Sen. Young, colleagues urge FCC to modernize regulations in support of local broadcasters

U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) joined U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and a group of over 20 senators in calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to modernize broadcast ownership rules to enable local broadcasters to compete with today’s media giants. 

“The fast-evolving media marketplace has made broadcast ownership regulations in urgent need of modernization,” the senators wrote. “By modernizing broadcast ownership restrictions, the FCC can empower broadcasters to fulfill their essential role in American democracy, foster local journalism, and benefit local communities and the public interest.” 

In addition to Senators Young and Moran, U.S. Senators Ted Budd (R-N.C.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), John Curtis (R-Utah), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) also signed the letter.

The full letter can be found here and below. 

Dear Chairman Carr,

We urge you to modernize the FCC’s broadcast ownership rules to enable local broadcasters to compete with today’s media giants.

The fast-evolving media marketplace has made broadcast ownership regulations in urgent need of modernization. Such regulations originated in the 1940s, and while the FCC has made modest adjustments since then, broadcast ownership rules today remain nearly the same as they were in the 1990s. Despite modest tweaks, these rules fail to account for the rise in digital platforms, streaming services, smartphones, and social media. Local broadcasters now vie for audience, content, and advertising not just with each other, but with the world’s largest tech companies. The regulations, designed for a bygone era, no longer reflect this society. 

Technology firms have reshaped how Americans access news, entertainment, and vital information, dominating the media marketplace in ways that threaten the survival of local broadcasters. Yet broadcasters remain unmatched in delivering trusted, accurate reporting – a role more critical than ever as newspapers vanish nationwide. Surveys consistently show Americans trust local news above all other sources. From holding governments accountable to boosting civic engagement and providing lifesaving updates during crises – whether public safety threats or severe weather – broadcasters are first to respond and last to leave. They do so, however, under a regulatory burden that ties one hand behind their back.

Now is the time for swift FCC action to level the playing field for local broadcasters by modernizing the broadcast ownership rules. As newspapers continue to shutter across our country, local broadcasting remains the last bastion of trusted news for local communities. But creating news requires substantial resources: without the opportunity to combine or expand operations, broadcasters struggle to invest in journalism, retain sufficient newsroom staff, and strain to compete against their unregulated global Big Tech competitors. By modernizing broadcast ownership restrictions, the FCC can empower broadcasters to fulfill their essential role in American democracy, foster local journalism, and benefit local communities and the public interest. 

We encourage you to act swiftly. Updating these rules will strengthen local journalism, enhance public interest, and ensure broadcasters can compete in a digital age, not just survive it.