*Luncheon Keynote*

**Honorable Kathleen Abernathy**

**Before the**

**19^th^ Annual MSTV Fall Television Conference**

**Washington, DC**

# October 5, 2005

I am delighted to be here today to address the 19^th^ Annual MSTV Fall
Television Conference. The title of this year's conference, "Digital
Television and The Consumer Challenge: Bringing It All Home" is
certainly appropriate given the critical DTV related issues facing the
commission and the congress.

In the next few weeks, Congress will have a dramatic impact on the
American consumer and television broadcasting as it addresses the
establishment of a hard date for the return of analog television
spectrum.

The terrible devastation caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita pushed
the DTV debate, and almost everything else, off of our collective radar
screen. As a nation, we witnessed the terror of the storm and its
aftermath, and the heartbreak of those caught in its path, particularly
the thousands and thousands of people who lost everything in its wake.

As recovery efforts continue, it is in keeping with the theme of this
conference to reflect on the lessons this awful experience has brought
home to *us*, in business as well as in everyday life, as professionals
as well as private citizens.

Perhaps the central lesson is, as the bible tells us, "from him to whom
much is given, much shall be expected." Each of us has been moved by how
so much misery can coexist with so much resiliency. All of us have been
compelled to do whatever we can to help the survivors of hurricanes
Katrina and Rita rebuild their homes, their lives, and their dreams.

The FCC has tried to do its part to help, actively working with federal,
state, and local officials to get service back on-line as quickly as
possible. Working literally around-the-clock to do everything within our
power to help restore a semblance of normalcy to New Orleans and the
gulf coast.

In turn, the efforts of local television stations before, during and
after the storms deserve to be recognized and commended. Local
television stations put aside their normal rivalries and pooled their
resources in creative responses to the catastrophe. When there is time
to write the whole story, there will be many, many examples of local
broadcasters who stayed on-the-air despite great personal danger,
defying the storm and the odds.

For example, eighty of the eighty-five employees of Belo Corporation's
WWL-TV in New Orleans volunteered to stay at the station, providing
24-hour non-stop hurricane coverage for nine straight days. When
flooding forced the studio to move out of the French quarter, WWL
continued to broadcast from the studios of KLPB, the PBS station on the
LSU campus.

Hearst-Argyle's WDUS-TV in New Orleans stayed in constant contact with
law enforcement officials as the storm approached, relaying critical
evacuation and safety information. They remained on the air until the
transmitter took on water, and then continued to stream news coverage by
moving their staff to sister station WAPT in Jackson, MS. The news crews
remained in New Orleans to cover the story.

In Biloxi, Liberty's WLOX continued to broadcast even though the storm
ripped off the newsroom's roof. With water pouring in, the station ued
to broadcast from a small side room, on a card table, with one laptop
and one camera. When power failed for a short time, the station
partnered with WXXV-TV the local Fox affiliate.

These are but several examples from among many. By pointing them out I
do not intend to give short shrift to similar efforts by other gulf
coast television licensees like Media General, Tribune, Emmis and
Raycom. Their stations, and others, brought home to us yet again that
broadcasting, the first in time among electronic mass media, remains the
most firmly tied to the interests of the local communities you serve.

The benefits flowing from these stations' incredible efforts were many,
and the beneficiaries were diverse. First and foremost, of course, local
television reporters, armed with their knowledge about their local
communities, were critically important in providing citizens with life
saving information. They were the "boots on the ground," providing a
lifeline of valuable, on-the-spot information and a familiar, reassuring
presence in the aftermath of the storm.

But local stations also provided the information base for other media
throughout the region. Local television news was re-broadcast on radio
stations, satellite services, and cable networks and was streamed over
the internet. Indeed, in contrast to sometimes wildly inaccurate
blogging, local tv websites provided a reliable source of accurate
information.

Local gulf coast stations also provided a vital communications link,
allowing state and local public safety officials to reach out to the
community at large. In return, local television served as the eyes and
ears of public safety, permitting them to see trouble spots as they
developed. And local stations brought the images of a devastated region
to the outside world, helping those of us far from the gulf coast grasp,
as mere words cannot, the enormity of the disaster.

As rebuilding efforts continue along the gulf coast, television
broadcasting has become a major factor in helping to revive the region.
The industry-sponsored "broadcast unity day" has exceeded its goal,
raising over \$100 million. In addition, countless local tv-sponsored
telethons, clothing drives, and food drives have helped mobilize a
nation.

"From those to whom much is given, much shall be expected." Local
television broadcasters have indeed been "given" much, as many
influential leaders often point out. And of course the Commission tries
from time to time to commoditize the value of what you have been given
by imposing programming obligations of varying kinds. And yet, when all
is said and done, local television stations have indeed brought home,
especially to those who may have come to take broadcasting for granted,
the real value of the service they provide. If there exists a better
demonstration of real "localism" than how local broadcasters performed
in response to Katrina and Rita I can't imagine what it would be.

This experience must be the basis from which we can explore what the
private sector, local and state authorities, and the Commission must do
in order to ensure that local television stations are able to continue
this kind of service when faced with future natural and man made
disasters.

Finally, as many of you know, this is likely to be the last time I will
have the privilege of speaking with you as a Commissioner, because my
term on the Commission is coming to a close. As Yogi Berra would put it,
I am coming to a fork in the road, and I am going to take it.

I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to thank David,
Victor, and the many individual members of MSTV whose input has helped
me sort through the complexities of so many of the issues that concern
your industry. For that, and for the opportunity of being part of this
program bringing home to all of us your extraordinary efforts during
this extraordinary time, I thank you.