BREAUX TO AGAIN TRY TO APPLY DECENCY REGULATIONS TO CABLE
There could be efforts to broaden the broadcast decency bill in the Senate to apply decency regulations to cable. At the Media Institute, congressional staffers said Mon. it was likely cable regulation and media ownership would be part of the debate once the bill (S-2056), introduced by Sen. Brownback (R-Kan.), reached the Senate floor. Senate staffers said they expected floor consideration of the bill within weeks, and one staffer said the bill would probably be on the floor before the Senate recess beginning April 12.
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Both Lee Carosi, of the Senate Communications Subcommittee, and Rachel Welch, of the Senate Commere Committee, said they expected an effort to apply the decency regulations to cable. Welch said she expected Sen. Breaux (D-La.), who unsuccessfully pushed the measure in the Senate Committee vote, to try again on the Senate floor. While courts have ruled that the “pervasiveness” of the broadcast medium opens it to decency regulation, Welch said the arguments against applying the regulations to cable may have changed. “The question is does the pervasiveness of cable overrule the fact that it’s a subscription service?” she asked.
Breaux narrowly lost his push to apply decency regulations to cable when S-2056 was marked up in the Commerce Committee March 9 (CD March 10 p1). His amendment would have applied the regulations to cable and DBS until the FCC could show 85% of households with children could use the V-chip. During the hearing, Brownback argued that the amendment wouldn’t pass court muster and would hurt the bill’s chances for success. Brownback told reporters he was sympathetic with Breaux’s concerns about cable indecency, but couldn’t support the amendment because of his Constitutional concerns. The amendment was defeated 12-11.
Media ownership will also be an issue in the debate. Sources said Sens. Dorgan (D-N.D.), Lott (R-Miss.) and Snowe (R-Me.) were likely to try to keep media ownership provisions in the bill. The ownership amendment would require the General Accounting Office to study consolidation to determine whether there’s a correlation between bigger media and indecency. Carosi said she suspected there would be efforts to remove the cable and media ownership provisions once the bill goes to conference.
Efforts for the industry to self regulate might also be treated with suspicion, Welch said. She asked if an industry code was an attempt by broadcasters to “dodge” regulation. “Voluntary efforts are a step in the right direction,” she said: “But this legislation is needed to modernize the indecency laws.” She said the fines hadn’t been updated in more than a decade.
Media ownership could emerge in other areas if it’s taken out of the broadcast bill, Welch said. Besides FCC reauthorization (an issue Senate Commerce Committee Chmn. McCain [R-Ariz.] pushed this session,) some might try to add media ownership provisions to the Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act (SHVIA) extension. Gregg Rothschild, aide to House Commerce Committee ranking Democrat Dingell (Mich.), said Dingell wouldn’t try to add media ownership provisions to a SHVIA extension.
Also, Rothschild said Democrats on the House Commerce Committee were pushing for a hearing on the DTV transition. Welch said there would likely be a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on Telecom Act reform.