Washington Beat

The FCC at its upcoming September Open Meeting will vote on two items that its Republican leadership believes would open up "massive troves" of additional spectrum for the next-generation connectivity. One item is a "satellite spectrum abundance order." The other is a plan to modernize "UWB" rules. 

The LPTV Broadcasters Association has voiced its "strong support" in favor of Commission approval of the use of Emergency Alert System (EAS) software and related modernization proposals, which can be found starting at Paragraph 88 of a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. 

At the end of Q1 2025, the FCC launched an inquiry to explore commercial technologies that would complement GPS. Today, WT Docket No. 25-110 remains open. This prompted the WIA to chime in to ask the Commission to "expeditiously issue" a NPRM that would promote the development of "PNT" tech.

The Commission on Friday announced the return of $3.08 billion to the U.S. Treasury — funds borrowed in March 2025 to support the FCC’s Rip-and-Replace reimbursement program. The quick repayment of this loan was due in part to a successful AWS-3 Spectrum auction, the FCC said.

After years of lobbying, hundreds of House co-sponsors and a summer spent pressing congressional leadership, the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act finally has a floor date. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise has scheduled a standalone vote.

Triton Digital’s Q2 2026 US Podcast Ranker shows News posting the sharpest reach growth of any genre ahead of the midterms, even as Comedy widens its already-controlling lead, driven partly by late-night television shows increasingly moving into audio.

When cell networks went dark for weeks during recent disasters, radio stations kept broadcasting emergency alerts throughout. That track record now anchors the NAB's response to portions of a major FCC proposal, which it says could undermine EAS reliability.

The companies led by low-power TV entrepreneur Frank Copsidas have filed an ex-parte with the FCC in support of HC2 Broadcasting’s "expert filing" about their meeting with members of Chairman Brendan Carr’s staff. The topic of discussion: 5G Broadcast capabilities and realities for LPTV stations.

The noncommercial media organization devoted to covering the activities of the U.S. Congress created by Brian Lamb has creating a new senior leadership position focused on expanding philanthropic support.

The FCC on Wednesday acted to remove what the Carr Commission calls "a costly and unnecessary regulatory burden hanging over thousands of citizens and organizations" that create locally owned and locally watched video programming for public, educational, and governmental access (PEG) channels.

The licensee of four FM stations serving a rural portion of eastern Kentucky have entered into a Consent Decree with the Chief of the FCC Media Bureau's Audio Division that absolves the radio broadcasting company of a series of rule violations ranging from tardy license renewals to failure to maintain its online public file. 

The FCC Commissioner aligned with the Democratic Party has lashed out at a Media Bureau "Order" she claims "unlawfully" expands the interpretation of which political entities qualify for discounted broadcast advertising rates. Yet, her own communiqué says the "Order" is a Public Notice that's taken some heat of late.

A pair of progressive political action groups, along with a collection of viewers of ABC stations, have filed a Motion to Intervene as plaintiffs alongside The Walt Disney Company in its federal lawsuit against the FCC being argued in U.S. District Court.

New Commission cybersecurity requirements for the Emergency Alert System take effect on September 29. To help stations understand the new requirements and how to best prepare for compliance, the NAB and the National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations (NASBA) are teaming up.

ABC claims its early license renewal proceeding for the broadcast properties and a consideration of The View as a "bona fide" news show free of equal time rules is a First Amendment violation. Anna M. Gómez, the lone Democrat on the FCC's dais, could not agree more.