NAB Sets Sale for Capitol Hill

[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
Broadcasters are descending on Washington this week -- not to cover the pressing issues of the day, but to lobby lawmakers on their priorities which include a bill requiring satellite radio to be a national-only service, retransmission consent and indecency. The broadcasters -- who will be meeting individually with their Congress folk today -- also got what is in effect an issue order form so that they can record their lobbying progress on key issues, with places to check off the legislator's response: "Supports Our Position," "Opposes Our Position," "Has No Position," "Not Discussed." There will even be an incentive bonus for broadcasters who return the forms: Two names will be drawn at random from those and each will get $100. The seven "color-coded" issues for which Rehr and NAB are looking to get a legislative check-off: 1) Supports broadcasters on down conversion, multicasting, and treating stations the same regarding cable carriage; 2) "Will co-sponsor H.R. 998 (the satellite radio bill); 3) Will give media campaign time to develop before legislating indecency; 4) Will allow industry time to work on audio broadcast flag solution; 5) Will protect digital television content with a broadcast flag; 6) Will oppose a performance right tax on local broadcasters; 7) Understands local broadcasters’ community service." Eventually all that information will be collected in books by state, then put into a database.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6311574?display=Breaking+News...
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