FCC CRITICIZED AS ABDICATING ITS ROLE

The Federal Communications Commission came under attack Friday from senators who charged the agency has carried deregulation too far in seeking to curtail requirements that broadcasters serve the public interest.

At a Senate hearing, lawmakers charged the FCC had largely abdicated its responsibilities to ensure broadcasters weighed public education considerations--as well as their bottom line--in making programming decisions.

As a result, they said, broadcasters are less concerned about airing quality shows, particularly in the crucial area of children’s television.

“Television can help educate and inform our kids and excite their curiousity about the world around them,” said Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.). “Or it can grow for the nation a crop of couch potatoes.

“Commercial television broadcasters have failed the children of this nation,” he told a Senate subcommittee on communications.

Lautenberg said the FCC’s failure to enforce programming standards has led to a disturbing trend in children’s television toward shows that are primarily designed to sell toys.

“The goal (of these programs) is to sell products,” he said. “As one toy company executive told TV Guide, ‘The shows are part of the overall marketing effort.’ ”

Subcommittee Chairman Ernest Hollings (D-S.C.) said the FCC has wrongly assumed growing competition in the industry will assure that informative and quality programming is available and community needs are met.

Hollings said the industry was increasingly run by “MBA whiz kids” intent on cutting costly news and public affairs coverage to tone up their balance sheets.

“These broadcasters are beginning to dominate the industry,” he said. “Even those dedicated to public service have felt its effects. It is sort of like Gresham’s law--bad broadcasters drive the good broadcaster out of business.”

Hollings has introduced legislation that would require the FCC to review the quantity and quality of station programming when broadcasters apply to renew their federal licenses. Under the bill, the FCC would be directed to review 10% of all license renewal applications to determine whether stations are providing “meritorious” service.

FCC Chairman Dennis Patrick said he shared the goal of quality programming, but the “meritorious” service standard was vague and hard to define.

Furthermore, he said FCC review of programming raised concerns about constitutional freedom of speech rights because broadcasters might fear losing their licenses if they air controversial programs that meet with disapproval from government regulators.

“This constant possibility of governmental retribution for errors in programming judgment is the very antithesis of ‘free speech,’ ” Patrick said.

“Governmental regulation is not necessary to ensure the availability of programs that viewers and listeners want,” he added. “The marketplace will generally sort out the interests of audiences and match them with appropriate programming and will do so more efficiently than governmental dictates.”