Database Capacity Concern for Some if FCC Requires Online Public Files for Radio
Some broadcast attorneys backed up concerns from broadcast entities that potentially requiring pay-TV and radio licensees to upload public files online may be too much for the FCC database to handle. Other attorneys said the FCC’s role in placing files online takes some of the burden off broadcasters. In comments in docket 14-127, Educational Media Foundation, NAB and broadcaster associations in all 50 states cautioned against adding more than 15,000 radio stations to the regime before resolving technical issues with the database (CD Sept 2 p7).
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Logistical issues and technical issues relating to the database remain, some attorneys said. Last year’s partial federal government shutdown brought some of those issues to light, said Brad Deutsch, a Garvey Schubert attorney who submitted comments for Native Public Media. During the shutdown, stations couldn’t upload new documents to the database and no one could access it, he said. Documents have to be uploaded in a timely manner, “but any kind of snag in the commission’s administration of this database could cause a problem,” he said. The proposal to add radio is like a “700 percent increase” in the number of stations that would be put into the database, he said.
The biggest problem for community radio stations is the quarterly issue report, Deutsch said. A date stamp shows it was uploaded at the right time, he said. But if staff sees there’s a mistake or typo, the filer has to take it down and replace it with a new one, he said. “This makes it look like you were late.” The licensee has to include a sentence indicating the document originally was filed on time, or take a screen shot to prove that it was uploaded on time, Deutsch added.
The FCC hosts the online public file for TV stations, but that was difficult to implement, another broadcast lawyer said. The commission put links to the public files on TV stations’ sites, which was a massive undertaking, he said. There’s no guarantee the FCC would do hosted online public filing for radio stations, he said. It’s possible that radio licensees would have to do it themselves, he said.
An attorney representing TV and radio stations said that dealing with the online filing system is “pretty easy,” and that uploading files isn’t very time consuming. Many files for TV stations, aside from quarterly issues and kids’ programming reports, are online already, he said. The commission takes the filings and puts them online in the stations’ public files, he said. Radio stations don’t have many documents to upload, he said, referring to programs/issues lists and the political file: Programs/issues lists are required only four times a year, and “the political file would likely be the bulk of their obligation to put something online.”
If such a requirement is adopted for pay TV and full-power radio stations, the low-power FM community probably won’t be affected, said Michi Eyre, REC Networks founder. LPFM licensees only use the system when making changes and during renewal every eight years, she said. There have been some performance issues, like a lag or freezing during filing deadlines, she said.
The commission should account for the number of radio station owners who may not have the proper staff or online savvy, some of the attorneys said. Radio stations have many more broadcasters that are “computer-challenged,” Deutsch said. “It’s a much lower dollars business.” The FCC would not only add thousands of documents to a system that hasn’t dealt with those numbers, he said, it also “would be adding a population that it’s not used to dealing with.” For example “mom and pop” stations won’t know when to redact certain information or how to redact it, he said. Radio stations “run with a lot leaner staffing than TV stations typically do,” said a broadcast lawyer.
There’s a downside to placing files online, said the attorney representing TV and radio stations. It makes deficiencies more visible to the FCC, he said: “It’s been a real boondoggle for the FCC in terms of fines and forfeitures.” Stations are being hit left and right over reports that are deficient even in the most minor of ways, he said.
Deutsch pointed to the report and order on requiring TV stations to submit online files and the delegation of authority to staff to allow radio stations to voluntarily use the system. That could be a fix, he said: “The staff has yet to do that.” The online file IT infrastructure isn’t yet capable of hosting radio online files, an FCC spokeswoman said. The state broadcaster associations suggested setting broader filing windows to reduce the number of filings, they said in comments (http://bit.ly/1u515Ee).