Warner introduces spectrum auction bill

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) has introduced an incentive auction bill to free up wireless spectrum. S.415 would authorize payments to broadcasters who voluntarily give up spectrum, but also would require the Federal Communications Commission to "establish a maximum revenue sharing threshold applicable to all licensees within any auction."

"Red-state rural stations" may be hit hardest by conservative House CPB funding cut

Small television and radio stations serving rural, "politically red areas" in California and other states would endure the biggest impact loss of federal funding, reports the San Francisco Chronicle today (Feb. 21), as those stations often rely more heavily on that support. Example: Last weekend, Rep. Wally Herger voted in favor of the GOP's Continuing Resolution, which zeroed out CPB funding. Voters in conservative Yuba County have sent him to the House for 13 terms. But their local station, KIXE in Redding, "could be devastated" if those cuts pass the Senate, the paper said. The local unemployment rate is 16 percent, so member donations often can be hard to come by. "The victim from this cut will be all of the red-state rural stations," said Phil Smith, KIXE g.m. "I told Congressman Herger, 'You're going to be wiping out all of your friends with this.' "