The FCC must free broadcasters from outdated, arbitrary restrictions on ownership

The same year Facebook launched, Congress and the FCC placed an arbitrary 39 percent cap on home access for television broadcasters. These ownership limits were created before Twitter, Instagram, Spotify, or YouTube launched. There were no iPhones or streaming services back then. This organization arose in an era when access to information was much more limited than it is today.

Two decades later, the situation is completely different. The government does not place restrictions on public access to these social media platforms, nor should it. In an age of ubiquitous digital platforms, algorithms that shape what people consume, and multibillion-dollar content investments, the government should allow every sector of the communications industry, especially those long committed to serving local communities, to reach consumers and compete in the marketplace.

It is time to remove this rule and give broadcasters the freedom to better compete in today’s highly diverse information market.

The FCC should not stop there. It should also eliminate a similarly vague limit on ownership of radio stations. Additionally, it should delete an outdated rule known as the dual network ban, which prevents U.S. broadcast networks from merging, and it should eliminate a cap on local TV ownership.

Together, these archaic regulations force U.S. media companies to operate under strict constraints that inhibit their ability to grow and compete against the global technology platforms that dominate the landscape, which have an unregulated ability to scale and reach up to 100 percent audience saturation across markets.

These rules may make sense to protect the diversity of news content at the local level. But it is hardly applicable in today’s fast-growing media environment, where streaming is the default term in conversations about what people watch. The result is an unlevel playing field that penalizes the local broadcasters we all depend on for life-saving emergency alerts, community news with a local lens, and broader public service programming.

As former leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee—the relevant committee with jurisdiction over the FCC—we firmly believe that the Committee has unambiguous authority to address these challenges. The agency has broad regulatory authority to ensure that our media organizations serve the American people in accordance with the Communications Act of 1934.

Since 2000, Democrats in Congress and their appointees have consistently opposed efforts to ease regulatory restrictions aimed at expanding the ability of local broadcast stations to compete. They fought to prevent any increase or elimination of the 39 percent ownership cap and objected to the reinstatement of de facto rules such as the UHF deduction, which gives broadcasters fairer credit for their actual reach.

Every attempt to obstruct reform has been framed as a defense of diversity of viewpoints and local journalism. However, this same obstruction now puts both at risk. By keeping broadcasters capped as if we were still in 2004, policymakers are weakening their ability to reinvest in local news, expand operations, and compete in today’s video market.

Fortunately, the tide appears to be turning. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, a long-time advocate of regulatory reform, recognized the need to take action and open the way for review of these limits. This is a welcome move by the agency, and is consistent with President Trump’s deregulation agenda, which will move our nation’s media landscape into the 21st century.

It is now 2025, and the federal government must free media companies to compete in a digitally integrated global environment that regulators never imagined in 2004. The FCC must continue its efforts to modernize these burdensome ownership rules and uphold its mandate of truly protecting the public interest. Otherwise, the regulatory mandate will continue to tighten restrictions on broadcasters – one of America’s most important and trusted sources of information.

Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Greg Walden, and Fred Upton, all Republicans, each chaired the House Energy and Commerce Committee while serving in Congress. Walden is president of Alpine Advisors, whose clients include FOX and other media companies.

Editors’ Note: Nexstar, the parent company of The Hill, is a major broadcast ownership group with a stake in the issues discussed in this op-ed.