The National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters is urging the FCC to maintain its Local Radio Ownership Rule, saying that any loosening of AM or FM subcaps would weaken AM radio and further erode the already limited number of Black-owned stations in the US.
In formal reply comments to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr’s “Delete, Delete, Delete” initiative filed April 28, NABOB, a division of the US Black Chambers, stated, “Black American ownership of broadcast stations has declined since 1995,” citing three major factors: “Congress’s repeal of the [minority] tax certificate policy, the Supreme Court’s Adarand decision, and Congress’s passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which allowed a massive consolidation of ownership in the broadcast industry.”
“Most existing Black American broadcast owners are in radio,” NABOB notes. “Because radio stations generally sell for less than television stations, radio has been, and continues to be, the gateway to station ownership for most minority entrepreneurs.”
NABOB backed its argument with data showing that 72% of Black-owned stations earn less than $1 million annually and control only 2.8% of local commercial share. It cited BIA research and FCC ownership reports demonstrating that Black ownership of AM and FM stations has been declining for decades, now sitting at just 4% and 2%, respectively – far below the 13.7% Black share of the US population.
The group also warned that relaxing the subcaps rule would directly undermine the FCC’s own AM revitalization efforts. “Any change in the Subcaps rule will have a serious negative impact on Black American station ownership,” NABOB stated. “Elimination of the rule would undermine the Commission’s efforts to revitalize AM radio and would have a disproportionately negative competitive impact on Black American and other minority owned AM radio stations.”
NABOB’s comments seek to draw a direct line between ownership rules and consumer impact. “Additional consolidation of ownership in the industry will result in Black owned stations being purchased outright by larger competitors or denied sufficient advertising dollars to continue operations,” the filing reads. “In either instance, the audience listening to Black owned radio will lose that distinct voice.”
The group also rejected industry claims that loosening subcaps is necessary to compete with digital platforms like Spotify and Google, saying, “Advertisers seeking to buy radio can buy it now regardless of who owns the stations.”
Referencing the FCC’s own 2018 Quadrennial Review findings, NABOB pointed out that the Commission had already considered and rejected arguments for relaxing the subcaps, finding instead that “the Local Radio Ownership Rule remains necessary in the public interest as the result of competition.”
NABOB concluded its filing by calling on the FCC to uphold the current rule structure, stating, “The radio industry has many challenges in today’s fast-changing marketplace. However, the challenges faced by radio cannot be solved by deleting, repealing, or relaxing the Local Radio Ownership Subcaps Rule.”
This stance puts NABOB at odds with the National Association of Broadcasters, along with multiple broadcast companies, who have been outspoken in their support of removing ownership caps for broadcasters.