Word: fcc
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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Since late 1993 the FCC has been examining allegations brought by a branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, later bolstered by NBC, that Murdoch's 1985 purchase of TV stations now at the core of his Fox network violated a U.S. law that barred alien companies from indirectly controlling or owning more than 25% of a station. The N.A.A.C.P. further charged that Murdoch was guilty of a "lack of candor" -- that he had tried to hide the true ownership structure from the commission...
Murdoch says he will take the public-interest route -- he's got until the middle of next month to make his case. Several Washington media lawyers and executives say his success is virtually assured. Indeed, in remarks made at the fcc meeting, three commissioners telegraphed their belief that Murdoch had already succeeded. In launching a fourth U.S. TV network, he satisfied a long-sought commission goal of stirring increased competition among the networks. Commissioner James Quello, a critic of the investigation, stated that he would like to waive the 25% limit immediately. He asked, "Why mess with success...
...bonhomie in the room failed to reflect the heated conflict the investigation's findings had ignited among the commission's staff. The investigators considered recommending everything from blanket exoneration to a formal accusation of "lack of candor." They encountered less than complete disclosure, says an FCC official, but failed to find evidence of deliberate deception...
Nonetheless, some of the staff's dismay leached into the final 74-page resolution. At one point, for example, the report cites a memorandum from an attorney who had managed Murdoch's initial FCC application, which states that Fox's ownership structure is "arguably vulnerable to challenge" and that it is therefore "paramount" to avoid any change that "would potentially invite re-examination" by the commission -- a memo known among commission staff members as the "somewhat smoking gun." The commission resolved that this memo "plainly indicates" uncertainty existed about the ownership structure but that otherwise it offered no proof...
...Corp. owned 99 percent of Fox when he sought permission a decade ago to acquire stations that formed the backbone of the network. To hold onto his victory, he'll still have to make a case that waiving foreign ownership restrictions would be in the public interest. Though the FCC found that Murdoch waited years to disclose the extent of Fox's foreign ownership, at least three commissioners are inclined to let him off the hook because Fox has created thousands of jobs and revived flagging TV stations...