In Re RENEWALS OF BROADCAST LICENSES FOR NORTH CAROLINA AND
SOUTH CAROLINA
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
39 F.C.C.2d 482
DECEMBER 20, 1972
OPINION:
[*482] Staff action of
December 6, 1972 reviewing Broadcast licenses for North Carolina and South
Carolina, approved.
DISSENT TO NORTH CAROLINA-SOUTH
CAROLINA BROADCAST LICENSE RENEWALS BY COMMISSIONER NICHOLAS-JOHNSON.
Commissioner
Nicholas Johnson has dissented to the license renewals of North Carolina and
South Carolina radio and television stations, taken in an FCC staff action of
December 6, 1972. The dissent is attached.
DISSENT:
DISSENTING OPINION OF COMMISSIONER
NICHOLAS JOHNSON
Today the Federal Communications
Commission again reveals that it is oblivious to the interests of the
public. The majority refuses to question the fact that several of the
stations owned by its licensees (this time in the North and South Carolina
renewal group) propose news, public affairs, and other non-entertainment
programming which fall woefully below the most meager of standards.
Four of this group's 297 AM radio
stations and three of its television stations propose to program less than 5%
news each week. Seven AM stations and one TV station (the same UHF
station which refuses to program more than 1% news) proposed to broadcast less
than 5% in the combined category of public affairs and other non-entertainment
programming.
Im am not certain where the majority
gets this last category. Back in 1968 former Commissioner Kenneth Cox and
I suggested that the FCC should have serious questions about whether broadcast
stations are serving the public interest when they program less than 5% news,
1% public affairs, and 5% "other" non-entertainment
programming. The majority disagreed; apparently, no station's programming
decisions can raise public interest questions insofar as this majority is
concerned.
Be that as it may, neither
Commissioner Cox nor I ever referred to the "combined category of public
affairs and other non-entertainment programming." Today, the Commission,
in introducing that category, fails to make public the number of stations in
this renewal [*483] group which will fail to broadcast even 5% of
non-entertainment programming other than news and public affairs.
I suppose, however, that a Commission
which is not going to do anything about its licensees' stubborn refusals to
serve the public interest, is also not going to be concerned with details.
I dissent.