As president of the United States, Donald Trump threatened the federally issued licenses of television broadcast outlets that displeased him. Now, in 2024, as a presidential candidate, Donald Trump has reasserted that broadcasters who displease him should lose their federal airwave licenses. A September 2023 post on Truth Social accused NBC of “Country Threatening Treason.” He added, “Why should NBC, or any of the other corrupt & dishonest media companies, be entitled to use the very valuable Airwaves of the USA, FREE?” After the moderators of the ABC presidential debate fact-checked his false statements, he called the network “dishonest” and added them to the target list. Recently, CBS also came in the crosshairs after he did not like an editing decision in a CBS interview with Vice President Kamala Harris. Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel responded, “the First Amendment is a cornerstone of our democracy. The FCC does not and will not revoke licenses for broadcast stations simply because a political candidate disagrees with or dislikes content or coverage.”   However, the ability of future FCCs to stand up to such instructions could be at risk. 

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved and recommended for award an application from Connecticut, allowing the state to request access to more than $9 million to implement its Digital Equity Plan. This funding comes from the $1.44 billion State Digital Equity Capacity Grant Program, one of three Digital Equity Act grant programs created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Connecticut will use the $9,183,114 in funding to implement key digital equity initiatives, including:

• Create an urban and rural Digital Navigator Pilot program
• Develop a digital equity curriculum covering basic digital literacy, online safety, digital citizenship, information literacy and the use of AI tools
• Create a searchable database that identifies and categorizes digital equity resources

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) Commissioner Stuart C. McWhorter announced that the state will award $101.6 million in funding as part of the second round of broadband and digital opportunity grants. These investments will provide last-mile broadband access and digital opportunity programs to more than 97,000 Tennesseans across 75 counties. With this latest grant round, TNECD's total commitment to expanding the state's broadband infrastructure rises to $683 million, with an additional $132.6 million invested in digital opportunity initiatives, connecting more than 700,000 Tennesseans across 280,000 residential and business locations. TNECD’s $34.5 million investment in broadband infrastructure will expand high-speed internet access across 5,241 locations in six counties. Additionally, the department’s $67.1 million investment in digital opportunity grants will promote digital literacy and equip more than 3 million Tennesseans with the skills needed for high-paying virtual jobs across 66 counties.

In a quarterly update to the Monongalia County (WV) Commission, Comcast Compliance Manager Dana Gossert explained the design of a $17.8 million broadband expansion project is expected to be complete in 2024. The project will bring broadband to 2,175 unserved and underserved homes and businesses in all areas of Monongalia County. It’s the result of a public/private partnership announced in June between the county and Comcast through which the commission will provide $5.98 million in American Rescue Plan Act dollars and the Internet service provider will pick up the remaining $11,840,000 in an effort to bring large swaths of the county online. While the aim of the broadband project is to get as many residents up to speed as possible over the next two years, it’s not going to get everyone. To that end, the commission has issued a request for proposals for a second, smaller project looking to fill in the gaps, or, as Commission President Sean Sikora described them, the donut holes.  The commission is putting up $1.25 million in ARPA funds for the effort. Because ARPA dollars must be obligated by the end of the year, the commission is asking for RFP responses by Nov. 13 and intends to award the project on Dec. 11.

Every three years, the U.S. Copyright Office reviews and occasionally recommends expanding legal protections rooted in Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 for circumventing access controls on copyrighted works. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) congratulates the Copyright Office and the Librarian of Congress on recently completing this important rulemaking, which can help prevent copyright law from getting in the way of vehicle repair, film studies classes, and a plethora of other important activities. We also support the Librarian of Congress’ conclusion that there are issues involving copyright-protected technology that “may require a broader solution” beyond this process. NTIA’s 2024 consultation letter highlights three areas of concern about the current rulemaking process:

• Lack of clarity about third-party assistance in light of the anti-trafficking provisions (from which the rulemaking cannot offer an exemption);
• The often-granular scope of exemptions granted under the process; and
• The ambiguity about what a “technological protection measure” and method of circumvention entail.