With LPFM's Fate On The Line, Gore, Nader Voice Support
The battle rages over the fate of Low Power FM (LPFM). The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has been leaning on Congress to include a rider in an appropriations bill, that would effectively stop the ongoing licensing process, forcing LPFM back into the discussion phase for at least another year, if not longer. While the issue's fate is addressed in Capitol Hill negotiations, voices as diverse as Ralph Nader, Jesse Jackson and John McCain have defended LPFM, and, in his first comments on the issue, Al Gore also registered his support.
Speaking through Deputy National Spokeswoman Devona Dolliole, Al Gore stated exclusively to CMJ that LPFM is an important element that would ensure diversity on the airwaves. A day earlier, Ralph Nader issued a public statement, calling the anti-LPFM rider, "the kind of backroom deal-making in which NAB-style fat-cat lobbyists specialize."
The rider is the work of New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg, a supporter of the NAB's position for more study of LPFM's effects, disregarding the four years the FCC has already spent examining the subject. The fact that the Gregg bill was never discussed on the Senate floor and is now being piggy-backed to an unrelated appropriations bill without debate, has drawn the ire of Democratic congressmen Bob Kerry and House Minority Whip David Bonoir, as well as Republican Senator John McCain, who wrote an angry letter to the Senate Majority regarding Gregg's actions.
"It is supposed to be government by the people, for the people, not by four people," complains Senator Kerry of Gregg's backdoor shenanigans.
The bill will be introduced to the Senate floor sometime next week, with members only given a choice of voting the entire package up or down. With Congress entering it's second week of session beyond the scheduled recess date, and the elections just around the corner, members are anxious to get home and campaign, putting added pressure on them to pass the appropriations bill, and, consequently, Gregg's anti-LPFM rider. In an interview Wednesday, Bonoir told CMJ that the issue "comes down to how firm the White House is willing to be on this."
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