Border relief stuck on the Hill?

WIRED IN WASHINGTON
Moving The Goal Posts

Wed. May. 7, 2008
by David Hatch

When the Senate Commerce Committee approved legislation last month designed to ease the transition to digital television along the southwest border, it was trying to throw a life line to stations like KVEO-TV in Brownsville, Texas.

The NBC affiliate is so close to Mexico that General Manager William Jorn can be in Matamoros within five or 10 minutes and sometimes crosses the border to grab lunch. But there's just one hitch: Jorn doesn't support the bill.

"It gives certain broadcasters an advantage that all the other broadcasters don't have," he said of the measure, which would let U.S. broadcasters within 50 miles of the nearly 2,000-mile border continue to operate in analog for the next five years. Jorn wants the emphasis on increased public education instead.

Ask a lawmaker or an FCC regulator whether the Feb. 17 DTV deadline -- the focus of an industry-led ad campaign valued at nearly $1 billion -- should be postponed and you're likely to hear a firm "no."

Yet that's effectively what legislation authored by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, and a bill introduced by Rep. Hilda Solis, D-Calif., would do for dozens of television stations, whose deadline would still be Feb. 17 -- but in 2014.

The bills are designed to ensure that citizens who are mostly low-income, bilingual and heavily dependent on analog don't lose reception. They are also aimed at preventing U.S. stations, as they go digital, from relinquishing their audiences to analog broadcasters in Mexico.

Supporters said action is needed because many Hispanics are simply not getting the message about the transition and the availability of federal coupons that reduce the cost of converter boxes needed to keep older TVs functioning.

A Hutchison aide observed that about 27,000 converter box coupons have been requested for the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, where more than 100,000 households depend on analog. Some residents can't afford the devices even with vouchers or are reluctant to apply because they have an uncertain legal status.

Bolstering those concerns was a Consumers Union report in February warning that the Texas border cities of El Paso and Brownsville have the second- and third-highest reliance -- on a percentage basis -- on analog TV in the nation.

But with 286 days to go before the shift to digital, gauging whether these "DTV Border Fix Acts" are the best approach along a boundary spanning four states and 800,000 households is as clear as reception with rabbit ears during a thunderstorm. Broadcast groups are silent, apparently because they're divided.

Despite its proximity to the border, San Diego would not be covered to avoid interfering with analog spectrum to be used for public safety and DTV channel assignments in that crowded market.

The bills don't require affected stations to simulcast in analog and digital, though most stations would because they already have made substantial investments in the latter, the Senate aide said. Yet the legislation could exempt struggling broadcasters from DTV requirements for up to a half-decade, a scenario Jorn considers unfair because it doesn't apply elsewhere.

Solis acknowledged the special accommodations would be limited to the border even though broadcasters elsewhere face challenges, but she argued this is necessary because of the unique circumstances.

Proponents emphasize that many Spanish-speaking citizens on the U.S. side watch analog outlets in Mexico that are not required to switch to digital signals. Without action, they fear some Americans won't even know the transition has occurred.

"Up to 35 percent of the border markets on the U.S. side are Spanish-only residents -- these are the legal guys," observed Sam Vale, president of KTLM-TV, a Telemundo affiliate based nearby in McAllen, Texas. "The fact is that you can survive on the U.S. side of the border and speak Spanish all your life," said Vale, who argues the bill is needed to prevent audiences from relying on Mexican television.

Yet Mexican broadcasters are increasingly adding digital signals voluntarily -- the Brownsville market, for example, receives several of them.

The most compelling argument for passage is safety related: if U.S. citizens along the border shift exclusively to analog stations from Mexico, they'll be without emergency warnings, such as hurricane alerts, that domestic broadcasters must provide.

Jorn concedes the point, though he notes that digital television will eventually offer more emergency capabilities and suggested that safety worries are equally valid in other places where the deadline is firm.

Asked why stepped up consumer education and wider availability of converter boxes -- particularly models that accommodate analog and digital -- wasn't the focus, Solis said she and other lawmakers want that too.

"I just don't think it's enough," she said of consumer outreach efforts.

Another consideration is whether the approach might foster more confusion than it resolves by sending mixed messages to consumers. Solis strongly disagreed, noting that confusion would occur without it. "I take very seriously the notion that there's going to be people that are going to be left out," she said.

The Senate bill is awaiting floor action while the House version has yet to be scheduled for a vote by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

At least it's comforting to know that in this age of rigid security, something can cross the border without going through customs -- and still be perfectly legal.