In June 2006, I started writing the Broadcast Law Blog, discussing issues like the broadcast ownership rules, music licensing issues, FCC filing windows for new broadcast stations, AM radio improvements, political broadcasting issues, and an upcoming technology transition for digital television. It is funny how these same issues, or ones very close to these issues,
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This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: March 16, 2026 to March 20, 2026
Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the past week, with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations.
- The FCC’s Media Bureau released a Memorandum Opinion and Order granting the transfer of control of TEGNA to Nexstar Media.
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AI in Political Attack Ads – Watch State Laws on Deep Fakes and Synthetic Media in Political Content
This past weekend, we saw an ad posted on YouTube attacking Democratic Senatorial candidate James Talarico – using words that were apparently from his own tweets, commenting on a number of social issues. What made the ad notable was that the words from the tweets were not just displayed on the screen or read by…
Crystal Ball Time – What Are the Regulatory and Policy Issues Broadcasters Should Be Expecting to Deal With in 2026?
It’s the start of another year, so it is time to dust off the crystal ball and look at what we expect to be the big regulatory and legislative issues facing broadcasters in the new year. Looking back on our forecast for 2025 that came out just over a year ago, I was surprised to…
This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: December 8, 2025 to December 12, 2025
Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the past week, with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations.
- The FCC’s Enforcement Bureau entered into a Consent Decree with a public broadcaster to resolve an investigation into whether false
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Getting Ready for the 2026 Election – Steps Broadcasters Should Be Taking Now to Avoid Legal Issues with Political Broadcasting
The deadline for candidates in Texas to file for a place on the March 3 primary ballot was this week. Deadlines for filing to become a qualified candidate in other states will follow soon for other primaries that occur in March, and then throughout the first part of 2026. As a result, broadcast stations and…
This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: May 19, 2025 to May 23, 2025
Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the past week, with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations.
- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected the FCC’s 2024 attempt to reinstate Form 395-B which, had it
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Court Finds FCC Has No Authority to Require EEO Form 395-B – And Narrows Scope of the Public Interest Standard
The FCC’s 2024 decision to reinstate Form 395-B, after its use had been paused for over 20 years, was invalidated this week by a decision of the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. In yet another instance of courts limiting the authority of administrative agencies, the Fifth Circuit judges found that the…
This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: March 3, 2025 to March 7, 2025
Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the past week, with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations.
- The FCC released a draft Notice of Inquiry to explore how the FCC can support industry efforts to develop new
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Washington State Court of Appeals Upholds $24.6 Million Penalty Against Meta for Not Meeting State Political Advertising Disclosure Requirements – A Warning to All Media Companies to Assess and Comply with State Political Disclosure Rules
Washington DC is not the only place where there are regulatory or political decisions made that affect broadcasters and advertising for candidates or political issues. We’ve written many times about state laws that govern the use of AI in political advertising, with more than 20 states already having laws on their books and more considering…