FCC Chairman Seeks to Change Media Ownership Rules
The Federal Communications Commission under FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is considering changing the number of media properties a single media company can own in the same market.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin's proposal would allow for public comment on the proposed rules in mid-November and a commission vote on Dec. 18.
Among the rules that are potentially on the chopping block is a ban on one company owning a newspaper and broadcast station in the same market. The rule is of particular interest to Tribune Co., which is the subject of a pending buyout led by real estate magnate Sam Zell.
Tribune has waivers that allow the company to own both newspaper and broadcast properties in New York, Los Angles, Chicago, Hartford/New Haven and Miami/Fort Lauderdale. The waivers will not transfer to the new owners.
But if the FCC agrees to Martin's schedule, and then votes to eliminate the cross-ownership ban, it becomes a moot point, and allows the company to close on the transaction by year's end, as it had hoped.
Reuters reports that the FCC Chief wants a decision on the media ownernship issue by December. CNN says Martin's predecessor Republican Michael Powell tried to loosen the media ownership rules in 2003 but he was overruled by the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals.
