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TechDirt: Trump FCC Eyes Illegal Plan To Censor Real Journalism, Reward RW Local Broadcasters Like Sinclair
TechDirt - Trump FCC Eyes Illegal Plan To Censor Real Journalism, Reward Local Broadcasters Like Sinclair For Airing Right Wing Propaganda
Tue, May 6th 2025 05:30am - Karl Bode
We’ve covered for years the ugly retransmission feuds that break out between your cable company and broadcasters during contract negotiations. These fights routinely result in you losing access to channels you pay for with no real recourse. The FCC has perpetually refused to protect consumers from this stuff, taking a sort of “boys will be boys” approach, regardless of party.
Now the Trump FCC has decided to pretend to take action, but their “solution” is super dodgy, likely illegal, and primarily aimed at propping up the local right wing propaganda broadcast ecosystem.
Some simple background: cable, satellite, and streaming platforms pay retransmission fees to local broadcast television stations for the right to retransmit their signals to subscribers. Reverse retransmission fees are payments local television stations make to national broadcast networks for all the leverage and perks that come from being associated with a national broadcast brand (ABC, CBS, NBC).
In an editorial over at The National Pulse, rarely-heard-from Trump FCC pick Nathan Simington has crafted an op-ed proposing reform of retransmission and reverse retransmission fees. His proposal, to cap “retransmission fees” at 30 percent to harm the “corrupt media cartel”:
“The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should cap reverse retransmission fees (revenue that local TV stations pay back to their affiliated broadcast networks) at 30 percent to protect local broadcasters, lower consumer costs, and strike a decisive blow against the corrupt media cartel.”
/snip
Tue, May 6th 2025 05:30am - Karl Bode
We’ve covered for years the ugly retransmission feuds that break out between your cable company and broadcasters during contract negotiations. These fights routinely result in you losing access to channels you pay for with no real recourse. The FCC has perpetually refused to protect consumers from this stuff, taking a sort of “boys will be boys” approach, regardless of party.
Now the Trump FCC has decided to pretend to take action, but their “solution” is super dodgy, likely illegal, and primarily aimed at propping up the local right wing propaganda broadcast ecosystem.
Some simple background: cable, satellite, and streaming platforms pay retransmission fees to local broadcast television stations for the right to retransmit their signals to subscribers. Reverse retransmission fees are payments local television stations make to national broadcast networks for all the leverage and perks that come from being associated with a national broadcast brand (ABC, CBS, NBC).
In an editorial over at The National Pulse, rarely-heard-from Trump FCC pick Nathan Simington has crafted an op-ed proposing reform of retransmission and reverse retransmission fees. His proposal, to cap “retransmission fees” at 30 percent to harm the “corrupt media cartel”:
“The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should cap reverse retransmission fees (revenue that local TV stations pay back to their affiliated broadcast networks) at 30 percent to protect local broadcasters, lower consumer costs, and strike a decisive blow against the corrupt media cartel.”
/snip