As promised on the radio show, I now have posted the comments that Nexstar and Sinclair filed with the FCC on the media ownership review docket. Both companies own TV stations in the Champaign-Decatur-Springfield, IL DMA (where the ‘geek is located), in addition to owning stations nationwide.
Nexstar owns Champaign CBS affiliate WCIA Ch. 3 and Springfield UPN affiliate WCFN. Sinclair owns Champaign NBC affiliate WICD ch. 15 and Springfield NBC affiliate WICS ch. 20. Sinclair is the bigger company that owns and operates, programs or provides sales services to 63 television stations in 40 markets, reaching 25% of the national market.
What’s most telling about these companies’ comments is that both encourage the FCC to drop the Newspaper-Television cross-ownership rule and the local-telelvision ownership/duopoloy rule. Here are definitions of these rules, thanks to the Media Access Project:
The “Newspaper-Broadcast Ownership” Rule:
The newspaper broadcast cross ownership rule prohibits a newspaper from owning a broadcast station in the same local area and vice versa. The FCC adopted this rule in 1975. The Supreme Court upheld the rule against constitutional attack in a case called NCCB v. FCC.. At the time the FCC adopted the rule, it allowed many existing newspaper-broadcast combinations to keep their combinations. Many of these “grandfathered” combinations continue to exist today.Local Television Ownership Rules:
This rule limits ownership to two television stations in same market only if that market has 8 independent voices, and, one of the two stations is not among the top four stations in that market. Sometimes this rule is referred to as the “duopoly” rule.
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