**FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION**

**MASS MEDIA BUREAU**

**POLICY AND RULES DIVISION**

**WASHINGTON, D.C. 20554**

**Three Year Review of the Implementation of**

**the Children's Television Rules and Guidelines**

**1997-1999**

![](media/image1.wmf){width="3.0597222222222222in"
height="3.0597222222222222in"}

**January 2001**

**Introduction**

1.  In 1996, the Commission revised its children's television rules
    implementing the Children's Television Act of 1990 and adopted
    "core" programming guidelines.[^1] In the *Children's Television
    Report and Order* the Commission stated that it would monitor the
    broadcast industry\'s children\'s educational programming
    performance for three years based upon the quarterly Children\'s
    Television Programming Reports (FCC Form 398) that licensees are
    required to file with the Commission.[^2] The Commission stated that
    it would conduct a review of these reports at the end of this
    three-year period and take appropriate action as necessary to ensure
    that stations are complying with the rules and guidelines. To
    supplement this review, the Commission also directed the staff to
    conduct selected individual station audits during the three-year
    period to assess station performance under the children\'s
    educational and informational programming rules and guidelines.

2.  This "Three Year Review of the Implementation of the Children's
    Television Rules and Guidelines, 1997-1999" ("Report") by the Mass
    Media Bureau\'s Policy and Industry Analysis Branch, Policy and
    Rules Division, provides information to the Commission regarding how
    the broadcasting industry is doing in the area of children's
    educational and informational programming. This Report examines a
    large sample of stations in order to assess the industry's
    performance. Areas of examination include broadcasters' public
    information initiatives, aspects of the definition of programming
    "specifically designed" to serve children's educational and
    informational needs (*i.e.,* "core" programming), and the three-hour
    processing guideline. The Report calculates the average number of
    core hours broadcast by stations and examines the preemption rate of
    regularly scheduled children's programming.

3.  This Report makes the following general observations, based on the
    FCC Form 398 reports filed by the sample of television stations:

**\*** The commercial television broadcasting industry is complying with
the three-hour core programming guideline established in the *Children's
Television Report and Order.* The average amount of children's core
programming aired on a commercial broadcast television station since the
core requirement has been in effect is approximately four hours per
week. More than one-half of the stations air three hours or three and
one-half hours of core programming per week, but some stations
(including independents, religious broadcasters, and UPN affiliates) air
nearly twice that much.[^3]

\* The average preemption rate for all stations for core programs since
the core programming requirement has been in effect is approximately 5.4
percent.[^4] The preemption rate for affiliates of the three largest
networks (ABC, CBS and NBC) is approximately 9.8 percent, compared to an
average of approximately 2.5 percent for the other stations (stations
affiliated with smaller networks and independent stations). Affiliates
of the three largest networks generally preempt the most core
programming due to network coverage of national sporting events.

**\*** For ABC, CBS and NBC network affiliates, many core program series
were preempted more often in particular quarters of the year, depending
on the live sports programming obligations of each network, the
regularly scheduled time period of the program series, and the
geographic location of the station. Quarterly preemption rates ranged
from a low of two percent of program episodes by CBS in the second
quarter 1999, to a high of 25 percent of program episodes by NBC in the
third quarter 1999.[^5]

\* ABC, CBS and NBC network affiliates in the Pacific Time Zone
preempted core programs more frequently than affiliates in the Eastern
and Central Time Zones. Across the three networks programs were, on
average, preempted more than twice as often in the West than in the East
(16 percent *vs*. six percent).[^6]

\* Broadcast licensees have also complied with the other aspects of the
children's television rules. These include airing programming during
hours when children will be in the audience, airing programs of a
substantial length, and providing better information to the public
regarding their educational children's television programming.

**Background**

4.  The Children\'s Television Act of 1990 (\"CTA\"),[^7] requires the
    Commission, in its review of each television broadcast license
    renewal application, to \"consider the extent to which the licensee
    . . . has served the educational and informational needs of children
    through the licensee\'s overall programming, including programming
    specifically designed to serve such needs.\"[^8] In enacting the
    CTA, Congress found that, while television can benefit society by
    helping to educate and inform children, there are significant market
    disincentives for commercial broadcasters to air children's
    educational and informational programming.[^9] The objective of
    Congress in enacting the CTA was to increase the amount of
    educational and informational programming available on
    television.[^10] The CTA accomplished that objective by placing on
    every licensee an obligation to provide such programming, including
    programming specifically designed to educate and inform children,
    and by requiring the FCC to enforce that obligation[^11]

5.  In the *Children\'s Television Report and Order*, the Commission
    adopted new regulations concerning children\'s television
    educational and informational programming. First, the Commission
    adopted a number of requirements designed to provide better
    information to the public about the shows broadcasters air to
    fulfill their obligation to air educational and informational
    programming under the CTA. [^12] This information is provided to
    assist parents who wish to guide their children\'s television
    viewing and, if large numbers of parents use that information to
    choose educational programming for their children, increase the
    likelihood that the market will respond with more educational
    programming. In addition, better information should help parents and
    others have an effective dialogue with broadcasters in their
    community about children\'s programming and, where appropriate,
    allow them to urge programming improvements without resorting to
    government intervention.

6.  Second, the Commission adopted a definition of programming
    \"specifically designed\" to educate and inform children that
    provides better guidance to broadcasters as to how to fulfill their
    statutory obligation to air such programming. In order to qualify as
    core programming, a show must have serving the educational and
    informational needs of children as a significant purpose. The
    Commission will ordinarily rely on the good faith judgments of
    broadcasters as to whether programming satisfies this test and will
    evaluate compliance of individual programs with this definition only
    as a last resort. Core programming includes additional objective
    elements. A core program must be a regularly scheduled, weekly
    program of at least 30 minutes, and aired between 7:00 a.m. and
    10:00 p.m. The program must also be identified as educational and
    informational for children when it is aired and must be listed in
    the Children\'s Television Programming Report placed in the
    broadcaster\'s public inspection file and filed with the
    Commission.[^13]

7.  Third, the Commission adopted a processing guideline to provide
    certainty for broadcasters about how to comply with the CTA and
    facilitate processing efforts. Under this guideline, broadcasters
    receive staff-level approval of the CTA portion of their renewal
    applications if they air at least three hours per week of core
    programming or if, while providing somewhat less than three hours
    per week of core programming, they air a package of programming that
    demonstrates a level of commitment to educating and informing
    children that is at least equivalent to airing three hours per week
    of core programming. Broadcasters that do not meet this guideline
    will have their renewal applications referred to the full Commission
    for consideration, where they will have a full opportunity to
    demonstrate compliance with the CTA, including through efforts other
    than core programming and through non-broadcast efforts.[^14]

8.  All commercial television licensees are required to prepare
    quarterly Children's Television Programming Reports describing their
    children's television efforts for the preceding three months. For
    the past three years these forms have been filed by licensees on an
    annual basis and stored in an electronic database at the
    Commission.[^15] The Commission recently amended its rules making a
    number of changes to the CETV reporting requirements.[^16] First,
    the Commission extended indefinitely the requirement that commercial
    broadcast television licensees file with the Commission their
    quarterly Children's Television Programming Reports (the reporting
    requirement had previously been in effect for an experimental period
    of three years.) Second, the Commission required broadcasters in the
    future to file these reports on a quarterly basis, at the time they
    are prepared, rather than annually. Finally, the Commission made a
    number of revisions to FCC Form 398 to make the information
    contained in the form clearer and more useful to the public and the
    FCC.

9.  After the adoption of the new regulations, the ABC, CBS and NBC
    television networks each requested that local television stations be
    given the flexibility to reschedule the episodes of core programs
    that are preempted by live network sports events without adversely
    impacting the program\'s status as \"regularly scheduled.\" They set
    forth separate proposals for advising viewers of scheduling changes,
    promoting the educational block and minimizing the disruptive impact
    of rescheduling on viewers.[^17]

10. Separate requests have been made in connection with the 1997-1998,
    1998-1999, and 1999-2000 television seasons. For two of these
    seasons, the Bureau found the networks\' proposals to be consistent
    with the Commission\'s goals of maintaining scheduling continuity
    and predictability for the children\'s audience. On that basis, the
    Mass Media Bureau advised the networks that their proposals for
    promoting and rescheduling preempted core programs would not run
    afoul of the children's television rules.[^18] Within certain
    limitations, the Bureau advised that preempted programs could count
    toward a station's core programming obligation if the programs were
    rescheduled within a reasonable period of time, and exempted from
    these requirements core programs that are preempted for breaking
    news. However, the Bureau said that it would revisit its conclusions
    based on its experience and report to the Commission regarding the
    effect of preemption on children\'s educational and informational
    programming. The Bureau also noted that it remains the duty of each
    television broadcaster to comply with the requirements of the
    *Children\'s Television Report and Order*, and that the Commission
    would continue to review each licensee\'s performance to ensure
    compliance with the rules. [^19]

11. A report on the effect of preemption on children\'s educational and
    informational programming was released in November 1998.[^20] In the
    Preemption Report for the 1997-1998 television season, the Bureau
    assessed the networks' performance noting among other findings, that
    the network-owned stations\' overall children\'s educational and
    informational programming effort had not been unduly affected by the
    limited preemption flexibility granted them.

**Scope of the Report**

12. This Report documents the children's educational and information
    programming performance of commercial television stations during the
    past three years by reviewing the Children's Television Report forms
    filed by a sample of television stations. [^21] This sample of
    television stations is large enough to be representative of the
    industry's performance as a whole. The sample comprises 130
    commercial television stations, which is more than 10 percent of all
    commercial stations. The sample includes affiliates of NBC, CBS,
    ABC, Fox, UPN, WB, Pax TV, religious broadcasters (*e.g.* Trinity
    Broadcast Network), Univision and Telemundo, and others
    (independent, unaffiliated and small broadcasting networks, *e.g*.,
    Home Shopping Network).[^22]

13. The children's television rules regarding on-air identification,
    program guides, public file, and reporting requirements have been in
    effect since January 1997. However, the three-hour processing
    guideline for core programming became effective the following
    September. This delay in the implementation of the three-hour
    processing guideline was intended to give licensees an opportunity
    to develop programming that complies with the new definition and to
    renegotiate or allow expiration of existing program contracts as
    necessary. Since the core hours guideline was not effective until
    September 1997, licensee reports covering the first three quarters
    of 1997 often do not report core programming and are therefore not
    comparable to the reports for the other 2 ¼ years. Thus, the
    information described below generally describes the responses of
    broadcasters for 2 ¼ years rather than for the full three-year
    period.

14. This Report includes the following:

\* [Core programs identified by stations]{.underline}. This is a list of
all programs stations identified as core programming during the
three-year filing period. The Report also presents a sample of
broadcasters' narrative descriptions of how particular children's
programs satisfy the definition of children's core programming.

\* [Number of core hours reported]{.underline}. The Report presents the
annual average number of core hours reported by affiliate group for the
2 ¼ year period (October 1997 through December 1999).

\* [Preemption rates of core programming]{.underline}. Average
preemption rates by affiliate group is presented. Preemption rates are
also presented, aggregated by quarters and annually, with more in-depth
analysis of affiliates of the three largest networks.

\* [Information dissemination requirements]{.underline}. The Report
presents information about stations: identifying core programming at
time of airing; providing program guides with core programming
information; and publicizing the location of their Children\'s
Television Programming Reports.

\* [Nonbroadcast efforts and financial support of another station in the
market]{.underline}. The Report includes an example of broadcaster's
response for this showing.

**Programming "Specifically Designed"**

**To Serve Children's Educational and Informational Needs**

15. The Commission's educational programming rules and guidelines
    interpreting the requirements set forth in the CTA require that core
    programming be "specifically designed"[^23] to meet the educational
    and informational needs of children ages 16 and under and have
    educating and informing children as a "significant purpose."[^24]
    The broad category of \"educational and informational television
    programming\" is defined as \"any television programming that
    furthers the educational and informational needs of children 16
    years of age and under in any respect, including children\'s
    intellectual/cognitive or social/emotional needs.\"[^25] The
    \"significant purpose\" standard acknowledges the point advanced by
    broadcasters and others that "to be successful, and thus to serve
    children\'s needs as mandated by the CTA, educational and
    informational programming must also be entertaining and attractive
    to children."[^26] In determining whether programming has a
    "significant purpose" of educating and informing children, the Mass
    Media Bureau ordinarily relies on the good faith judgment of
    broadcasters.

16. Over the past three years, broadcasters have been identifying core
    programs through their Form 398 submissions. A list of programs that
    have been identified by the sampled broadcasters over the past three
    years as qualifying core programs is provided in Table I of the
    Appendix.[^27]

[Description of Core Programming]{.underline}

17. Licensees are required to specify in writing in their Children\'s
    Television Programming Report the educational and informational
    objectives of a core program. The Commission stated that such a
    requirement would help licensees to focus on children\'s specific
    educational and informational needs in compliance with the CTA. The
    Commission also stated that this information would assist parents
    and other interested parties to understand licensees\' programming
    efforts and afford them the means to participate with licensees in
    developing effective educational programming and to play a more
    active role in promoting and enforcing the goals of the CTA.

18. The Commission also requires licensees to indicate a specific target
    age group for each core program. In enacting the CTA, Congress found
    that \"\[c\]hildren\'s educational programming is most effective
    when it is designed to focus on particular age groups and address
    specific skills.\"[^28] Research has demonstrated that the ability
    of young children to comprehend television content varies as a
    function of age, and that educational programming should be targeted
    to an age range of no more than three to four years to ensure that
    its content is appropriate to the developmental level of the
    intended audience. Requiring licensees to specify the age group for
    each core program is intended to encourage them to consider whether
    the content of the program is suited to the interests, knowledge,
    vocabulary, and other abilities of that group. In addition, this
    requirement provides information to parents regarding the
    appropriate age for core programs thereby facilitating increased
    program audience and ratings. The Commission affords broadcasters
    the discretion to develop programs suited to children with similar
    educational and informational needs as they believe appropriate.
    Analysis of the information submitted on Form 398 by stations in the
    sample shows that approximately half of all core programs are
    designed for children between 6 and 11 years of age. Approximately
    30 percent of core programs are produced for children between 12 and
    16 years of age. Fewer than 20 percent of core programs aired by
    commercial broadcasters target a child audience under four years of
    age.[^29]

19. Below are some examples of the descriptive information supplied by
    broadcasters regarding recently aired core programming.

**ABC Affiliate**

> 12-31-99
>
> Disney's 1 Saturday Morning (Featuring Long and Short-Form Educational
> Elements)
>
> Network Saturday
>
> 7 AM 120 (minutes)
>
> Age of Target Child Audience: from 8 to 12 years

This two-hour program block features three half-hour educational series
in combination with various short-form educational elements. The latter
include \"Great Minds\...Think For Themselves\" (American history
segments), a new series \"Who Am I?\" (descriptions of interesting
figures in World History), \"What\'s The Diff?\" (game-type segments
that teach visual and analytical skills), \"Let\'s Go!\" (geography and
cultural information segments) and \"Flyndiggery Do: Where\'d It Go?\"
(short segments describing animal behavior).

> Disney\'s Doug \-- This series uses humor and fantasy in depicting a
> twelve-year-old boy\'s struggles to develop self-confidence, define
> identity, resolve family and school problems and maintain friendships.
> Narrated via the journal entries of aspiring writer/cartoonist Doug
> Funnie, episodes promote values such as honesty, loyalty, fairness and
> respect for individual differences. They also encourage creative
> writing and artistic expression.
>
> Disney\'s Pepper Ann \-- \"Pepper Ann\" features a resourceful
> twelve-year-old girl who is growing up in a single-parent family.
> Pepper Ann discovers the importance of speaking out for one\'s beliefs
> as well as the value of learning from one\'s mistakes. The primary
> educational focus of the series is self-esteem \-- particularly that
> of girls.
>
> Disney\'s Recess \-- \"Disney\'s Recess\" is a collection of animated
> stories about six fourth-grade children who attend public school.
> These children are an ethnically and gender-diverse group. Their
> experiences at Third Street School deliver messages about problems
> common to middle childhood: conflicts with authority figures, school
> and family rules, issues of fairness, peer pressure and coping with
> disappointment. A number of episodes revolve around class bullies or
> \"teacher\'s pets.\" Series episodes provide a rich source of
> values-oriented discussion material for parents and children.

**CBS Affiliate**

> 12-31-99
>
> ANATOLE
>
> Network Saturday
>
> 8:00 AM 30 (minutes)
>
> Age of Target Child Audience: from 5 years to 9 years
>
> From the Caldecott award winning series by Eve Titus, this program
> follows the escapades of Anatole the mouse, who learns to function in
> both the worlds of humans and mice by being clever, determined, a hard
> worker, a dedicated husband and father, and a problem-solver. The
> objectives of the program are to encourage viewers to identify and
> select positive alternatives when faced with personal, interpersonal
> and social dilemmas and to teach children that dedication and personal
> effort make it possible to be better family members, friends,
> students, workers and citizens. This program is specifically designed
> to further the educational and informational needs of children, has
> educating and informing children as a significant purpose, and
> otherwise meets the definition of Core Programming as specified in the
> Commission\'s rules.

**NBC** **Affiliate**

> 12-31-99
>
> City Guys (1)
>
> Network Saturday
>
> 11AM 30 (minutes)
>
> Age of target Child Audience: from 13 to 16 years
>
> The educational objective of this program is to demonstrate how the
> knowledge of one or more characters in the story moves from one level
> to a more informed or higher level of knowledge by the end of each
> episode. This change in knowledge conveys an educational message to
> the audience which may fall into one or more categories -
> intellectual-cognitive and/or socio-emotional. The message will always
> be integral to the plot and present throughout the script. This
> objective is achieved in this series by exploring the pressures of
> living in a big city environment where situations are sometimes so
> difficult and challenging, kids have to learn sophisticated and
> responsible decision-making to be safe and stay focused. The series
> follows the encounters
>
> and problem-solving of two young men through an eventful school year
> at Manhattan High and shows teens how to work with their principal,
> family and friends to be successful.

**Fox** **Affiliate**

> 12-31-99
>
> THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS
>
> Syndicated Monday- Friday
>
> 2:30PM 30 (minutes)
>
> Age of Target Child Audience: from 6 years to 9 years
>
> The Scholastic\'s \"The Magic School Bus\" is to educate & inform
> children (6-9yrs old). The educational & informational objectives of
> the series are to: motivate children\'s interest in science; introduce
> science ideas; inspire positive attitudes toward science & education;
> & model age appropriate science problem solving behavior. Each of the
> 52 ½ hr episodes explores a different science topic through an
> animated journey aboard the magically transformed school bus to
> destinations such as the center of the earth, inside the human body,
> to outer space, to remote ecological environments, inside of a
> molecule, & inside of a plant.

# **WB Affiliate** {#wb-affiliate .unnumbered}

12-31-99

PEER PRESSURE II

Syndicated Sunday

7 AM 30 (minutes)

Age of Target Child Audience: from 13 years to 16 years

The core objective of this program, in a gameshow format, is to keep the
target audience actively involved, trying to think of answers to
questions before the contestants respond. The format of the show demands
a range of knowledge from the contestants and audience and places a
premium on their ability to think quickly and accurately. The program
presents educational material in an entertaining format designed to
attract and involve the target adolescent audience.

#  {#section .unnumbered}

# **Independent Station** {#independent-station .unnumbered}

12-31-99

PET PLAYHOUSE

Syndicated Thursdays and Fridays

3:00 PM 30 (minutes)

Age of Target Child Audience: from 2 years to 10 years

Each week the host takes kids through the wide world of animals
presenting facts and tips in a completely captivating manner. Topics
range from the proper care of house pets to the dangers of touching live
exotic animals.

**Processing Guideline**

20. The Commission authorized the Mass Media Bureau to approve the CTA
    portions of a broadcaster\'s renewal application where the
    broadcaster has aired at least three hours per week (averaged over a
    six month period) of educational and informational programming that
    has as a significant purpose serving the educational and
    informational needs of children ages 16 and under. A broadcaster can
    demonstrate that it has aired at least three hours per week of such
    programming in either of two ways:

> \(A\) By checking a box on its renewal application and providing
> supporting information indicating that it has aired at least three
> hours per week of regularly scheduled, weekly shows that are 30
> minutes or longer and that otherwise satisfy our new definition of
> programming \"specifically designed\" to serve children\'s educational
> and informational needs; or
>
> \(B\) By showing that it has aired a package of different types of
> educational and informational programming that, while containing
> somewhat less than three hours per week of core programming,
> demonstrates a level of commitment to educating and informing children
> that is at least equivalent to airing three hours per week of core
> programming.

21. Renewal applications that do not meet this guideline are referred to
    the Commission, where the applicant has a full opportunity to
    demonstrate compliance with the CTA by, for example, demonstrating
    how special non-broadcast efforts enhance the value of children\'s
    educational and informational television programming.

[Children's Core Hour Calculations]{.underline}

22. Chart 1 in the Appendix shows the average number of core educational
    hours per week reported by each station group in the sample. The
    average amount of children's core programming aired on a broadcast
    station is approximately four hours per week. More than one-half of
    the stations air three hours or three and one-half hours of core
    programming per week but some stations (generally Independent,
    religious, and UPN affiliates) air nearly twice that much. Charts
    1-97, 1-98 and 1-99 show that there is some annual variation in the
    amount of core programming shown by particular network affiliates,
    but that the variation is small. The stations that showed three
    hours of core programming in 1997 tend to continue to show three
    hours of children's programming today.

23. Stations affiliated with the three largest networks get a large
    portion of their daily programming from their network. All three
    networks supply their affiliates with at least three hours of core
    programming. Stations affiliated with ABC, NBC and CBS tend to air
    only the network-supplied core programming. Stations affiliated with
    networks that provide fewer programs (UPN and WB supply mostly
    prime-time programming) and unaffiliated and religious broadcasters
    tend to broadcast more core programming than the suggested guideline
    of three hours per week.

[Programs that are Regularly Scheduled]{.underline}

24. An important characteristic of qualifying core programming is that
    the program be "regularly scheduled." In the *Children\'s Television
    Report and Order* the Commission required that a children\'s program
    must be \"regularly scheduled\" to be counted as core programming
    for purposes of meeting the three-hour-per-week processing guideline
    for educational and informational programming, *i.e.*, \-- a core
    children\'s program must \"be scheduled to air at least once a
    week\" and \"must air on a regular basis.\"[^30]

25. The Commission stated that television series typically air in the
    same time slot for 13 consecutive weeks, although some episodes may
    be preempted for programs such as breaking news or live sports
    events. Programming that is aired on a regular basis is more easily
    anticipated and located by viewers, and can build loyalty that will
    improve its chance for commercial success. The Commission noted that
    qualifying core programming should be regularly scheduled in view of
    the Commission\'s emphasis on improving the flow of information to
    parents through published program guides and other means to enable
    them to select educational and informational programs for their
    children. Finally, the Commission stated that it would leave to the
    staff to determine, with guidance from the full Commission as
    necessary, what constitutes regularly scheduled programming and what
    level of preemption is allowable.[^31]

26. The Commission noted that specials, including those scheduled to
    appear on a regular non-weekly basis, may not be credited as core.
    Programs that are aired more frequently (*i.e.*, at least once a
    week) are more likely to build upon and reinforce educational and
    informational messages, more likely to develop audience loyalty, and
    more likely to be anticipated by children and parents and thus
    attract a regular audience. Nonetheless, the Commission recognized
    that educational and informational specials with a significant
    purpose of serving the educational and informational needs of
    children ages 16 and under can help accomplish the objectives of the
    CTA and thus can count toward the second part of the processing
    guideline. The Commission encouraged broadcasters to promote
    educational and informational specials and to schedule them far
    enough in advance to permit information about the program to be
    included in program guides.

27. Sample averages for core hours reported and preemption rates for 2 ¼
    years are presented for each affiliate group in the table below.
    Religious and independent broadcasters tend to air the most core
    programming, while CBS and NBC affiliates tend to air the least. All
    affiliate groups average more than the suggested guideline of three
    hours.

######### **Average Core Hours and Preemption Rates**

(9 Quarters - October \'97-December \'99)

+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
|                   | ##                 | ######                      |
|                   | ####### Core Hours | ### Overall Preemption Rate |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| ABC Affiliates    | 3.8                | 9.3%                        |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| CBS Affiliates    | 3.1                | 7.9%                        |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| NBC Affiliates    | 3.3                | 12.1%                       |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| Fox Affiliates    | 4.5                | 0.7%                        |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| UPN Affiliates    | 5.2                | 0.7%                        |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| WB Affiliates     | 4.3                | 0.6%                        |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| # Pax Affili      | 3.4                | 0.7%                        |
| ates {#pax-affili |                    |                             |
| ates .unnumbered} |                    |                             |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| UNI/TEL           | 3.4                | 1.8%                        |
| Affiliates        |                    |                             |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| Religious         | 6.0                | 8.4%                        |
| Stations[^32]     |                    |                             |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| Independent       | 6.8                | 2.7%                        |
| Stations          |                    |                             |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+
| All Stations      | 4.0                | 5.4%                        |
+-------------------+--------------------+-----------------------------+

28. The average preemption rate for all stations for core programs is
    5.4 percent. The preemption rate for the three largest networks'
    affiliates (ABC, CBS and NBC) is approximately 9.8 percent while the
    average of stations affiliated with smaller networks and independent
    stations is 2.5 percent. Thus, the average preemption rate of the
    three largest network affiliates is nearly twice the national
    average, and nearly four times the average of stations affiliated
    with smaller networks and independent stations. The three largest
    networks' affiliates generally preempt the most core programming due
    to network coverage of national sporting events. The Fox network
    also carries significant amounts of weekend sports, but Fox
    affiliates tend to air most of their children's core programming
    during weekday hours; thus Fox affiliates' average preemption rate
    is only 0.7 percent. ABC, CBS and NBC have traditionally aired
    children's programming on Saturday mornings. The big three networks
    have continued to schedule core programming in those hours that are
    highly susceptible to national sports preemption. Preemption rates
    are examined in more detail in the charts in the Appendix.

29. Charts 2, 2a and 2b in the Appendix present comparisons of
    preemption rates of various affiliate groups. NBC affiliates
    preempted the most hours of any network with a preemption rate of
    just over 12 percent. CBS stations had the lowest preemption rate of
    the three largest networks at nearly eight percent. All three
    networks preempted more than the all-station average of five
    percent. Fox, UPN, WB, and Pax affiliates all had negligible
    preemption rates. Chart 2a presents preemption rate comparisons for
    the three largest networks over the last 2 ¼ years. Both ABC and CBS
    preempted fewer children's program episodes in 1999 than in the
    previous year. Only NBC preempted more children's program episodes
    in 1999 than in 1998 (16.1 percent *vs.* 9.2 percent). Chart 2b
    compares the three largest networks to the other stations in the
    sample over the last 2 ¼ years. Stations affiliated with the three
    largest networks consistently preempted core programs nearly four
    times as much as stations not affiliated with those networks.

30. Chart 3 in the Appendix presents preemption rates for each quarter
    to illustrate that seasonal sports events affect the network
    affiliates at different times of the year. ABC affiliates had a
    higher than average preemption rate (17.1 percent) in the third
    quarter, 1998, and its lowest average preemption rate in the second
    quarter, 1999 (2.2 percent). CBS affiliate preemptions were highest
    in the third quarter, 1999 (12.4 percent). NBC affiliates had the
    highest average preemption rate in the third quarter, 1999 (24.9
    percent) and its lowest preemption rate in the first quarter, 1999
    (3.1 percent).

31. Chart 4 in the Appendix illustrates how network affiliate preemption
    rates vary by time zone. Chart 4 presents the average preemption
    rates for each year for the big three networks in each time zone.
    All years demonstrate that preemptions occur most often in the
    Pacific Time Zone and least often in the Eastern Time Zone.

[Times Core Programming May Be Aired]{.underline}

32. The CETV rules require that a program must air between the hours of
    7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. in order to qualify as core.[^33] This time
    period is specified to encourage broadcasters to air educational
    programming at times with the highest number of children in the
    audience.

33. Most core programs air on Saturday morning or early afternoon (ABC,
    CBS and NBC affiliates schedule most core programs for these times,
    while most other stations air only some core programs during these
    times). Some core programs air Monday through Friday in the early
    morning or afternoon hours (Fox, UPN and WB affiliates air some of
    their core programs during these hours). Chart 5 in the Appendix
    shows preemptions by time of day for Saturday and Sunday. Preemption
    rates for weekdays were approximately 1 percent or less in most time
    periods. Weekend early morning preemptions (preemptions of programs
    aired before 9:00 a.m.) occurred primarily in the Pacific Time Zone.
    Preemption rates tend to increase the later a program is scheduled
    on Saturday or Sunday morning. Programs scheduled to begin at 12:00
    p.m. or 12:30 p.m. were preempted the most often (nearly 18 percent
    of the time). Programs aired between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. were
    preempted approximately 10 percent of the time.

[Substantial Length]{.underline}

34. Core programming should be at least 30 minutes in length.[^34] The
    dominant broadcast television format is 30 minutes or longer in
    length. The Commission stated that its CETV rules, which are
    intended to promote the accessibility of children\'s educational and
    informational programming, reflect this current industry practice.
    Programs in these standard formats are more likely than shorter
    programming to be regularly scheduled and to be listed in program
    guides, and thus are easier for parents to identify for their
    children\'s viewing. In addition, programs which are 30 minutes or
    longer allow more time for educational and informational material to
    be presented.[^35]

35. Educational and informational public service announcements (PSAs),
    or other short segments are not considered core programming. The CTA
    does not preclude broadcasters from counting such programming as
    educational and informational; indeed, some short segments have
    significant public interest benefits. The Commission noted that
    short segments and PSAs are less likely to be regularly scheduled or
    listed in program guides, and consequently are not easily located
    and anticipated by parents and children.[^36]

36. Virtually all core programs reported by the stations in the sample
    are 30 minutes in length. There are a few programs that are one hour
    in length and "Disney's 1 Saturday Morning" is generally reported as
    a two hour core program. "Disney's 1 Saturday Morning" changes from
    time to time, but it currently consists of the programs "Doug," "The
    Weekenders" and "Disney's Recess" as well as a number of shorter
    segments positioned around those three half hour programs. PSAs and
    other short programs are not reported as core programs on Form 398
    but PSAs are often identified by licensees as non-core programming.

[Special Non-broadcast Efforts]{.underline}

37. The CTA states that, \"\[i\]n addition to consideration of the
    licensee\'s \[educational\] programming, the Commission may consider
    . . . any special non-broadcast efforts by the licensee which
    enhance the educational and informational value of such programming
    to children.\" A licensee may present evidence of such special
    non-broadcast efforts at the Commission level. To receive credit
    under this provision for a \"special\" non-broadcast effort, a
    broadcaster must show that it has engaged in substantial community
    activity. Finally, we note that this provision does not relieve a
    broadcaster of the obligation to air core programming. The statute
    permits the Commission to consider special non-broadcast efforts
    \"in addition to consideration of the licensee\'s \[educational\]
    programming.\"[^37]

38. Question 11 of FCC Form 398 asks the licensee to report any
    non-broadcast efforts. Not all stations list efforts on a quarterly
    basis and many stations list only a few initiatives. Some stations,
    however, provide an extensive list of efforts. For example, an ABC
    affiliate reported the following:

> \[The station's\] news and weather anchors made appearances in the
> \[local\] viewing area to increase education/awareness of various
> topics like weather, hunger, volunteerism, and careers.
>
> \[The station\] began broadcasting \"Connecting With Kids\" in various
> newscasts. \"Connecting With Kids\" are news reports which facilitate
> communication between children and parents with regard to important
> current issues affecting their lives.
>
> Throughout the quarter \[the station\] continued community relations
> campaign for kids as follows:
>
> -promoted sponsorhips for Kids to the Country, event for inner city
> youth
>
> -continued used bike donations as gifts for Youth Encouragement
> Services
>
> -continued Football Challenge high school food drive promotion in 6
> counties
>
> -continued promotion of Ronald McDonald House for ill children
>
> -promoted abstinence in youth for Cumberland Co. Pregnancy Center
>
> -promoted importance of folic acid in teen diet
>
> -promoted Ghouls at Grassmere as safe event for youngster
>
> -continued promotion of Lesson Line for school assistance
>
> -aired anti-drug use message from Lorrie Morgan
>
> -aired special holiday message from Ensworth School

-aired warning message on child rape & sexual abuse by Charlie Daniels

39. The CTA states that, \"\[i\]n addition to consideration of the
    licensee\'s \[educational\] programming, the Commission may consider
    . . any special efforts by the licensee to produce or support
    programming broadcast by another station in the licensee\'s
    marketplace which is specifically designed to serve the educational
    and informational needs of children.\"[^38] A licensee may present
    evidence at the Commission level of such special sponsorship
    efforts. To receive credit under this provision for a \"special\"
    sponsorship effort, a broadcaster must demonstrate that its
    production or support of core programming aired on another station
    in its market increased the amount of core programming on the
    station airing the sponsored core programming. In the *Children\'s
    Television Report and Order* the Commission determined that these
    issues are best addressed on a case-by-case basis considering
    individual licensees' showings rather than by the adoption of
    program sponsorship guidelines.

40. No stations in the sample provided a sponsorship showing in their
    Form 398 submissions.

**Public Information Initiatives**

41. In the *Children\'s Television Report and Order* the Commission
    concluded that the market inadequacies that led Congress to pass the
    Children\'s Television Act can be addressed, in part, by enhancing
    parents\' knowledge of children\'s educational programming.[^39] The
    Commission's goal to facilitate "easy public access to information
    permits the Commission to rely more on marketplace forces to achieve
    the goals of the CTA and facilitates enforcement of the statute by
    allowing parents, educators, and others to actively monitor a
    station\'s performance."[^40]

42. The Commission focused on three basic methods to improve the
    public\'s access to information: commercial broadcasters should
    identify core programming at the time those programs are aired in a
    form that is at the sole discretion of the licensee; they should
    identify such programs to publishers of program guides; and they
    should provide improved access to information to the public through
    standardized reporting and other means.[^41]

[Program Guides]{.underline}

43. It is industry practice for broadcasters to provide programming
    information to program guides, which publish such information
    without cost to the broadcasters. Further, it has become a
    well-established practice to provide specialized information about
    programs, such as which programs are closed captioned for the
    hearing impaired. As broadcasters routinely provide such information
    about their programming to program guides and designate core
    programs for their public records, the Commission found it would
    require a minimum of effort, but have a major positive effect, for
    broadcasters to provide publishers of program guides and listings
    information identifying core programs and the age groups for which
    the programs are intended. [^42] The Commission recognized that
    broadcasters cannot require guides to print this information. The
    information, however, is more likely to be in the program listings
    if broadcasters routinely provide it. Program guides are an
    effective means of providing parents with advance notice of
    scheduling of educational programs. This information assists parents
    in finding suitable programs for their children and is useful to
    parents and others who wish to monitor station performance in
    complying with the CTA.

44. In the fourth quarter 1997, virtually all of the stations in the
    sample reported supplying program guides with information
    identifying each core program aired on its station, including an
    indication of the target child audience. Since that time all of the
    stations sampled report routinely supplying this information. The
    staff does not have information, however, on the percentage of
    program guides that actually choose to provide information
    identifying core programming in the television listings.

[Public File and Quarterly Reports]{.underline}

45. The CETV rules require commercial licensees to complete a Children's
    Television Programming Report (FCC Form 398) providing information
    about the children\'s programming they air, including the time,
    date, duration, and description of the programs. Licensees maintain
    these reports in the station\'s public inspection file and file them
    with the Commission. The Commission is currently seeking comment on
    whether broadcasters should also be required to provide their
    completed Children's Television Programming Reports at their own
    websites.[^43]

[Publicizing Children\'s Programming Reports]{.underline}

46. Broadcasters are required to publicize in an appropriate manner the
    existence and location of their Children\'s Television Programming
    Reports.[^44] Periodic on-air announcements further the goal to
    minimize the Commission\'s involvement in enforcing the CTA by
    facilitating public monitoring of broadcasters\' educational
    programming. Since the fourth quarter 1997, virtually all of the
    stations in the sample complied with the requirement to publicize
    the existence and location of the stations\' Children\'s Television
    Programming Reports.

[Identified as Educational and Informational]{.underline}

47. The Commission requires broadcasters to provide on-air
    identification of core programs, in a manner and form that is at the
    sole discretion of the licensee, at the beginning of the program.
    [^45] An on-air identification requirement makes broadcasters more
    accountable to the public and furthers the goal of minimizing the
    possibility that the Commission would be required to decide whether
    particular programs serve the educational and informational needs of
    children. In the fourth quarter, 1997 virtually all of the stations
    in the sample reported compliance with this requirement. For the
    past seven quarters, all of the stations sampled report routinely
    identifying each core program at the beginning of the airing of each
    program.

**Conclusion**

48. In general, it appears that broadcast licensees have made many
    efforts to comply with the scheduling and promotional rules for
    children\'s educational and informational programming set forth in
    the *Children's Television Report and Order*. All stations sampled
    reported airing at least three hours of core children's programming.
    The average amount of children's core programming aired on a
    broadcast station is approximately four hours per week. For many
    stations, preemption of regularly scheduled children's programming
    is not a significant issue. However, the three largest network
    affiliates' preemption rates are notable and especially significant
    for stations in the West.

49. The Bureau believes that stations have sustained a reasonably
    consistent schedule of core programming. Overall, stations appear to
    be in general compliance with the Commission's rules that seek to
    provide better information to the public and with the processing
    guideline to receive staff approval of the CTA portion of their
    renewal applications.

**Technical** **Appendix, Tables and Charts**

A. This study documents the CETV performance of commercial television
stations during the past three years by reviewing the Children's
Television Programming Report (FCC Form 398) filed by a sample of
television stations. This sample of television stations is large enough
to be representative of the industry's performance as a whole. The
sample is comprised of more than 10 percent (130 stations) of commercial
television stations. Some adjustments to licensees' Children's
Television Programming Reports were made to standardize the responses.

B. The sample used for this Report is more precisely described as a
stratified random sample. In a stratified random sample, the population
to be sampled is first subclassified into several subpopulations, then
the sample is drawn by taking random samples from each of the strata.
For this Report, all stations were subclassified by their affiliation as
identified by the BIA database while ABC, CBS and NBS stations were
stratified further by their time zone. Random samples were taken from
each of these strata. Information derived from the staff report "The
Effect of Preemption on Children's Educational and Informational
Programming, 1997-1998 Television Season," showed that the three largest
networks preempt children's core programming more often than stations
not affiliated with those networks. It also showed that preemptions vary
seasonally and that preemptions vary by time zone. It was important to
verify these observations with a larger sample over a longer period of
time. To do this it was decided that a stratified sample would produce
sufficient observations to analyze these other preemption features. More
affiliates of NBC, CBS and ABC are included because these network have
nearly 200 affiliates each and preliminary analysis[^46] shows that
these networks air more Saturday morning sports programming which tends
to frequently preempt regularly scheduled children's programming.

C. The sample includes 20 affiliates of each of the following networks:
ABC, CBS and NBC; 10 affiliates of each of the following networks: Fox,
UPN, WB, Pax TV, TBN and other religious broadcasters, Univision and
Telemundo; and 10 others (independent, unaffiliated and small
broadcasting networks *e.g*., Home Shopping Network). Station
affiliation was determined using BIA Research database as of January
1999. Religious and independent stations were identified by BIA Research
and all stations in the sample are commercial licensees. A small number
of the randomly-chosen affiliates are also owned by the identified
network, for example, ABC (Disney) owns three of the affiliates in the
sample and NBC (General Electric) owns one of the affiliates in the
sample. Non-commercial stations (including PBS affiliates) are not
included in this sample because they are exempt from the reporting
aspects of the children's educational programming rules.

D. Core hours and preemption rates for each station presented in the
text of this Report were calculated by aggregating across minutes of
programming; average core hours and preemption rates were calculated by
weighting each station equally. For formal statistical analysis, overall
average core hours and preemption rates were calculated by weighting the
average for each of the ten station-groups by its proportion of the
total population of stations. Table A1 below presents various statistics
for each of the ten station-groups where j = 1,2,\...,10.

> TABLE A1

[core hours]{.underline} [preemption]{.underline}

n(j) N(j) p(j) fpcf(j) m(j) v(j) sm(j) m(j) v(j) sm(j)

ABC 20 186 .154 0.89 3.82 0.281 0.11 9.70 43.972 1.40

CBS 20 184 .153 0.89 3.06 0.023 0.03 7.84 19.882 0.94

NBC 20 188 .156 0.89 3.32 0.274 0.11 12.36 47.712 1.46

FOX 10 163 .135 0.94 4.48 1.013 0.31 0.84 0.811 0.27

UPN 10 80 .066 0.88 5.25 5.107 0.67 0.54 0.510 0.21

WB 10 63 .052 0.84 4.34 1.423 0.35 0.55 0.287 0.16

PAX 10 65 .054 0.85 3.39 0.381 0.18 1.06 3.908 0.58

UNI/TEL 10 38 .032 0.74 3.39 0.659 0.22 2.26 5.526 0.64

Religious 10 41 .034 0.76 5.98 2.762 0.46 8.07 23.033 1.32

Independent 10 196 .163 0.95 6.79 33.372 1.78 2.11 16.744 1.26

total 130 1204 1.000

n(j) = the number of observations in the sample for group j

n = the number of observations in the sample, 130

N(j) = the number of observations in the population for group j

N = the number of observations in the population, 1204

p(j) = the proportion of the population comprising group j, e.g., N(j)/N

fpcf(j) = the finite population correction factor for group j, e.g.,
(N(j) -- n(j))/N(j)

m(j) = the arithmetic mean of group j

v(j) = unbiased estimator of the variance of group j

sm(j) = standard deviation of the sample mean of group j

The mean of an individual group, *e.g.*, CBS affiliates, is computed in
the usual fashion. Since the stratification was effected to statisfy
minimal sample size requirements, rather than to reflect proportions of
the population, the mean of a collection of groups, *e.g.*, ABC, CBS and
NBC, is computed using the group weights, p(j) = N(j)/N. Specifically,
the estimate of the overall mean is

\_\_

Y =  (N(j)/N)\*m(j) (1)

where m(j) is the sample mean of the j-th stratum. The variance of the
j-th stratum is v(j), so the standard deviation of the mean of the j-th
stratum, sm(j), is the square root of the following quantity:

(fpcf(j)/n(j))\*v(j).

Thus, \_\_

var(Y ) =  (N(j)^2^/N^2^)\*sm(j)^2^. (2)

From (1) the overall sample mean for core hours is 4.35 with, from (2),
a standard deviation of 0.30. Clearly, the null hypothesis that the
population mean exceeds three hours cannot be rejected.

The above procedure can be applied, with some modifications; to test the
null hypothesis that the population mean of the network affiliates (ABC,
CBS and NBC) exceeds three hours. The mean is 3.40 with a standard
deviation of 0.05, and clearly does not reject the null hypothesis.

[^1]: *See Report and Order*, *Policies and Rules Concerning Children\'s
    Television Programming, Revision of Programming Policies for
    Television Broadcast Stations,* MM Docket 93-48 11 FCC Rcd 10660
    (1996) ("*Children's Television Report and Order"*); Children\'s
    Television Act of 1990, Pub. L. No. 101-437, 104 Stat. 996-1000,
    codified at 47 U.S.C. §§ 303a, 303b, 394.

[^2]: *Children's Television Report and Order,* 11 FCC Rcd 10726 (1996).

[^3]: *See* Appendix, Chart 1.

[^4]: *See* Appendix, Chart 2.

[^5]: *See* Appendix, Chart 3.

[^6]: *See* Appendix, Chart 4.

[^7]: Children\'s Television Act of 1990, Pub. L. No. 101-437, 104 Stat.
    996-1000, *codified at* 47 U.S.C. §§ 303a, 303b, 394.

[^8]: 47 U.S.C. § 303b.

[^9]: 47 U.S.C. § 303a &b. *See* *also* S. Rep. No. 227, 101st Cong.,
    1st Sess 5-9 (1989) (Senate Report).

[^10]: *See* Senate Report at 1.

[^11]: ^.^

[^12]: 47 C.F.R. §§ 73.673, 73.3526(e)(11)(iii).

[^13]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.671.

[^14]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.671 Note 2. *See* 47 U.S.C. § 303b(b) (providing
    that, in addition to considering educational and informational
    programming aired on the licensee\'s station, the Commission may
    consider \"any special nonbroadcast efforts\" by the licensee to
    enhance the value of such programming and \"any special efforts\" by
    the licensee to sponsor programming on another station in its
    market).

[^15]: *See* 47 C.F.R. § 73.3526(e)(11)(iii) of the Commission's rules.
    The Commission maintains an internet-accessible database of
    Children's Television Programming Reports at
    <http://fccsun01w.fcc.gov:8880/prod/kidvid/prod/kv_info.htm>.

[^16]: *See*, *Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rule
    Making*, *Extension of the Filing Requirement For Children's
    Television Programming Reports (FCC Form 398),* MM Docket No. 00-44,
    released October 5, 2000.

[^17]: *See*, *e.g*., letter to Roy J. Stewart, Chief, Mass Media Bureau
    from Martin D. Franks, Senior Vice President, Washington, CBS, Inc.
    (June 6,1997). *See* Letter to Reed Hundt, Chairman, and Susan Ness,
    Rachelle Chong, and James Quello, Commissioners, Federal
    Communications Commission from Alan Braverman, Senior Vice President
    & General Counsel ABC, Inc. (May 8, 1997). *See* Letter to Roy J.
    Stewart, Chief, Mass Media Bureau from Rick Cotton and Diane
    Zipursky, Washington Counsel, NBC, Inc. (June 6, 1997).

[^18]: *See*, *e.g*., letters from Roy J. Stewart, Chief, Mass Media
    Bureau to: Martin D. Franks, Senior Vice President, Washington, CBS,
    Inc. (July 11, 1997); Alan Braverman, Senior Vice President &
    General Counsel ABC, Inc. (July 11, 1997); Rick Cotton and Diane
    Zipursky, NBC Inc. (July 11, 1997). *See also* letters from Roy J.
    Stewart, Chief, Mass Media Bureau to: Sam Antar, Vice President,
    ABC, Inc. (October 28, 1998); Mark Johnson, Associate General
    Counsel, CBS, Inc. (October 28, 1998); Diane Zipursky, Washington
    Counsel, NBC, Inc. (October 28, 1998).

[^19]: The Commission recently adopted a proceeding seeking comment on a
    range of issues related to the obligation of digital television
    ("DTV") broadcasters to serve children. *See* *Notice of Proposed
    Rule Making, Children's Television Obligations of Digital Television
    Broadcasters,* MM Docket No. 00-167, FCC No. 00-344, (adopted
    September 14, 2000).

[^20]: *See* "The Effect of Preemption on Children's Educational and
    Informational Programming, 1997-1998 Television Season," November
    1998, DA 98-2306, (Preemption Report).

[^21]: For a more complete description of the sampling methodology and
    other technical information see the "Technical Appendix" at the end
    of this report.

[^22]: Affiliation information was obtained from the BIA Research
    database in January 2000. Independent and religious broadcasters
    were identified by BIA Research.

[^23]: 47 U.S.C. § 303b(a)(2).

[^24]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.671(c)(1).

[^25]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.671(c).

[^26]: *Children's Television Report and Order*, 11 FCC Rcd at 10700.

[^27]: As noted above, while the rules regarding on-air identification,
    program guides, public file, and reporting requirements became
    effective on January 2, 1997, the core programming guideline became
    effective September 1, 1997. The first full quarter that stations
    filed core programming information was October 1, 1997 -- December
    31, 1997. Some stations reported core programs for all four quarters
    in 1997, while most stations only reported core programs aired after
    the effective date of September 1, 1997.

[^28]: Senate Report at 6.

[^29]: *See* Chart 6 in the Appendix.

[^30]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.671(c)(3).

[^31]: *Children's Television Report and Order*, 11 FCC Rcd at 10711.

[^32]: Religious and Independent broadcasters were identified by BIA
    Research.

[^33]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.671(c)(2).

[^34]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.671(c)(4).

[^35]: *Children's Television Report and Order*, 11 FCC Rcd at 10713.

[^36]: *Children's Television Report and Order*, 11 FCC Rcd at 10711.

[^37]: 47 U.S.C. at § 303b(b).

[^38]: 47 U.S.C. at § 303b(b)(1).

[^39]: The Commission noted that the term \"parent\" includes guardians,
    foster parents and others responsible for the care of children.

[^40]: *See* *Children's Television Report and Order*, 11 FCC Rcd 10660
    (1996).

[^41]: Although noncommercial television licensees are exempted from
    these specific provisions of the children's television rules, the
    Commission nonetheless encouraged noncommercial stations voluntarily
    to comport with these initiatives to the extent feasible as a means
    of providing parents and other members of the public with additional
    information about the availability of children\'s educational and
    informational programming on all broadcast stations.

[^42]: 47 C.F.R § 73.673.

[^43]: *See* *Further Notice of Proposed Rule Making* in MM Docket No.
    00-44.

[^44]: 47 C.F.R. § 73.3526(e)(11)(iii).

[^45]: 47 C.F.R § 73.673.

[^46]: *See* "The Effect of Preemption on Children's Educational and
    Informational Programming, 1997-1998 Television Season," November
    1998, DA 98-2306 and is available at
    <http://www.fcc.gov/mmb/prd/cetv/>.