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- History of Broadcasting
- History of Broadcasting: Television, 1985-1995
- Fairness Doctrine Repealed
- FCC, October 1985:
- “violates the first Amendment"
- has a “chilling effect” of the discussion of controversial topics
- allows an opening for government officials to influence station content
- 1987: Fairness Doctrine was officially repealed
- Expiration of Fin/Syn Rules
- Fowler’s FCC allowed rules to expire in November 1990
- networks claimed rules were holding them back in global marketplace
- 1993: FCC eliminated most of the rules
- 1995: Fin/Syn rules were repealed
- PTAR similarly repealed in 1995, though stations largely still control prime access hour
- Children’s Television Act
- 1990: required stations provide some educational programming
- 1996: broadcasters agreed with Clinton administration
- minimum of 3 hours per week of educational programming
- restrict advertising per hour
- weekday: no more than 12 minutes
- weekend: no more than 10.5 minutes
- 1992 Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act
- cable rates were rising, and Congress acted to lower cable rates
- imposed new price controls cable operators could charge for basic service: 7.5% over cost
- imposed ownership restrictions on MSO ownerships
- both would be undone by Telecommunications Act 1996
- Synergy
- buzzword of the 1980s and 1990s
- describes the working together of two or more components so that they produce an effect greater than either could alone
- vertical and horizontal integrations
- mergers and acquisitions
- expanding global conglomerates
- cross-media holdings
- cross-promote products
- Mergers
- 1986: General Electric buys RCA for NBC
- 1986: News Corp buys 20th Century Fox and Metromedia group owner to create Fox Broadcasting Company
- 1988: Sony buys Columbia Records from CBS for synergy with CD and Minidisc
- 1989 Sony buys Columbia Pictures Entertainment
- 1990: Warner Communications merges with Time, Inc. to create Time Warner
- 1991: Matsushita Electric buys MCA, including Universal Pictures
- 1994: Viacom buys Blockbuster Video and Paramount Communications
- 1995: Seagram buys MCA
- 1995: Westinghouse buys CBS
- 1995: Disney buys Capital Cities for ABC
- Global Television Industry
- global reach of US TV programming
- “Dallasification” with Baywatch
- Mexico: Televisa, TV Azteca, and Univision
- News Corp merging Sky Channel with British Satellite to create BSkyB
- Factors for New Networks
- a majority still received TV via over-the-air broadcast
- expiring Fin/Syn rules allowed networks to own a stake in their primetime programming
- mergers and synergy brought together station ownership with production divisions, guaranteeing a steady supply of programming
- must-carry rules gave preference for UHF stations to be featured prominently on cable lineup, as opposed to starting a new cable-only networks
- competition for stations led to an affiliation race, especially for Fox stations
- New Networks
- Fox, 1986
- WB, 1995
- UPN, 1995
- The CW, 2006
- My Network TV, 2006
- Fox
- formed from 20th Century Fox
- Metromedia group stations
- UHF affiliates
- creamskimming
- primetime programming only
- audience of young urban men
- niche
- programming
- hip
- irreverant
- obnoxiously satirical
- New Cable Channels
- retransmission consent
- must-carry without compensation
- negotiate retransmission compensation
- large group owners gained additional cable channels in exchange for compensation
- NBC: America’s Talking
- Fox: FX
- ABC: ESPN2
- Cable Channels and MSO ownership
- Comcast
- E! Entertainment Television
- Style
- Golf Channel
- Comcast Sports regional sports networks
- Time Warner
- Cablevision
- AMC
- WE: Women’s Entertainment
- Independent Film Channel
- Madison Square Garden Network
- Direct Broadcast Satellite
- C-band: large, backyard sized satellite receivers
- Ku and Ka: small high-band satellite receivers
- new DBS operators
- Primestar: TCI, GE, and TimeWaner
- DirecTV: Hughes Communications
- DBS would expand after 1985
This outline is based on material from Michele Hilmes, Only Connect: A Cultural History of Broadcasting in the United States. 4th ed. Boston: Cengage, 2014.