Pleading guilty to criminal mischief in violation of state law for the purpose of promoting an on-air personality;
Disturbing the peace in violation of state law for the purpose of promoting an on-air personality;
Defacing public property in violation of state law for the purpose of promoting an on air personality;
Falsely causing a public emergency to be reported for the purpose of promoting an on air personality.
On September 3, 2003, FCC Chairman Michael Powell stated on CSPAN that Clear Channel "may have concentrated too much" after Congress enacted the 1996 deregulation law and that "there may be issues associated with that company" which the FCC should consider scrutinizing.
Clear Channel lobbyist Andrew Levin told the LA Times, "We believe they are specious claims and an abuse of the regulatory process...You have to question Ralph Nader's motives: Is he really concerned about our local radio stations or about his own national political aspirations?"
This ignores the fact that Nader was active on these issues long before he began running for office and lots of other people think Clear Channel is the poster child for the dangers of media concentration.
As the LA Times story says:
Emboldened by their success in stalling relaxed media-ownership rules, opponents of consolidation are gearing up a campaign to block some television and radio stations from renewing their licenses by arguing that the broadcasters aren't serving their local communities.Similar efforts have largely failed over the last 20 years as the Federal Communications Commission simplified its license renewal process and lifted public interest requirements that once set aside airtime for educational or public affairs programming.
But the controversy over the FCC's vote on June 2 to ease long-standing limits on media consolidation has energized a coalition of government officials and media watchdog groups...
[Cops said] "We've strayed too far away from the rigorous licensing process that we used to have," Copps said. "Now, unless you're a wife beater or a child molester or something like that, you can pretty much count on getting your license by just filing some papers."
Other media watchdog groups are preparing similar challenges against stations in North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida, where a next wave of FCC licenses come up for renewal in December. Copps said he would hold his first hearing in late October in North Carolina.
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