Enforcement Monitor: FCC Finds Six Broadcasters Apparently Liable for Violations of Equal Employment Opportunity Rule

January 2009
In late December 2008, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) released a series of six Notices of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture against broadcasters asserting violations of the FCC’s Equal Employment Opportunity rule (“EEO rule”). In a joint statement appended to each of the six cases, FCC Commissioners Michael J. Copps (now Acting FCC Chairman) and Jonathan S. Adelstein (the “Commissioners”) signaled their strong desire that enforcement of EEO matters be stepped up by the Commission. The Commissioners noted that “Commission enforcement of EEO rules has been inconsistent and, as one consequence, employment in broadcasting does not reflect America.” Specifically, the Commissioners noted that while 251 cases resulted in 86 forfeitures between 1994 and 1997, only 10 cases resulting in 8 forfeitures were released between 2004 and 2007.

A PDF version of this entire article can be found at Enforcement Monitor: FCC Finds Six Broadcasters Apparently Liable for Violations of Equal Employment Opportunity Rule.