The FCC Localism Task Force has announced a six-city schedule of meetings designed to give TV viewers and radio listeners, industry and civic organizations the chance to express their views regarding broadcast localism.
Chaired by one or more commissioners, the meetings will focus on information gathering and provide a forum “to conduct outreach for the nationwide round of broadcast station license renewals,” an FCC statement said.
The first meeting is slated for Oct. 22 and will be held in Charlotte, N.C., at the Charlotte Mecklenburg Government Center Meeting Chamber. Other public hearings will be held in:
San Antonio, Tex., December 2003
Santa Cruz/Salinas, Calif., March 2004
Rapid City, S.D., April 2004
Portland, Maine, May 2004
Washington, D.C., June 2004
Commission Chairman Michael Powell set up the task force in August with a number of goals in mind, including measuring media localism, determining the efficacy of FCC localism rules, organizing public meetings, advising the commission on what to recommend to Congress regarding the licensing of thousands of additional low-power FM stations, promoting localism in TV and radio and advising the commission on recommendations to Congress to strengthen localism in broadcast.
For more information, please visit: http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-239578A2.doc.