 |  |  |  |  |
the
current
Monday
Report
below!
This week's report by Tom Hendricks of Musea
Payola
on NPR
The Problem - Publishing Payola is on NPR radio.
Most often the guests on many NPR radio shows are artists from
the same corporations that are corporate sponsors of NPR.
According to the FCC policy, the station must announce this on
the air. And at present they do not. We suggest that they must do
that to comply with FCC rules. (See below for the specific rules).
That means when a show like "Studio 360", which has Warners as
a corporate funder, features an author from Warner Books, a
musician from Warner's Music, or an actor from Warner's Films
or TV shows; the show must acknowledge this connection, on the
air.
Major weekday radio shows such as "The Diane Rehm Show"
out of Washington DC, and 'Fresh Air' out of Philadelphia, plus
local shows such as 'Think' out of Dallas, are more often than not
just book promotion shows for major publishers - the same
publishers that are corporate funders for NPR.
At the same time they seldom if ever discuss zines or any
other independent writings outside of the handful of major
publishers. Nor do they ever discuss any genre but novels, and
nonfiction - never a word on plays, short stories, poetry, zines etc.
"The Diane Rehm Show"'s 2nd hour, is almost always a novelist
or non-fiction writer from mainstream publisher. "Fresh Air"
often features musicians, writers, or other artists, from the
same major companies. "Think" often features authors on a
regular basis.
We think these shows and others, must announce on the air when
they promote the work of their corporate funders. Until they do,
they give every appearance of 'Publishing Payola', paid
promotion for some art companies, while no promotion for the
many.
Here are the FCC rules on 'publishing payola'....
Federal law, including Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) rules, requires that employees of broadcast stations,
program producers, program suppliers and others who have
accepted or agreed to receive payments, services, or other
valuable consideration for airing material must disclose this fact to
the broadcast licensee airing the material.
This is required so that broadcasters have the information they
need to disclose to their audiences that the material was paid for.
The Communications Act and the FCC's rules
require the following:
When a broadcast licensee has received or been promised payment
for the airing of program material, then, at the time of the airing,
the station must disclose that fact and identify who paid for or
promised to pay for the material.
All sponsored material must be explicitly identified at the time of
broadcast as paid for and by whom, except when it is clear that the
mention of a product or service constitutes sponsorship
identification....
The information must be provided up the chain of production and
distribution before the time of broadcast, so the station can air the
required disclosure.
These rules apply to all kinds of program material aired over radio
and television stations...
For those readers who agree, get involved. Here's how:
If you suspect a broadcaster has violated the FCC's
rules, you may file a complaint with the FCC. To
assist the FCC in its review, the complaint should
include the following:
o Details of the content of the broadcast;
o The date and time of the broadcast;
o Why you believe that payment or other consideration was
provided, requiring the airing of a sponsorship identification
announcement;
o The call sign of the broadcast station involved;
o The fact that no sponsorship identification was aired; and
o Any documents that you believe establish any of the foregoing.
You may direct your complaint, by mail, to:
Federal Communications Commission
Enforcement Bureau
Investigations and Hearings Division
445 12th St., SW, Room 4-C330
Washington, DC 20554
Tom Hendricks,
ULA, Underground Literary Alliance,
and Editor of the 15 year old zine Musea
===============================================
Tom Hendricks is the editor of www.Musea.us
===============================================
GO HERE TO ENTER THE MONDAY REPORT BOX.
