You Have Twp Options… Or Do You?

By Ken and Kelly Orchard

Well here we are, the proverbial "fly on the wall" of our fictitious radio station’s conference room. We are attending the Monday morning sales meeting and the station manager is telling his account executives the secret to great sales calls is to give them two options.

At first you tell the client all about the station cluster and the five formats and the audience they reach. Then you give these client two options. The first option is the high price for all five stations. The number two option is the lowest price and then you close them somewhere in between.

So as the fly on the wall, I had myself a giggle about this approach. And thought to myself I would like to give this station manager two real options.

Let us start the story all over again.

Its Monday, 9 AM, you’re the station manager and you have started your sales meeting. Sales are down and you need to get your account executives motivated. Oh, by the way…payroll is due on Friday and collections are extremely sluggish! Oh no!

Here are my two realistic "options": Number One: Its 9:05 AM. A disgruntled, former employee has just walked in the lobby and wants to see the Public File of one of your five stations. Although he hasn’t disclosed the reason he is there, and is by law not required to do, he wishes to view how the stations have served the community since 1997. Additionally, since he had previously sent a letter of complaint to the station (for a myriad of reasons) he now wants to be assured that his letter actually got posted in the Public File.

The confused receptionist comes into the conference room to let the manager know that there is a person in the front lobby asking about something called a "public file". The manager’s face turns white as a ghost and he tells the receptionist to inform this visitor to have a seat and wait, as he is in a meeting. "But don’t tell him that this meeting is two hours long, hopefully he’ll just go away."

Now, if option one wasn’t bad enough for this general manager (we’ll address the legal ramifications later in this column), lets move on to option number two.

An FCC Inspector walks into the lobby at 9:30, and wants to perform a full inspection of all five stations, beginning with the Public Files.

This not so fictitious general manager is not going to be having a very good Monday. Not only are sales sluggish and he’s getting heat from the corporate Head Office to light a fire under his sales staff, now he’s got a disgruntled former employee and the FCC in his front lobby.

He soon realizes that he neglected to train his current staff on the importance of FCC regulation and his poor receptionist has no idea about the Public File, and cannot show it to the FCC. She also doesn’t realize how important the inspector is, and that the station is now in violation of FCC rules. Oops!

This may sound like a story we made up to catch your attention, but it is actually a true story repeated over and over again in over twenty-five FCC Enforcement Bureaus’ across the United States.

The activity of the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau is increasing. As the new FCC Chairman continues to settle in to his new position, there has been a lot of agreement among broadcasting experts about the changes to the commission.

"The forecast is for more enforcement," prints the M Street Journal in May. "More fines for peeling paint on towers, EAS violations, unauthorized transfer of control…[and] more of them".

The M Street quotes a ‘veteran Washington communications attorney’, "Now that there’s a separate Enforcement Bureau, it’s going to make sure and justify its existence…"

As demonstrated earlier, broadcasters really have no options. Maintain FCC Compliance, or take a chance on the FCC showing up, and face the consequences. Don’t be surprised! When you least expect it, somebody will walk up to you and say, "I’d like to see your Public File".

As reported in BE Radio Magazine, "…What will set [FCC Chairman] Powell apart from his predecessor are his comments about the FCC’s activity to accelerate decision making and step up enforcement."

Time and time again, the key word is "enforcement". When broadcasters log on to the FCC website, they can easily track the activities of the Enforcement Bureau. The level of inspections has increased substantially just in the last few months.

Our work with the California Broadcasters Association has put us in contact with the three FCC Enforcement Offices located here in California. The inspectors continue to inform us about their visits to stations and the problems they are finding out there.

Whether your cluster of stations is owned by one of the biggest groups, a small one, or you are still the sole proprietor; you should be concentrating on FCC Compliance.

Of course, Orchard Media Services handles the FCC Compliance for many stations, and our primary job is assisting these groups with the organization of their Public Files. After all, as we have stated and quoted FCC officials time and again, the Public File is the very first thing the FCC inspector will ask to see when they come to inspect your station.

We have also taken the liberty to print some of the frequently asked questions provided on the FCC’s website regarding FCC inspections:

Q: FCC Agents arrived to inspect the radio at my office. My boss isn't here. Should I call my boss to be present for the inspection?

A: You may call your boss if you wish. If the company is open for business, however, the inspection should be permitted regardless of whether your boss is present. This is not an acceptable reason to delay an inspection.

Q: My boss didn't tell me anyone would come by to inspect our radio so I don't have to let the FCC inspectors in, right?

A: Wrong. The licensee is responsible for knowing the rules and those include the FCC's right to inspect. Because the employer is responsible for the acts of the employee, it is up to the licensee-employer to inform its staff as to its responsibilities concerning the operation of the radio station.

Q: Can I have my attorney present during the inspection? Can I make the agent wait to start the inspection until my attorney is present?

A: You may have your attorney present during the inspection; however, there is no constitutional right to have your attorney present. Therefore, you may not make the agent wait until your attorney arrives. Making the agent wait for your attorney conflicts with the "unnecessary delay" requirement discussed earlier.

We recently found a handwritten letter from a receptionist to her general manager about an unannounced visitor who came to the station and wanted to see the Public File. It is quite obvious in this letter to her boss, that she not only didn’t know where to find the Public File, but wasn’t aware of the procedure on how to properly handle someone coming in to inquire about the Public File.

The FCC, Washington attorneys and corporate headquarters talk about the importance of FCC Compliance. But, are the managers given enough latitude and resources to insure that compliance is being met? The jury is still out on that.

So, while you are walking in to your Monday morning sales meeting this week, think about the options that have been laid out in front of you. How confident are you about your station’s compliance?