Brief History
1996 Telecom Act
Section 202 (h) requires the FCC to review its ownership rules every two years and repeal or modify any regulation determined to be no longer in the public interest. In the 1998 and 2000 reviews, the FCC upheld nearly all ownership rules as still in the public interest.
Fox Television and Sinclair Decisions
In 2002, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in back to back rulings empowered the FCC to deregulate media ownership. The court in Fox Televisions Stations, Inc. v. FCC, partially reversed the Commission’s 2000 ownership review report and eliminated a rule preventing cable operators from owning broadcast stations in areas they currently serviced. In Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. v. FCC, the court questioned the “duopoly rule”, requesting the Commission reexamine its regional ownership limits for television. Both court decisions held that Section 202 (h) of the 1996 Telecom Act contained a “deregulatory presumption,” that placed the burden of evidence on arguments seeking to keep the existing rules in place.
The Commission’s 2002 Biennial Review of Media Ownership Rules
The FCC adopted the D.C. Circuit’s deregulatory presumption and in its 2002 Biennial Review relaxed several critical ownership limitations. Among the Commission’s deregulatory actions, were increasing the number of local television stations a single entity could own, raising the national television ownership cap from 35% to 45% and allowing for the cross-ownership in the same market, of newspaper, radio and television.
Congress Sets Ownership Cap at 39%
In January 2004, in response to significant public backlash against the Commission’s attempt to loosen media ownership limits, Congress passed legislation decreasing the FCC’s national television ownership cap from 45% to 39%. It also changed the biennial review of media ownership rules to every four years.
Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC
In response to Commission’s deregulation, MAP, along with other public interest groups, challenged the FCC’s order in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. In Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC, the Third Circuit overturned the FCC’s attempt to relax ownership limits and remanded the rules back to the Commission for further review. It also ruled that section 202 (h) of the 1996 Telecom Act did not contain a “deregulatory presumption,” and that the burden rested with those seeking to modify or eliminate the existing rules.