FCC Releases, Withholds Ownership Documents

FCC RELEASES, WITHHOLDS OWNERSHIP DOCUMENTS
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
The FCC's Media Bureau has released a number of documents and audio transcripts related to its media ownership proceeding, but has withheld some 1,400 pages of documents, including two draft reports, citing various privilege exemptions. That came in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request from a public interest law firm, the Institute for Public Representation (IPR), which professed itself "troubled" by the amount of information withheld -- including those two drafts -- pointing out the FCC has made other drafts available. The Commission has already released a number of documents on its Web site, with FCC Chairman Kevin Martin saying it was in response to the public's interest in the material. That interest was peaked last fall when Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) got hold of drafts of media ownership studies the FCC had not released, prompting her to ask what else the FCC wasn't sharing. In its responding to the FOIA request for all data related to its localism proceeding and review of media ownership rules, the FCC provided a half dozen or so new documents, pointed to a host of documents it had already made available on its Web site, as well as CD's with a couple thousand of hours radio recordings made by Edison Media Research under contract to the FCC for an analysis of whether radio stations were serving their local communities. Angela Campbell, director of IPR, said she was troubled that "policy is being made pursuant to data the public does not have access to," including the two staff drafts.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6404744.html