Fright Night, Fight Night

By David Hatch

(Editor’s note: David Hatch’s ‘Wired In Washington’ column appears on alternate Wednesdays in CongressDailyAM. The below column was first published on October 31. Hatch regularly covers telecommunications for National Journal's Technology Daily, and is a contributing editor to CongressDaily and National Journal magazine.)

Get ready to rumble. In communications circles, Washington showdowns don't get much bigger or potentially uglier than the one building now over media ownership.

If the looming battle between Congress and the FCC were a heavyweight fight, it would rival the 1975 "Thrilla in Manila" between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier or the 1997 "Bite Fight" in which Mike Tyson chomped off part of Evander Holyfield's ear.

With the thresholds governing ownership of broadcast properties and newspapers on the line, some very powerful lawmakers have drawn a proverbial line in the sand that FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has been dared not to cross.

Fighting to preserve the status quo is the eclectic tag team of Democratic Sens. Joseph Biden of Delaware, Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, Bill Nelson of Florida and Barack Obama of Illinois, as well as House Energy and Commerce Chairman John Dingell, Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee Chairman Edward Markey of Massachusetts and FCC Commissioners Jonathan Adelstein and Michael Copps, among others, backed by Republican Sens. Trent Lott of Mississippi and Olympia Snowe of Maine. Team "There's Nothing Original on the Dial" is endorsed by an array of watchdogs.

Their opponents: the ever-resilient Martin, a Republican, who is likely to be paired with FCC Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate and perhaps FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell, both Republicans, along with some business-friendly lawmakers who've yet to show their faces.

Supporters of Team "Give Corporate America a Break" include the National Association of Broadcasters and the Newspaper Association of America, which represent media companies that stand to benefit from proposed changes.

For Martin, memories of 2003, when the Republican-led FCC triggered a harsh congressional backlash for approving a substantial relaxation of the ownership rules along party lines, are ever present.

As a commissioner then, he supported the modifications, which he now distances himself.

The chairman's critics say he's rushing to weaken the rules, in limbo since 2004 when an appeals court sent most of the 2003 changes back to the FCC for further review. Curiously, Copps had the opposite complaint last year -- that the chairman was dragging his feet on the review, though he raised the concern when the FCC was evenly split between Democrats and Republicans.

This bout will test the mettle of saber-rattling Democrats who have displayed more bluster than action on communications matters since retaking Congress.

And it could determine the legacy of an FCC chief who walks a political tightrope as he tries to delicately push a deregulatory agenda without enraging his overseers.

What makes this showdown so fun to watch, from a safe distance, is that a clear victor is likely to emerge.

Of course, Martin might broker a last-minute, complex deal that gives everybody a partial victory -- he's done so in the past -- causing the congressional fury to dissipate.

For those keeping score, here's a pocket guide:

Media Ownership Vote: Irate Lawmakers ( ) Martin ( )

Martin backs a Dec. 18 vote on revised media ownership rules, but lawmakers want to push it back several months.

Related Proceedings: Irate Lawmakers ( ) Martin ( )

The chairman wants the FCC to complete its pending review of localism -- i.e., broadcaster commitments to locally originated content -- on a simultaneous track, but lawmakers want this and other related proceedings tackled first.

Cross-Ownership Ban: Irate Lawmakers ( ) Martin ( )

Martin has long supported loosening the ban on a single entity owning a newspaper and broadcast outlet in the same market. Lawmakers fearful of increased consolidation want it retained.

Radio Threshold: Irate Lawmakers ( ) Martin ( )

In a bow to radio conglomerate Clear Channel Communications, Martin might seek to raise from eight to 10 the number of radio stations a single entity can own in market, a relaxation opposed by many lawmakers.

Duopolies: Irate Lawmakers ( ) Martin ( )

Martin appears to support extending the duopoly rules, which now permit common ownership of two stations in large markets, to small- and medium-sized cities, but lawmakers are again opposed.

Paul Gallant, a communications analyst with the Stanford Washington Research Group, thinks it's too early to declare full-scale war. "If the chairman and the Republicans put forward a moderate proposal with some appealing aspects for Democrats, it's far from clear there will be a gigantic clash on this issue," he said.

Yet several shots already have been fired. Martin's Oct. 25 announcement of today's scheduled hearing on localism drew unusually harsh barbs from the FCC's Democrats, who accused him of undermining the public with the last-minute scheduling. One can only imagine the chills when they pass in the hallways these days.

While Martin is known for his political savvy, his choice of Halloween for such a crucial hearing has some agency watchers scratching their heads and others exuberant about the mischievous opportunities.

"You have a hearing on Halloween, you can expect people to come in costume," said Craig Aaron, spokesman for Free Press, one of several groups to hold a rally outside agency headquarters this morning.

Safe bets are on masks of Harry Potter, who many observers claim Martin resembles.