FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: News Media contact:

**November 5, 2002 Alex Johns at (202) 418-2000**

**COMMISSIONER MICHAEL J. COPPS EXPRESSES "ALARM" AND "DISAPPOINTMENT"
WITH FCC'S MEDIA CONCENTRATION DECISION**

Commissioner Michael J. Copps said today that he was "disappointed and
alarmed" by the Commission's refusal to provide adequate opportunity for
public participation in its potentially far-reaching review of media
concentration rules.

"We've asked the public to analyze six separate media consolidation
rules. We've asked them to sift through twelve studies that many groups
claim are inadequate. We've asked them to suggest what other areas of
this issue need to be explored. And we've asked them to do all this in a
media landscape that has changed dramatically over the past decade. Yet
we provide a mere 60 days to do this. The last-minute addition of 30
days fails to even come close to solving the problem the FCC has
created."

At issue is the FCC's review of rules that seek to protect localism,
independence, and diversity in the media. These rules, among other
things, currently limit a single corporation from dominating local TV
markets; from merging a community's TV stations, radio stations, and
newspaper; from merging two of the major TV networks; and from
controlling more than 35% of all TV households in the nation.

The FCC is required to seek public participation before it eliminates
these rules. The Commission recently released a dozen studies for the
public to review as part of this process. It withheld the data used in
these studies, however, until releasing parts of it today. Public
commenters complained that the comment period allowed by the FCC denied
them the ability to participate meaningfully. Just as unreasonable,
according to these commenters, is the fact that the clock on the comment
period has been running even while the underlying data was unavailable.

"At stake in this proceeding are our core values of localism, diversity,
competition, and maintaining the multiplicity of voices and choices that
undergird our marketplace of ideas and that sustain American democracy,"
Copps continued. "With such important values at stake, we ought to give
parties the time to provide detailed data, granular evidence and studied
analysis. I am disappointed in the extreme and alarmed at the prospect
of forging ahead to dismantle the limits and caps before we fully
understand the effects of such action."

"We must give the public time to conduct essential additional research.
The FCC studies fail to answer critical questions, such as:

-   "If we eliminate our remaining media concentration rules, what will
    be the effect on the localism, diversity, and independence that have
    traditionally undergirded the democratic process? This fundamental
    and obvious question remains unaddressed.

-   "As part of this, what does the massive consolidation of the radio
    market and the current state of radio quality and diversity tell us
    about what will happen if we eliminate our remaining rules? And, how
    much news and public affairs programming was broadcast in the years
    immediately before and after elimination of FCC radio ownership
    rules?

-   "What effects have recent mergers, radio consolidation, and TV
    duopolies had on the personnel and resources devoted to news, public
    affairs, and public service programming, and on the output of such
    programming? Will eliminating our rules result in a crisis in these
    areas?

-   "Do newspapers and co‑owned broadcast stations carry similar
    viewpoints more frequently than independent newspapers and broadcast
    stations? If so, and if we eliminate our rules, what are the
    implications for democracy and debate in America?

-   "How do consolidation and co-ownership affect the media's focus on
    issues important to minorities and to the objective of diversity?"

-   "What are the effects of new technologies on the consolidation
    issue? Digital broadcast, for example, will provide existing station
    owners with the ability to multi-cast several programs
    simultaneously. This alone augments their influence. What are the
    effects of this on competition?

"These are just a sampling of issues that could be addressed by
commenters if they have adequate time, and only some of the questions
left unanswered by the FCC studies. I'm sure others could provide a much
longer list."

"We are under no mandate to resolve these issues by a date certain. We
must place making the right decision ahead of making a hasty decision."

\- FCC -