Federal Communications Commission
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| State level | Federal authority | ||
| Position of the authority | Independent authorities | ||
| Supervisory authority (s) | United States Department of Commerce ( Department of Commerce ) | ||
| Consist | since June 19, 1934 | ||
| Headquarters | Washington, DC | ||
| Authority management | Ajit Pai , Chairman | ||
| Employee | 1,899 | ||
| Website | www.fcc.gov | ||
The Federal Communications Commission ( FCC ) is one of the United States' independent agencies in Washington, DC , created by Congress . It regulates the communication channels broadcast, satellite and cable. The FCC is responsible for various radio services ( amateur radio , etc.) as well as the licensing authority for communication devices such as radios , televisions and computers . It checks the devices for compatibility with their own and other standards (e.g. from ISA , ISO or ITU ).
The jurisdiction includes the 50 states of the USA , the District of Columbia and US military bases. Under different presidents, the FCC fulfilled its regulatory and anti-trust obligations. The five members of the FCC ("Commissioners") are appointed for five years by the US President and must be confirmed by the Senate . Only three of the commissioners can belong to the same political party.
history
The commission was established by the Communications Act , a US federal act of 1934, and served as the regulator from its inception . It initially granted broadcasting licenses for radio stations . The frequency spectrum for broadcasting both radio and television in the USA was limited from the start. Soon after the advent of radio in the 1920s, the FCC stepped in as the state regulatory authority to manage and technically coordinate the large number of stations that were created.
With the increasing market orientation of the 1980s, however, the FCC gave up its market-restrictive powers.
Under President George W. Bush , the Broadcast Decency Enforcement Act was passed in 2005 that deregulated the radio markets. Since then, the FCC has monitored compliance with content standards more than the ownership structure of the station owners.
tasks
Regulation of HF radio
The main role of the FCC is to coordinate RF emissions in any mode in the United States. It grants broadcasting licenses for terrestrial radio and television in the United States. The FCC coordinated and regulated the broadcasting of the stations on the frequency bands VHF, medium wave and short wave , as well as in the UHF and VHF television band . She is also responsible for the licensing of all fixed and mobile radio services in the USA. This does not include broadcasts via satellite and on state cable networks.
documentation
The FCC maintains a publicly accessible database on all public broadcasting facilities (radio stations, television stations, etc.) in the USA. There you can find information about the height and year of construction of the towers that broadcast radio programs.
Technical testing of devices
The FCC's Office of Engineering and Technology also issues identification numbers for devices that use the radio frequency range . Devices without this number are not allowed to be sold or imported in the USA. These numbers can be found on computer hardware in particular and allow the product and thus the manufacturer to be clearly identified.
Controversy
censorship
The FCC is also responsible for imposing penalties for sending words classified as obscene, in particular “ Fuck ”, “Shit”, “Piss”, “Cunt”, “Cocksucker”, “Motherfucker” and “Tits” (cf. Seven dirty words ”). Penalties of up to $ 325,000 can be imposed if such violations are reported and not dismissed by the FCC . Critics therefore accuse the FCC of excessive censorship efforts because no difference is made in terms of the size and thus solvency of the respective broadcaster, which could have fatal effects on smaller radio stations such as college radios.
In 2010, an appeals court in New York ruled that the rules introduced by the FCC were "of a constitutional indeterminacy" and violated freedom of expression . As early as 2006, a court ruled in the first instance that the applicable censorship rules had “a crippling effect” on the design of radio programs . Previously, such words had to be overlaid with an electronic beep.
The agency announced that it would review the court's decision, leaving it to appeal to the Supreme Court .
Free radio
In the USA, a lively community radio scene arose in the 1980s , small local “ pirate stations ” which, under the motto “get your radio free - throw out the FCC”, turned against the FCC's license monopoly. In the dispute with the FCC, Free Radio Berkley and San Francisco Liberation Radio were two stations that, in contrast to the FCC, took the view that the RF range is a commons and should be available to every citizen without an FCC license to express their opinion to be able to express. Free Radio Berkley won a longstanding legal battle against the FCC for the right to broadcast. In January 2011 the Community Radio Act was passed, which resulted in a tender for 1000 new licenses for low power (less than 100 watts) VHF community radio. This was announced in July 2013. The licenses could be applied for in October 2013 in an application window of 14 days.
Prioritization of certain data packets
In April 2014 it was announced that the FCC wants to soften net neutrality in the USA. In the future, Internet providers should be allowed to forward certain data for a fee faster than the data of non-paying persons and companies. In February 2015, however, the FCC passed new rules on net neutrality , which confirmed net neutrality.
The FCC chairman Ajit Pai , who was appointed by Donald Trump in 2017, is considered an opponent of net neutrality. In a speech on February 26, 2017, he announced that he wanted to soften net neutrality in the USA and, if necessary, abolish it.
Regulatory Authority for Europe
There is no authority like the FCC in Europe. Instead, framework agreements between the European Commission and the national regulatory authorities that are organized in the European Regulators Group (ERG) regulate standards in Europe.
Allusions and parodies
The FCC, especially its often exaggerated censorship, is often parodied in television series and films:
- Cosmo and Wanda - When elves help : In the episode "Timmys Radio Show", the main character, ten-year-old Timmy Turner, founds a radio station with the help of his magic godparents. He wants to achieve that all parents spend the holidays with their children. As a result, the babysitter Vicky becomes unemployed and tracks down Timmy. In his radio station she describes the parents as morons . She was then arrested by the FCC on the grounds that you can only say idiot on television .
- Family Guy : In the episode "PTV", the FCC censors all obscene scenes in all series after an incident at the Emmy Awards. As a result, Peter Griffin founds his own station, but it is also censored. This censorship later spread to real life in his hometown of Quahog.
- The Simpsons : In the episode "The Bad Word", the newscaster Kent Brockman is fired after cursing on a live broadcast and the station almost went bankrupt due to a heavy penalty from the FCC. The Simpsons then take him in and he tells daughter Lisa that the broadcaster Fox voluntarily pays a lot of money to broadcast obscene programs without getting into trouble with the FCC.
- Futurama : In the episode "The Leela-Laune-Zapp" the earth is attacked by a censorship satellite called V-Giny , which, as it turns out in the course of the episode, comes from the collision of a US Air Force satellite with one top secret satellite of the FCC originated.
- iCarly : In the episode "Gibby Shocks the World" the crew of the web show iCarly is invited to Jimmy Fallon's Late Night Show . After one of the iCarlys slipped down the pants in front of the camera, the NCC fined the youths $ 500,000. The NCC is a parody of the FCC.
- South Park: The film - bigger, longer, uncut : In this film, a computer chip is implanted in one of the protagonists, Eric Cartman, to prevent him from escaping. This chip is a reference to the V-Chip that is built into televisions to prevent children from watching films or series that have been rated as adult.
- Eric Idle wrote and sang an entire song about censorship with his FCC song. In this song he uses parody techniques to treat the FCC and high-ranking members from the tenure of former US President George W. Bush .
- Jimmy Kimmel Live : Excerpts from other programs are shown every week, in which parts are censored, although this is not necessary. This creates the impression that the person has used a word that is classified as obscene.
- In his song "Without me", the American rapper Eminem sarcastically mentions the FCC in connection with the function of a pacemaker.
literature
- John J. Patrick, Richard M. Pious, Donald A. Ritchie: The Oxford Guide to the United States Government. Oxford University Press, New York 2001, ISBN 978-0-19-514273-0 , p. 232 (= Federal Election Commission ).
Web links
- Official website (English)
- FCC-ID service that finds the device information for a given ID
Individual evidence
- ↑ https://www.fcc.gov/about/leadership/ajit-pai?qt-leadership_tabs=0#qt-leadership_tabs
- ↑ a b Federal Agency for Civic Education: bpb.de - Dossier USA - Media - Power of Corporations. In: www.bpb.de. Retrieved December 9, 2016 .
- ↑ wireless2.fcc.gov
- ↑ FCC indecency rule struck down by appeals court, "Los Angeles Times, July 13, 2010
- ↑ http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-fcc-indecency-20100714,0,5995911.story
- ↑ Let's say fuck again! Spiegel Online from July 14, 2010
- ↑ http://www.freeradio.org/index.php?pagename=frb/about.html
- ↑ see also English Wikipedia
- ↑ Archive link ( Memento of the original from April 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Fox report
- ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from July 28, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Report plan A.
- ↑ http://www.democracynow.org/2013/6/20/in_historic_victory_for_community_radio Report Democracy Now
- ↑ Johannes Kuhn: America buries the net neutrality . In: Süddeutsche Zeitung, April 24, 2014, accessed on April 24, 2014: "The FCC therefore wants to allow Internet providers in the future to charge for the prioritization of data packets."
- ↑ ec.europa.eu
