Leadership Conference Says 323 Comment Extension Is Insufficient

The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, which represents groups that have been critical of the Federal Communications Commission's media ownership proposal, has told the FCC that its proposed 30-day extension of the comment period on its associated 323 state of ownership survey is not sufficient. They also don't want the FCC to vote the ownership item in early January after the comment period closes.

In a letter to the FCC commissioners, the group said that its more than 200 member organizations had concluded that extra period -- until Jan. 4 on a report released Nov. 14 – does not permit a full opportunity to understand, analyze and offer comment on the ownership data, especially since the data was only released two weeks ago. They add that the brief window could leave the FCC wide open for a court challenge because it is "self-evidently insufficient."