wfn.org | UCC files petition with FCC over networks' refusal of church

[powellb@ucc.org]

United Church of Christ
Barb Powell, press contact
216-736-2175
<powellb@ucc.org>
On the web: <http://www.ucc.org>
UCC filing site: <http://www.accessibleairwaves.org>

For immediate release
Dec. 9, 2004

United Church of Christ files petition with FCC over networks' refusal of
church advertisement

UCC: Ad's rejection denies 'full range of religious expression'

      CLEVELAND -- The United Church of Christ today (Dec. 9) is filing two
petitions with the Federal Communications Commission, asking that two
network owned-and-operated television stations in Miami be denied license
renewals for failing to provide viewers "suitable access" to a full array
of "social, political, esthetic, moral and other ideas and experiences."
      WFOR-TV (a CBS station) and WJVT-TV (an NBC station) -- whose
operating licenses are currently up for FCC review -- are being challenged
because "there is substantial and material question" as to whether the
stations' parent companies, Viacom, Inc., and the General Electric Company,
have operated the stations in the public interest, the petitions state.
      The action stems from a much-publicized decision by both networks to
deny an advertisement that makes clear the church's welcome of diverse,
even marginalized, segments of the population. CBS and NBC have said the
all-inclusive ads are "controversial" and, therefore, amount to "issue
advocacy," something the networks have said they do not allow.
      In a signed statement that accompanies the petition, the Rev. John H.
Thomas, the UCC's general minister and president, said, "The religious,
ethical and moral right of members of UCC churches and other citizens to
have access to diverse pro-gram-ming has been harmed by the refusal of NBC
and CBS to carry [the ad], as well as by their failure to carry
pro-gram-ming reflecting the full range of religious expression in the
United States on their networks and on their owned-and-operated stations."
      Similarly signed complaints from a group of UCC members in south
Florida make the case that those who live in the network stations' viewing
area are being denied a positive message of inclusion.
      "Ensuring that all Americans, especially women and people of color,
have the opportunity to be seen and heard in today's media-saturated
culture is vital to free expression," said the Rev. Robert Chase, director
of the UCC's communication ministry. "It gives voice to God's rich mosaic
and is essential in a full democracy."
      Said Andrew J. Schwartzman, President and CEO of Media Access
Project, "Broadcasters agree to serve the needs of the communities where
they are licensed in exchange for receiving free use of publicly owned
airwaves. That means everyone, not just people their advertisers care
about."
      "The viewing public is harmed when powerful networks can label an ad
'controversial' and refuse to air it. Repeal of the Fairness Doctrine was
supposed to result in the airing of more, not less, 'controversial'
programming," said Angela Campbell, Director of Georgetown University Law
Center's Institute for Public Representation. "It is time for the FCC to
re-examine whether some sort of  public right of access is required under
the Communications Act and the First Amendment."
       Ironically -- long before the current television ad controversy --
the United Church of Christ, through its Office of Communication, Inc. (OC,
Inc.), has been at the forefront of media access issues for more than 40
years. During the civil rights era, the UCC was the first voice to demand
that those holding FCC licenses and authorizations act on behalf of the
public interest and be held accountable as stewards of the public trust.
      Only three months ago, on Sept. 1, 2004, the UCC's Office of
Communication, Inc., filed a petition with the FCC to deny license renewals
of two television stations serving the Washington, D.C., area for failing
to serve the educational needs of children.
      "Who would have guessed that it would one day be our voice that was
silenced?" Chase said. "When CBS and NBC refused to air our commercial
because they considered it 'too controversial,' we found ourselves in the
very position as other groups for whom we have historically been
advocates."
      Gloria Tristani, OC Inc.'s managing director and a former FCC
commissioner (1997-2001), said, "NBC and CBS and their stations must be
accountable to the communities they are licensed to serve.  How can it be
in the public interest for television stations to exclude a church's
message of inclusion?"
      The FCC filing was done on behalf of the United Church of Christ by
lawyers from Media Access Project and the Institute for Public
Representation at Georgetown University.

      # # #