ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mel Karmazin, president and chief executive officer of Viacom Inc., and Jim Goodmon, president and CEO of Capitol Broadcasting Co., testified before the Senate Commerce Committee yesterday. The two disagreed on whether a cap limiting the number of television stations one company can own should be lifted.
New FCC regulations
might affect Hawaii
A June 2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission could determine whether Indiana-based Emmis Communications Corp. can retain ownership of KHON and KGMB, two of Hawaii's top-rated television stations. Current rules require Emmis to sell one of the two.
The vote also could determine whether Gannett Co., which owns the Honolulu Advertiser, and other large media companies can acquire broadcast stations in markets where they already own daily newspapers. The 1975 newspaper-broadcast cross ownership ban prohibits all but pre-existing arrangements of that type.
Proposed changes to media ownership laws distributed to the five commissioners this week have been leaked to the news media, but leave many questions unanswered.
The most immediate question for Honolulu is whether Emmis will be allowed to retain ownership of KHON and KGMB.
"I've read three accounts and I still don't know," said Jeff Smulyan, chairman and chief executive officer of Emmis.
An FCC spokeswoman declined comment.
To Smulyan, the right problem has been identified, but the wrong solution proposed.
"I would like to see a full analysis of this whole business," he said. "I don't see how you can have any analysis of over-the-air television without cable and satellite. It's the elephant on the lawn of the industry."
"I think everybody just needs to understand that it is a very big challenge to be in over-the-air TV today," Smulyan said. "Ninety percent of the viewers are paying a monthly fee to a cable company."
Over-the-air broadcasters receive pennies on the dollar of cable and satellite TV subscription fees, when the stations provide costly programming, he said.
"Local broadcasters are going to have to be able to combine forces to compete," Smulyan said. He believes there should be more duopolies such as the one Emmis has with KHON and KGMB, and Raycom Media has with KHNL and KFVE. A rule change would enable stations to avoid anti-trust restrictions "if it's a directive from Congress that this is the only way to preserve over-the-air broadcasters," he said.
Combining forces is exactly what raises the hackles of public advocacy watchdogs, such as the Honolulu Community-Media Council. The council has opposed the Emmis duopoly in Honolulu.
Such groups say diversity of media ownership ensures diversity of expression for the public.
Sean McLaughlin, HCMC member and president and chief executive officer of Maui's Akaku Community Television, met with FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein in Virginia Monday night and discussed the KHON and KGMB duopoly.
"He indicated that (FCC Chairman Michael) Powell is moving ahead with rules," McLaughlin said.
Smulyan sees local news coverage, charity and other activities as part of the stations' responsibility to the community.
"I learned a long time ago, if a business isn't viable, it's very difficult to have happy employees or shareholders and it's hard to give back a lot to the community," he said.
Democratic commissioners Adelstein and Michael Copps have requested a postponement of the vote to allow the public time to see what the FCC is to vote on. In a statement, the two said such requests are traditionally honored under long-time commission practices.
Kathleen Abernathy, one of the FCC's three Republican commissioners, issued a statement opposing the delay.
