s Media Bureau Sets the Eligibility Rules for Upcoming NCE Translator Filing Window
In January, the FCC made public its plans to open a window for the filing of applications for new FM translators in the “reserved band” – between 88.1 and 91.9 – to be operated by licensees of noncommercial stations (see our article here).