In Re Application of KCMC, INC.,
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
19 F.C.C.2d 10 (1969)
RELEASE-NUMBER: FCC 69-827
JULY 29, 1969
ACTION:
APPLICATION
[*109] KCMC, INC., Station KTAL-TV,
GENTLEMEN:
This refers to your application for renewal of the license of station KTAL-TV,
In
January 1969 the Texarkana Junior Chamber of Commerce and a group composed of
12 local unincorporated associations filed separate documents with the
Commission alleging that station KTAL-TV had failed to serve the needs and
interests of the people of
Subsequent
to the filing of these complaints, KTAL-TV personnel met with representatives
of the complaining organizations. As a
result of the meetings, the complaints were settled and the complainants
notified the Commission that they wished to withdraw their pleadings. We believe that this Commission should
encourage licensees to meet with community oriented groups to settle complaints
of local broadcast service. Such
cooperation at the community level should prove to be more effective in
improving local service than would be the imposition of strict guidelines by
the Commission.
[*110]
In view of the resolution of the matters filed against KTAL-TV and the
measures adopted to improve the television service to
Commissioner
Robert E. Lee absent; Commissioner Johnson concurring
and issuing a separate statement; Commissioner H. Rex Lee concurring and
issuing a statement.
BY DIRECTION
OF THE COMMISSION, BEN F. WAPLE, Secretary.
SEPARATE STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER NICHOLAS JOHNSON
The
alleged public interest failings of KTAL-TV have been described by the
Commission majority and Commissioner Rex Lee. I will not repeat them.
The
parties who protested this license renewal are now willing to
"settle" the case, as it were, in return for certain agreed-upon
future conduct from the station.
A
license renewal proceeding is, in my judgment, a matter between the
broadcaster-licensee and all the people in the community, a matter to be
resolved by the FCC according to the statutory standard of the "public
interest." The Commission can utilize the services of volunteer local
groups. Indeed, it is so woefully
understaffed that any thorough review of broadcaster performance simply must
depend upon an aroused and involved citizenry.
But just
as licenses should not wrongfully be withheld, revoked or denied in response to
unwarranted citizen protest, so they should not be granted automatically
because a certain group of once-protesting citizens has for some reason
withdrawn its objections.
I am not
fully convinced that any agreement could justify a finding that the KTAL's past
performance has been a service to "the public interest" of its
service area.
I am
disturbed by the pattern of media ownership which KTAL represents, and
Commissioner Rex Lee has so fully documented.
I
regret, however, that I cannot share his view as to the significance of these
facts.
The FCC
obviously has not only the "power" (concurring opinion, p. 3) to
decide antitrust issues, but the responsibility to do so as well. The Supreme Court has clearly ruled on this
point -- "Congress intended to leave competition in the business of
broadcasting * * *," F.C.C. v. Sanders Bros. Radio Station, 309
Most
importantly, individuals' access to the media could not possibly
"partially qualify" the effect of the antitrust laws in the area
(concurring opinion, p. 4). Nor can it
be said that the standards for potential anticompetitive effects should be
treated any differently "in a regulated industry, such as
broadcasting" (concurring opinion, p. 5).
If anything, the Commission's responsibilities to ward the broadcasting
industry and the public go far beyond the antitrust laws.
There
are a number of reasons why economic concentrations of control in broadcasting
cannot be ignored merely because rights of access have been extended to
citizens. First, the concentration of
communications control in the hands of a few may create dangerously excessive
"political" power over the minds and thoughts of, and information
available to, citizens and politicians alike.
Second, undue concentration reduces the competitive incentives to
produce better and more innovative programming. Third, such concentration ignores the fundamental antitrust tenet
of "incipiency" -- that monopolies must be stopped short of the point
where the monopolist is in a position to exercise his power in anticompetitive
or antisocial ways. Fourth, the
existence of competition in an industry permits less, not more, governmental
supervision over the day-to-day operations of that industry. A competitive system, to some extent, is one
that polices itself -- not one that requires continual governmental
surveillance. In sum, although
"access" to broadcast facilities is one of the most vital concepts
inherent in a system of broadcasting in the "public interest," it is
only one of a number of equally important policies in the field.
The
Commission is, of course, concerned with economic concentration in the
marketplace of broadcast finance, because it must be. But it must also be concerned with ideological, intellectual, and
aesthetic concentrations in the marketplace of ideas. Our responsibilities not only encompass, but go far beyond, the
standards of antitrust law.
It is
conceivable that, someday, a "common carrier" concept will be applied
to a national cable television system.
If so, anyone could obtain access to a channel in every major community
to "televise" his programs to anyone who wished to watch. Such a system might easily alter our
concerns about the potential threats from "concentration of control"
of the mass media. We are not
concerned, for example, about the telephone company's potential power to grant
or withhold access to personal communication because the tradition, law, and
supply of telephones, have made it possible for anyone to have a telephone who
can pay for it. A comparable common
carrier cable television system might have a similar impact upon our concerns
about media monopolies. But the important
point is that that day has not yet arrived.
Whatever the Red Lion case ultimately may come to mean ( Red Lion
Broadcasting Co., Inc. v. FCC, 37 U.S. L. W. 4509 (U.S., June 9, 1969)), it has
not yet operated in a manner comparable to the common carrier cable system just
described. In short, any thought of
loosening the already feeble bonds of antitrust protection surrounding the
broadcasting industry is, in my judgment, very premature.
[*112]
I support the majority's disposition of this case because it represents
a first effort at a commendable innovation in the process of public
participation in the license renewal process.
Hearings are cumbersome, expensive, and truly a last resort -- for
licensee and contestant alike. I have
long recommended that anyone who is dissatisfied with his local broadcaster's
performance should always, as a first step, endeavor to work the problem out
with the broadcaster directly.
Broadcasters have an economic incentive, even if they do not feel their
personal responsibility and legal obligation, to serve the needs, tastes and
interests of their listeners and viewers.
My own view is that many of this country's leading citizens are as much
at fault as the broadcasters for the poor quality of today's programming -- if
they have not offered their ideas, and personal talents, to their local
stations.
There
will, of course, be instances in which fruitful citizen-broadcaster discussion
is not possible without the threat of a contested license renewal -- or even
with such a contest. And I believe the
public simply must be permitted to retain the ultimate power of participation
in license renewal and revocation proceedings which Congress in its wisdom so
wisely wrote into the Communications Act of 1934. But just as the settlement procedure has been widely used
throughout the legal process, so I believe we should experiment with its use in
the administrative license renewal process of this agency. If local groups can be satisfied with the
terms of agreements they can work out with local broadcasters I believe they
are entitled to great -- although perhaps not conclusive -- weight.
This is
the first such agreement to come before the FCC. By voting, in effect, to "accept" it I do not mean to
foreclose my subsequent investigation into this, or other cases that may come
before us. It is the FCC's ultimate
responsibility to find that the "public interest" will be served by a
license grant.
I am
prepared to make such a finding in this case, at this time, however, as an
experimental gesture to explore what may prove to be a very useful tool in our
administrative process.
CONCURRING
OPINION OF COMMISSIONER H. REX LEE
I concur
in the Commission's decision to renew the broadcast license of KTAL-TV, because
the matter raises major issues which are not fully discussed in the
notice. These should have been reviewed
against the background history of the licensee's performance and the facts of
this case.
The
Commission, by the Chief, Broadcast Bureau, on October 21, 1968, renewed the
license of KCMC, Inc., the licensee of station KTAL-TV. The action was rescinded pursuant to section
1.113 of the Commission's rules on November 14, 1968, pending Commission
consideration of a complaint regarding the licensee's alleged failure to serve
the needs and interests of the
n1 This complaint was withdrawn by
the junior chamber in February 1969, after a group of its members and the licensee
met to discuss ways of improving KTAL-TV's service in
While
the Commission had this complaint under study, 12 unincorporated
n2 Petitioners are: Texarkana
Organization: "Citizens Committee to Improve Local Television Service;
Carver Terrace Community Club; Negro Community Leaders Committee; National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People; Texarkana Improvement Club;
Marshall Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity; Gamma Kappa Zeta Chapter
of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority; Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity; Lonoke Baptist Church;
Model Cities Planning Area P7, (all of the Texarkana); and New Hope Baptist
Church, Kiblah, Ark.
Their
joint petition, filed on January 10, 1969, alleged that: (a) The licensee did
not consult with Texarkana Negro leaders or organizations concerning their
tastes, needs and desires; (b) the station did not present public service
announcements for Negro or integrated groups; (c) Negroes were not presented on
local public affairs programs; (d) the station deleted network programs of
particular interest to Negroes; (e) the views of Negroes were rarely presented
with respect to issues of concern to Negroes; (f) the licensee did not live up
to the programming proposals of its 1965 renewal application; (g) the licensee
has an undue concentration of control of communications media; and (h) the
KTAL-TV studio facilities have been moved from Texarkana.
This
petition to deny was accompanied by an additional petition containing
approximately 7,000 names, wherein it was charged, inter alia, that the
licensee "disorientated itself from the affairs, desires, and needs of the
people of
On June
9, 1969, the Commission received copies of an agreement entered into between
KTAL-TV and the parties to the petition to deny. As part of the agreement, the parties requested that their
petition to deny be given no further consideration, and that the Commission act
to renew the KTAL-TV license for a full term.
Generally, the agreement establishes new station operating conditions
for management decisions in programming, the assignment and allocation of
personnel and equipment, and the protection of local public access to
prime-time programming. (See agreement
attached exhibit A.) Most significantly, the licensee covenanted with its
community that any material variance from the agreement would be deemed a
failure to operate substantially as set forth in the station license.
[*114]
It would not seem appropriate, at least at present, for the Commission
to order a hearing into the issues raised by the petitioners who are now
seeking to withdraw. The Commission's
decision stems from the overwhelming public interest in such an agreement, the
whole community's expectations in obtaining a broadcast service uniquely in its
own interests, and the consistency of the undertaking to Commission policies on
the ascertainment and service of community broadcast needs.
Nevertheless,
this proceeding raises extremely important issues which are not simply resolved
by finding that certain complaints have been settled. The primary issue is that of undue media concentration of
control. A media concentration issue
does not disappear merely by withdrawing a complaint. In a renewal proceeding especially, the Commission should closely
examine media concentrations. They
should be approved only if there ae sound reasons based upon contemporary
social and economic considerations which permit finding that the public
interest will be served by the issuance of a license.
The
Commission action approving KTAL-TV's license renewal, asserts that no question
about the issue of media concentration warrants denial of the license because
of the licensee's media holdings alone.
This does not mean the elements and effect of a media concentration are
immune from inquiry. The Commission has
designated renewal applications for hearing where interlocking broadcast,
newspaper, and CATV interests have been shown or found to have had some
undesirable effect upon a community.
Chronicle Broadcasting Co., 17 F.C.C. 2d 245 (1969); Midwest Radio-Television,
Inc., 16 F.C.C. id 943-4 (1969).
In
reviewing the charges of undue concentration of media control, the following
ownership interests were carefully considered.
KTAL-TV is licensed to KCMC, Inc., which is owned by Walter E. Hussman,
his wife and his mother-in-law, Bettie M. Palmer. KCMC, Inc., is also licensee
of station KCMC and KTAL-FM in
n3 Estimated 1969 population, Spot
Television Rates and Data, June 15, 1969, p. 434.
n4 This figure is derived from FCC
engineering standards and estimated 1969 population figures from Spot
Television Rates and Data. June 15,
1969.
n5 Ayre Directory of Newspapers
and Periodicals, 1969, p. 1064.
The Hussmans
and Palmer have controlling interest in Camden Radio, Inc., licensee of station
KAMD and permittee of KEWH-FM
[*115] in Camden, Ark.
(population: 19,051). n6 They also substantially own the only
newspaper in
n6 Estimated 1969 population,
Editor and Publisher International Yearbook, 1969, p. 25.
n7 The Camden News has a
circulation of 6,712. Ayre, 1969, p.
59. This city is one of the 38
communities in the
n8 Estimated 1969 population,
Editor and Publisher International Yearbook, 1969, p. 26.
n9 The Hope Star has a circulation
of 3,349. Ayre, 1969, p. 63. This city is one of the 62 communities in
the
W. E.
Hussman, his wife, and Bettie M. Palmer own and manage the Palmer Media Group
which has controlling interest in five other Arkansas newspapers (the Eldorado
Times, Eldorado News, Hot Springs New Era, Hot Springs Sentinel Record, and the
Magnolia Banner-News), and own 25 percent of the Jacksonville (Tex.) Daily
Progress. Mr. Hussman is the publisher of the Palmer Media Group. In addition to the daily newspapers, the
Hussman-Palmer family owns weekly newspapers in Magnolia, Stephens, and
n10 KTAL-TV has over a 50-percent
net weekly circulation in Hempstead and Columbia Counties, Ark., where
Hussman-Palmer publishes the Hope Star and Magnolia Banner-News, respectively:
a 25-49 percent net weekly circulation in Quachita and Union Counties, Ark.,
where the Camden News, the Stephens Star, and the Eldorado Times and News are
published; and between 5-24 percent net weekly circulation in Cherokee County,
Tex., where the Jacksonvile Daily Press is published. 39 Television Factbook,
Stations Volume, 1969-70, p. 334-b, 336-b.
n11 Newspaper Circulation
Analysis, 1968-69, Standard Rate and Data Service, Inc., p. B-13.
The
signals of KTAL-TV are carried on six CATV systems (
The
Commission has no power to decide antitrust issues, but may consider Federal
antitrust policy in determining whether the public interest will be served by a
broadcaster's conduct, operations, and action.
[*116]
Analysis of the elements of a media concentration, however, is not
limited solely to consideration of its economic and business practices. The distribution of news, information and
programming is "* * * an inseparable part of the flow of interstate
commerce." Lorain Journal Co. v.
Freedom
for all to publish, reasonably balanced against the illegality of denying media
access for the widest dissemination of information from diverse and
antagonistic sources, emerged as a new standard in national communications
policy, transcending immediate antitrust and monopoly concerns. The Federal Communications Commission picked
up this notion in its 1948 Editorializing Report, codifying prior law and
practice, and imposing on broadcast licensees the affirmative obligation to
present opposing views on controversial issues of public importance. The policy statement, in effect, affirmed
both the public interest in, and a legally enforceable right of the public to
media access for the dissemination of diverse, antagonistic and contrasting
views. In the recent decision of Red
Lion Broadcasting Co. v.
This
right partially qualifies the effect of antitrust laws in the formulation of
communications policy. The multimedia combination
of a broadcast licensee's holdings may properly be the subject of Justice
Department actions sounding in Sherman and Clayton Act violations, but insofar
as the Federal Communications Commission is concerned, the protection which a
licensee affords to the public's right of access may, in part, overcome
condemnation of the combination as an undue concentration. The Commission acknowledges this fact in
renewing the license of KTAL-TV. It
believes the public interest will be served by allowing the broadcast licensee
to enter into agreement with "community-oriented groups" to insure
the presentation of local programming as a condition of the broadcaster's
license.
Traditional
antitrust law does not require proof of actual restraint in a line of commerce
in order to establish illegality.
Rather, the reasonable likelihood of a substantial lessening of
competition may be sufficient. [*117]
These
considerations emphasize the fact that management practices in the news and
information field, as distinguished from anticompetitive economic practices,
may in themselves bear a substantial relation to the question of whether
multimedia interests possess an undue concentration of control. Chronicle-Broadcasting Co., 17 F.C.C. 2d
245, 247 (1969).
On the
other hand, where broadcast and newspaper enterprises are commonly owned, the
actual configuration of management and economic relations affecting competition
may require review not only of the manner in which a media concentration
operates, but also of the diversity of its approach to programming. Existing Commission policies require
multimedia owners to maintain the separate and distinct character of broadcast
facilities for independent social, political, and business decisions fostering
the maximum possible competition.
Huntingdon Broadcasters, Inc., 5 F.C.C. 2d 246, 293-4 (1966); James B.
Childress, 3 F.C.C. 2d 32, 45 (1965).
Where,
on a petition to deny, opposing parties in the broadcaster's community of
license enter into written agreement with the existing licensee, which, in
effect, establishes new management relations separate and distinct from the
licensee's newspaper, radio, and CATV interests, the Commission cannot regard
its hearing process as a more expeditious or better way of correcting
deficiencies in the operations of a broadcast licensee.
The
Commission also satisfied itself in the instant proceeding that other charges
dealing with the inadequate survey of community needs, and the inadequate
presentation of local news coverage and programming, [*118] raised substantial
and material questions of fact. There
was no clear showing in the renewal application and the licensee's pleading
that it had consulted any Texarkana Negro leader or organization in connection
with its 1968 renewal application.
Thus, there was a material question as to whether the licensee had
undertaken the required measures to determine the needs and interests of
substantial minority groups within its city of license. n12 As we stated in Capitol Broadcasting Co., 38 F.C.C.
1135, 1139 (1965):
n12 According to most recent
census statistics, approximately 26.5 percent of the population of
A
licensee's programming must be designed in good faith to serve its area. Thus, if a licensee had one rotating church
program and never presented Negro churches even though they represented half
the churches or population in the area, the obvious question is presented
whether the licensee is seeking in good faith to serve his area's needs or
simply following or acquiescing in a deliberate exclusionary pattern. The same consideration would be true in
other programming areas. If, for
example, a licensee never sought to ascertain or serve the needs of predominantly
Negro colleges in the area -- even though there were a large number of such
colleges -- the question is presented whether the licensee can be said to be
"equitably" and in good faith meeting his obligations under the
public interest standard.
Every
broadcast licensee is obligated both to design its programming, and to make a
good faith attempt to meet the program needs, not only of its city of license,
but of the entire area it serves.
Petersburg Television Corp., 10 R.R. 567, 584j (1954). The entire
Texarkana-Shreveport area is involved here.
"(A) broadcast station (cannot) serve the needs and interests of
any substantial minority group population within its service area by ignoring
them." Lamar Life Broadcasting Co., 14 F.C.C. 2d 431, 436 (1968).
Commission
policy reflects the vitality broadcasting possesses as a means for expressing
the values and culture of a democratic society. The National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders has
enunciated the urgent necessity for the media to achieve the fullest potential
of this mission. Indeed, the FCC
officially acknowledged the report in describing broadcasting's obligation to
meet the nighttime needs of the black community. Stewart Electronics (WCCR), 18 F.C.C. 2d 553 (1969). It is well,
therefore, to restate a conclusion of that report which should apply to all the
media:
The
failings of the media must be corrected and the improvement must come from
within the media. A society that values
and relies on a free press as intensely as ours is entitled to demand in return
responsibility from the press and conscientious attention by the press to its
own deficiencies. Report of the
National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, 1968,
As a
matter of overwhelming public interest, the Commission approves renewal of the
KTAL-TV license because the agreement of its licensee attempts improvements of
the type which most appropriately should come from within the media.
The
Commission also reviewed those charges concerning the allocation of the
licensee's personnel and equipment between the Texarkana and Shreveport studios
in order to determine whether section 73.613 [*119] of the Commission's rules had been violated. Because of overriding public interest considerations
in the agreement between the licensee and petitioning community groups, the
Commission, in effect, decided not to resolve this question at the present
time. Nevertheless, in view of its
importance to the service of local public interests in broadcasting, it seems
advisable that the licensee's future course of conduct should be guided by past
Commission decisions in this area. The
licensee cited to us certain cases which, in its view, stand as a bar to
Commission inquiry into whether the
Generally
the Commission has left the location of auxiliary studios to the decision of
the licensee. Gulf Television Co.,
supra. The Commission's policy "* * * requires licensees to serve the
needs and interests of [their] entire area, while at the same time placing
primary emphasis on [their] city of license.
This policy affords licensees a good deal of flexibility [in] striking a
balance between area wide and city needs." Nationwide Communications,
Inc., 18 F.C.C. 2d 171, 172 (1969). The adjustment of a balance is essential
because there is a direct relationship between the location of a television
main studio and the manner in which a licensee serves the community
concerned. WSIX Broadcasting, 8 R.R.
216 (1952). The percentage of programming originated from the main studio is a
prime factor in deciding whether a station is serving those residing in its
area; and is used as a basis for making case-by-case determinations when a main
studio question is placed in issue.
Gulf Television Co., supra; Nationwide Communications, Inc., supra. It
may be observed, however, that the Commission generally has not permitted less
than 50 percent local origination from a main studio, adjusted to serve only
the most efficient development of programming for local interests. In Ponce Television Corp., 17 F.C.C. 2d 411
(1969), n13
the Commission required that more than 50 percent of the station's nonnetwork
programming, excluding entertainment, must [*120] be originated in its main studio; while in the Nationwide case
origination of more than 50 percent of local programming, including
entertainment, was required. n14 In addition, this obligation was
buttressed by requiring, in subsequent renewal applications, a showing of where
the station's programming originated.
In order to insure minimum parity between the main and auxiliary
studios, both the
n13 Cf. also Ponce Television
Corp., 18 F.C.C. 2d 543 (1969) on petition for reconsideration.
n14 The Ponce case, supra,
involved broadcast service in
Because
of the overriding public interest consideration to be served by granting
renewal of the KTAL-TV license, the main studio questions here involved are
more appropriately reached by subsequent inquiry; or upon further complaint, by
the issuance of a cease and desist order.
47 U.S.C. 312, 403. The
Commission's primary concern is in the public interest to be served by the renewal
of a license. On a petition to deny,
the efficacy of the hearing process to correct deficiencies of a station's
operations, which the parties are willing to adjust by more expeditious means,
is at best doubtful. This is especially
true where the Communications Act, itself, affords remedial devices which can
be employed in the event of the licensee's failure to observe a condition of
its license.
EXHIBIT
"A"
AGREEMENT
KCMC,
Inc., licensee of KTAL-TV, and al parties to the petition to deny and to the
reply filed with respect to KCMC, Inc.'s application for renewal of its
television broadcast license, being hereinafter collectively referred to as
"Petitioners," agree as follows:
1. KCMC, Inc., will broadcast on prime time the
statement of policy attached hereto.
This agreement and this statement will also be filed with the Federal
Communications Commission as an amendment to the pending renewal
application. Any material variance from
said statement shall be deemed to be a failure to operate substantially as set
forth in the license.
2. Simultaneously with the filing of said
statement, petitioners will join and hereby join in requesting the Federal
Communications Commission to give no further consideration to the pleadings
filed by petitioners, or any o them, with respect to KTAL-TV. Petitioners also join in requesting the
Federal Communications Commission to renew KTAL-TV's television broadcast
license for a full term.
3. This agreement ad the attached statement
contain the complete agreement of the parties, and there are no other promises
or undertakings, express or implied.
Signed
this 8th day of June 1969.
KCMC,
Inc., W. E. Hussman, President; Texarkana Organization, Robert D. Smith,
President; Citizens Committee to Improve Local Television Service, David E.
Stephens, Chairman; Carver Terrace Community Club, Eldridge Robertson,
Chairman; Negro Community Leaders Committee, G. W. Thompson, M.D.; National
Association For the Advancement of Colored People, Mrs. Jennie Dansby,
Secretary; Texarkana Improvement Club, H. F. Langford, Jr., President; Marshall
Alumni Chapter Kappa Alpha Psi
[*121] Fraternity, Denzer Burke;
Gamma Kappa Zeta Chapter, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Helen McNeal, President; Phi
Beta Sigma Fraternity, M. D. Dodd, President; New Hope Baptist Church, Kiblah,
Ark., N. E. Jones, Pastor; Lonoke Baptist Church, C. K. Yarber, Pastor; Model
Cities Planning Area P7, Miss Helen S. King; Earle K. Moore, Attrney for
Petitioners; James E. Greeley, attorney for KCMC, Inc.
STATEMENT
OF POLICY
KTAL-TV,
having in mind its duty to serve equally all segments of the public, makes the
following statement of policy:
1. KTAL will continue to observe all laws and
Federal policies requiring equal employment practices and will take affirmative
action to recruit and train a staff which is broadly representative of all
groups in the community. As part of
this policy, KTAL will employ a minimum of two full-time Negro reporters, one
for
2. KTAL will continue to maintain and will
publicize a toll-free telephone line from
3. KTAL recognizes its continuing obligation to
maintain appropriate facilities in
4. KTAL recognizes its obligations to present
regular programs for the discussion of controversial issues, including, of
course, both black and white participants.
The station will not avoid issues that may be controversial or divisive,
but will encourage the airing of all sides of these issues.
5. Poverty is a primary problem in KTAL's
service area. KTAL is obligated to try
to help solve this problem by publicizing the rights of poor persons to obtain
services and the methods by which they may do so. KTAL will also inform public opinion about the problem of poverty
and the steps that are being taken to alleviate it. An aggregate of at least one-half hour of programming will be
devoted to this subject each month.
6. KTAL religious programming should cover the
entire range of religious thought. As
part of its continuing effort to meet this obligation, KTAL will carry the
religious programs presented by NBC representing the three primary American
faiths. A discussion program will also
be presented, to explore current religious issues, at least monthly. KTAL will regularly present ministers of all
races on local religious programs.
These ministers will be regularly rotated, in an effort to represent
fairly all religious groups.
7. Network programs of particular interest to
any substantial group [*122] in the service area will not be preempted
without appropriate advance consultation with representatives of that group.
8. KTAL is obligated to discuss programming
regularly with all segments of the public.
In particular, a station employee with authority to act will meet once a
month with a committee designated by the parties to the petition to deny KTAL's
TV application for license renewal.
Similar efforts will be made to consult with groups representing other
segments of the public.
9. KTAL will regularly announce on the air that
the station will consult with all substantial groups in the community regarding
community taste and needs and will accept suggestions on how best to render
this service. This announcement will be
broadcast once a week, on a weekday, between 7 and 11 p.m.
10. KTAL reaffirms its existing policy to make
no unessential reference to the race of a person. In cases where such references are made, the same practice shall
be and will be followed for blacks as for whites. KTAL will continue to use courtesy titles for all women, without
regard for race.
11. KTAL
will endeavor to develop and present at least monthly, in prime time, a regular
local magazine-type program, including not only discussion but also local
talent, and seeking participation from the entire service area.
12. KTAL will solicit public service announcements
from local groups and organizations.
Sound on film will be used more extensively in covering local news. In covering demonstrations, picketing, and
similar events, KTAL-TV will seek to present the diverse views which gave rise
to the event.
13. KTAL-TV's undertakings are subject to all
valid laws, rules and regulations of the Federal Communications Commission and
to KTAL's primary obligation as a broadcast licensee to use its own good faith
and judgment to serve all members of the viewing public. It is recognized that needs and
circumstances change, that events may compel departure from these
undertakings. However, KTAL-TV will not
depart from these undertakings without advance consultation with the affected
groups in the service area and advance notice to the Federal Communications
Commission stating the reasons for the departure. In such instances KTAL will seek to adhere to the objectives of
this statement by alternative action.
[*123]
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