Brendan Carr officially unleashes broadcast consolidation
The FCC has voted to eliminate the national broadcast ownership cap, replacing fixed limits with a case-by-case review process. Chair Brendan Carr argues this allows broadcasters to compete with digital platforms, while critics warn it could harm local reporting and consumer costs.
Why it matters
This policy shift significantly alters the landscape of American media ownership, potentially leading to increased consolidation of local news stations under fewer corporate entities.
The era of set broadcast ownership limits is officially over, after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted Thursday to end the national ownership cap rule.
The agency’s two Republicans, Chair Brendan Carr and Commissioner Olivia Trusty, voted to end the ownership cap, which restricts broadcast owners from holding stations that reach a combined more than 39 percent of US TV households, while Democratic Commissioner Anna Gomez dissented. It formalizes a policy Carr has long criticized, and which he announced last month that he would seek to end at Thursday’s open FCC meeting. In place of a set limit, the FCC says, there will now be “granular, case-by-case review” to determine if broadcast consolidation is in the public interest. That will let the agency avoid having to “show special circumstances that would justify a waiver of a rule that no longer serves the public interest,” according to an FCC press release.
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