House Panel Sets Next FCC Oversight Hearing For October 25th As Reauthorization/Reform Bill Emerges From Markup

Hearing Soon

The next FCC oversight hearing before the House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology has been scheduled for OCTOBER 25th, reports BROADCASTING AND CABLE.

The hearing comes in the wake of two events affecting the media, one being the markup of the bill to reauthorize and reform the FCC and the other being President TRUMP's Twitter posts and comments suggesting that networks' broadcast licenses be challenged for reporting news he does not like (which he terms "fake news").  Democrats on the subcommittee have been calling for a hearing over TRUMP's comments.

The reauthorization bill was referred to the full committee after the markup on a unanimous voice vote; the bill was stripped of the portion that was aimed at abolishing the newspaper-broadcast cross-ownership ban.

Subcommittee Chair MARSHA BLACKBURN (R-TN) said in her opening statement at the markup, “The FCC is charged with the administration of the Communications Act and other statutes that govern our country’s communications policy. The agency plays an increasingly important role as society becomes more dependent on technology, and the authorizing statute needs to be updated to reflect the current state of the communications marketplace.”

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