Airing Industry's Dirty Laundry

This is big. Yesterday our campaign to uncover covert media consolidation in communities around the country made the New York Times.

This chronically ignored crisis is getting a national spotlight. And it would never have happened had it not been for the thousands of activists who spoke out against the practice of covert consolidation and helped us document its impact on local news broadcasts across the country.

Well-Kept Secret

When we launched the Change the Channels campaign in June, few people were aware of how widespread covert consolidation is. If you know what to look for, the effects of covert consolidation are very visible; independent news programs on formerly competing stations suddenly begin to look eerily similar, sharing anchors, scripts, studios and reporters. But most people in a given community didn’t realize that a single company had taken over operation of multiple stations. That’s because broadcasters aren’t required to disclose covert consolidation to anyone. Seemingly in the dead of night, control of our TV stations has been dramatically reshaped, escaping the notice of the public as well as the Federal Communications Commission.

We wanted that to change.

We launched a map showing the extent of the problem and created a toolkit to help activists fight local consolidation. Over 26,000 Free Press activists signed petitions, met with their representatives and documented covert consolidation in their communities. Our in-boxes filled with reports from whistleblowers and activists who had discovered consolidation on their local news.

The momentum has continued to build. Yesterday’s New York Times article highlights the problem for a national audience. And the timing couldn’t be better.

Change Is Possible

Just last month, the FCC asked for public comment on whether covert-consolidation deals should be publicly disclosed. The comment window is set to open soon. If the FCC adopts a disclosure policy, the agency, researchers and the general public will get a more complete picture of the extent and nature of these shadowy deals.

Not only that, but we have a rare opportunity to win positive changes that would stop the anti-competitive, deceptive practice of covert consolidation. The FCC is set to review its media-ownership limits before the end of the year. During the review, which takes place every four years, the FCC evaluates the rules it has in place to ensure competition, diversity and localism in our media. Since covert consolidation operates by sidestepping these rules, the FCC could choose to close the loopholes.

As we saw yesterday, it’s possible to expose industry’s dirty secrets. It’s the first step toward winning the protections we need to ensure that our local news serves our local needs — not broadcasters’ bottom lines.

Free Press is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Free Press does not support or oppose any candidate for public office. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media and universal access to communications.