24308 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 84 / Wednesday, May 2, 2007 / Notices 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

[MB Docket No. 00–167; DA 07–1716] 

Commission Seeks Comment on the 

Status of Children’s Television 

Programming 

AGENCY: Federal Communications 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: In this document, the 

Commission seeks comment on the 

status of children’s television 

programming, and compliance with the 

Children’s Television Act (‘‘CTA’’) and 

the Commission’s rules. The 

Commission takes steps to ensure that 

its review of each television broadcast 

license renewal application, has ‘‘served 

the educational and informational needs 

of children through the licensee’s 

overall programming, including 

programming specifically designed to 

serve such needs.’’ 

DATES: Comments for this proceeding 

are due on or before June 1, 2007; reply 

comments are due on or before June 18, 

2007. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, 

identified by MM Docket No. 00–167, by 

any of the following methods: 

<bullet≤ Federal eRulemaking Portal: 

http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

<bullet≤ Federal Communications 

Commission’s Web site: http:// 

www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

<bullet≤ People with Disabilities: 

Contact the FCC to request reasonable 

accommodations (accessible format 

documents, sign language interpreters, 

CART, etc.) by e-mail: FCC504@fcc.gov 

or phone: 202–418–0530 or TTY: 202– 

418–0432. 

For detailed instructions for 

submitting comments and additional 

information on the rulemaking process, 

see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

section of this document. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

additional information on this 

proceeding, contact Holly Saurer, 

Holly.Saurer@fcc.gov of the Media 

Bureau, Policy Division, (202) 418– 

2120. Press inquiries should be directed 

to Clyde Ensslin, (202) 428–0506. TTY: 

(202) 418–7172 or (888) 835–5322. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

summary of the Commission’s Public 

Notice, DA 07–1716 released on April 

17, 2007. The full text of this document 

is available for public inspection and 

copying during regular business hours 

in the FCC Reference Center, Federal 

Communications Commission, 445 12th 

Street, SW., CY–A257, Washington, DC 

20554. These documents will also be 

available via ECFS (http://www.fcc.gov/ 

cgb/ecfs/). (Documents will be available 

electronically in ASCII, Word 97, and/ 

or Adobe Acrobat.) The complete text 

may be purchased from the 

Commission’s copy contractor, 445 12th 

Street, SW., Room CY–B402, 

Washington, DC 20554. To request this 

document in accessible formats 

(computer diskettes, large print, audio 

recording, and Braille), send an e-mail 

to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the 

Commission’s Consumer and 

Governmental Affairs Bureau at (202) 

418–0530 (voice), (202) 418–0432 

(TTY). 

Summary of the Notice 

1. In this Public Notice, we seek 

comment on the status of children’s 

television programming, and 

compliance with the Children’s 

Television Act (‘‘CTA’’) and the 

Commission’s rules. 

2. The CTA 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.’’ 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. The objective of Congress 

in enacting the CTA was to increase the 

amount of educational and 

informational programming available on 

television. 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. 

3. In November 2004, the Commission 

released a Report and Order and Further 

Notice of Proposed Rule Making (‘‘2004 

Order’’) in MM Docket No. 00–167, 

Children’s Television Obligations of 

Digital Television Broadcasters. The 

2004 Order addressed matters related to 

the obligation of television licensees to 

provide educational programming for 

children and the requirement that 

television licensees protect children 

from excessive and inappropriate 

commercial messages. In September 

2006, the Commission released a 

Second Order on Reconsideration and 

Second Report and Order (‘‘2006 

Order’’), which adopted the 

recommendations of a Joint Proposal 

submitted by representatives of the 

broadcast and cable industries and 

public interest groups involved in 

children’s television issues. This 2006 

Order modified and clarified the rules 

adopted in the 2004 Order. 

4. As part of the 2004 Order, the 

Commission indicated that it intended 

to issue a Public Notice ‘‘seeking 

comment on whether broadcasters are 

complying with the letter and intent of 

the CTA in terms of, among other 

things, the amount and quality of core 

children’s programming being provided 

and the extent of preemption of such 

programming.’’ More recently, the 

Commission entered into a Consent 

Decree with Univision to resolve 

petitions to deny filed against pending 

license renewal applications. Petitioners 

alleged that certain Univision stations 

did not comply with the children’s 

programming rules, claiming that the 

programs relied upon as ‘‘core’’ did not 

serve the educational and informational 

needs of children. 

5. This Public Notice is being issued 

in furtherance of the 2004 Order. We 

invite comment regarding the state of 

children’s television programming. Are 

licensees complying with the CTA? 

Does the programming that licensees 

have reported as core children’s 

programming generally meet the 

Commission’s standards? Educational 

and informational television 

programming is defined by the 

Commission as: 

Any television programming that furthers 

the educational and informational needs of 

children 16 years of age and under in any 

respect, including the child’s intellectual/ 

cognitive or social/emotional needs. 

Programming specifically designed to serve 

the educational and informational needs of 

children (‘Core Programming’) is educational 

and informational programming that satisfies 

the following additional criteria: 

(1) It has serving the educational and 

informational needs of children ages 16 and 

under as a significant purpose; 

(2) It is aired between the hours of 7 a.m. 

and 10 p.m.; 

(3) It is a regularly scheduled weekly 

program; 

(4) It is at least 30 minutes in length; 

(5) The program is identified as specifically 

designed to educate and inform children by 

the display on the television screen 

throughout the program of the symbol E/I; 

(6) The educational and informational 

objective and the target child audience are 

specified in writing in the licensee’s 

Children’s Television Programming Report, 

as described in section 73.3526(e)(11)(iii) of 

the Commission’s rules; and 

(7) Instructions for listing the program as 

educational/ informational, including an 

indication of the age group for which the 

program is intended, are provided by the 

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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 84 / Wednesday, May 2, 2007 / Notices 24309 

licensee to publishers of program guides, as 

described in section 73.673 of the 

Commission’s rules. 

6. Are the core programming criteria 

listed in the Commission’s rules 

adequate to properly define educational 

and informational programming? Do 

these criteria fulfill the requirements of 

the CTA? Should the Commission 

consider additional criteria? Does the 

current level of preemption affect 

compliance with the CTA and 

Congressional intent? In what other 

ways are licensees complying, or not, 

with the CTA and the Commission’s 

rules related to children’s programming? 

7. Ex Parte Rules. This proceeding 

will be treated as a ‘‘permit-butdisclose’’ proceeding subject to the 

‘‘permit-but-disclose’’ requirements 

under section 1.1206(b) of the 

Commission’s rules. Ex parte 

presentations are permissible if 

disclosed in accordance with 

Commission rules, except during the 

Sunshine Agenda period when 

presentations, ex parte or otherwise, are 

generally prohibited. Persons making 

oral ex parte presentations are reminded 

that a memorandum summarizing a 

presentation must contain a summary of 

the substance of the presentation and 

not merely a listing of the subjects 

discussed. More than a one- or twosentence description of the views and 

arguments presented is generally 

required. Additional rules pertaining to 

oral and written presentations are set 

forth in section 1.1206(b). 

8. Pursuant to Sections 1.415 and 

1.419 of the Commission’s rules, 

interested parties may file comments 

and reply comments on or before the 

dates indicated on the first page of this 

document. All filings must be submitted 

in MM Docket No. 00–167. Pleadings 

sent via e-mail to the Commission will 

be considered informal and will not be 

part of the official record. Comments 

may be filed using: (1) The 

Commission’s Electronic Comment 

Filing System (ECFS), (2) the Federal 

Government’s eRulemaking Portal, or (3) 

by filing paper copies. <bullet≤ Electronic Filers: Comments 

may be filed electronically using the 

Internet by accessing the ECFS: http:// 

www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs/ or the Federal 

eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Filers should 

follow the instructions provided on the 

website for submitting comments. <bullet≤ For ECFS filers, in 

completing the transmittal screen, filers 

should include their full name, U.S. 

Postal service mailing address, and the 

applicable docket number: MM Docket 

No. 00–167. Parties may also submit an 

electronic comment by Internet e-mail. 

To get filing instructions, filers should 

send an e-mail to ecfs@fcc.gov, and 

include the following words in the body 

of the message: ‘‘get form’’. A sample 

form and instructions will be sent in 

response. 

<bullet≤ Paper Filers: Parties who 

choose to file by paper must file an 

original and four copies of each filing. 

Filings can be sent by hand or 

messenger delivery, by commercial 

overnight courier, or by first-class or 

overnight U.S. Postal Service mail 

(although we continue to experience 

delays in receiving U.S. Postal Service 

mail). All filings must be addressed to 

the Commission’s Secretary, Office of 

the Secretary, Federal Communications 

Commission. 

<bullet≤ The Commission’s contractor 

will receive hand-delivered or 

messenger-delivered paper filings for 

the Commission’s Secretary at 236 

Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Suite 110, 

Washington, DC 20002. The filing hours 

at this location are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. All 

hand deliveries must be held together 

with rubber bands or fasteners. Any 

envelopes must be disposed of before 

entering the building. 

<bullet≤ Commercial overnight mail 

(other than U.S. Postal Service Express 

Mail and Priority Mail) must be sent to 

9300 East Hampton Drive, Capitol 

Heights, MD 20743. 

<bullet≤ U.S. Postal Service first-class 

mail, Express Mail, and Priority Mail 

should be addressed to 445 12th Street, 

SW., Washington, DC 20554. 

<bullet≤ People with Disabilities: To 

request materials in accessible formats 

for persons with disabilities (Braille, 

large print, electronic files, audio 

format), send an e-mail to 

fcc504@fcc.gov or contact the Consumer 

and Governmental Affairs Bureau at 

(202) 418–0530 or (202) 418–7365 

(TTY). 

<bullet≤ Copies of any filed 

documents in this matter are also 

available for inspection in the 

Commission’s Reference Information 

Center: 445 12th Street, SW., 

Washington, DC 20554, (202) 418–7092. 

Federal Communications Commission. 

Mary Beth Murphy, 

Chief, Policy Division, Media Bureau. 

[FR Doc. E7–8300 Filed 5–1–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P 

FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION 

Notice of Agreements Filed 

The Commission hereby gives notice 

of the filing of the following agreements 

under the Shipping Act of 1984. 

Interested parties may submit comments 

on agreements to the Secretary, Federal 

Maritime Commission, Washington, DC 

20573, within ten days of the date this 

notice appears in the Federal Register. 

Copies of agreements are available 

through the Commission’s Office of 

Agreements (202–523–5793 or 

tradeanalysis@fmc.gov). 

Agreement No.: 011284–061. 

Title: Ocean Carrier Equipment 

Management Association Agreement. 

Parties: APL Co. Pte. Ltd.; American 

President Lines, Ltd.; A.P. MollerMaersk A/S trading under the name of 

Maersk Line; CMA CGM, S.A.; Atlantic 

Container Line; Companhia Libra de 

Navegacao; Compania Libra de 

Navegacion Uruguay S.A.; Compania 

Sudamericana de Vapores, S.A.; COSCO 

Container Lines Company Limited; 

Crowley Maritime Corporation; 

Evergreen Line Joint Service Agreement; 

Hamburg-S[uuml]d; Hapag-Lloyd AG; 

Hapag-Lloyd USA LLC; Hanjin Shipping 

Co., Ltd.; Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. 

Ltd.; Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd.; 

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd.; Nippon Yusen 

Kaisha Line; Norasia Container Lines 

Limited; Orient Overseas Container Line 

Limited; and Yang Ming Marine 

Transport Corp. 

Filing Party: Jeffrey F. Lawrence, Esq. 

and Donald J. Kassilke, Esq.; Sher & 

Blackwell LLP; 1850 M Street, NW., 

Suite 900; Washington, DC 20036. 

Synopsis: The amendment would add 

Zim Integrated Shipping Services, Ltd. 

as a party to the agreement. 

Agreement No.: 011980–001. 

Title: South Atlantic Chassis Pool 

Agreement. 

Parties: The Ocean Carrier Equipment 

Management Association and its 

member lines; the Association’s 

subsidiary Consolidated Chassis 

Management LLC and its affiliates; 

Georgia Ports Authority; and South 

Carolina State Ports Authority. 

Filing Party: Jeffrey F. Lawrence, Esq. 

and Donald J. Kassilke, Esq.; Sher & 

Blackwell LLP; 1850 M Street, NW; 

Suite 900; Washington, DC 20036. 

Synopsis: The amendment would add 

Evergreen Line Joint Service Agreement, 

already a member of the Ocean Carrier 

Equipment Management Association, as 

a member to the agreement. 

Agreement No.: 201103–006. 

Title: Memorandum Agreement of the 

Pacific Maritime Association of 

December 14, 1983 Concerning 

Assessments to Pay ILWU–PMA 

Employee Benefit Costs, As Amended, 

Through April 19, 2007. 

Parties: Pacific Maritime Association 

and International Longshore and 

Warehouse Union. 

Filing Party: Matthew J. Thomas, Esq.; 

Troutman Sanders LLP; 401 9th Street, 

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