FCC Withdraws Proposal to Relax Media-Ownership Rules

The Federal Communications Commission said it has withdrawn a proposal to relax the nation's long-standing ban on owning multiple media outlets in the same market.

More than a year ago, then-FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski circulated a draft item that would have eliminated the ban on owning a radio station and newspaper in the same market. The proposal would have also paved the way for smaller TV stations to own newspapers, a change pushed by the struggling newspaper industry. Now under the leadership of Chairman Tom Wheeler, the commission said it has taken the old item off the table while it reassesses the issue. By law, the FCC must review its media ownership rules every four years. Because Chairman Genachowski deferred action on the 2010 review, the commission is on the verge of missing the deadline before the process restarts next year. While there is no statutory penalty for missing the report, a commission official said the FCC expects "to move expeditiously to take additional steps with regard to our broadcast ownership rules and recognize our statutory obligations." That suggests another order is coming next year, but it is unclear whether it would again try to relax cross-ownership rules.