1. United States
2. Ind.
3. Letter

PETITION TO THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS For the Repeal of Media Ownership Provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996   PREAMBLE We, the undersigned citizens of the United States, respectfully petition the United States Congress to repeal the media ownership deregulation provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, specifically those amendments to Sections 202 and 601 of the Communications Act of 1934 that eliminated or weakened broadcast ownership limits, cross-ownership rules, and concentration safeguards. We submit this petition not in opposition to free enterprise, but in defense of the foundational democratic principle that a free press requires diverse, independent, and competitive media ownership. STATEMENT OF GRIEVANCE Prior to 1996, federal law restricted a single entity from owning more than 40 radio stations nationally and imposed meaningful limits on television station ownership. The Telecommunications Act of 1996, signed into law on February 8, 1996, eliminated the national cap on radio station ownership entirely and substantially relaxed television ownership limits. In the years that followed, the consequences of this deregulation became clear and severe. The radio industry consolidated from approximately 5,100 owners to fewer than 1,200 within a decade. A single company, Clear Channel Communications (now iHeartMedia), grew from 40 stations to over 1,200. In television, Sinclair Broadcast Group expanded to operate or service nearly 200 stations reaching approximately 40 percent of American households. Across print, broadcast, and digital media, six corporations came to control the vast majority of what Americans read, watch, and hear. This level of concentration was precisely the outcome that decades of prior ownership regulation was designed to prevent. The 1996 Act did not merely update rules for a changing marketplace; it dismantled the structural protections that ensured the American public had access to a plurality of voices, perspectives, and editorial judgments. HARMS TO THE PUBLIC INTEREST Erosion of Local Journalism. Media consolidation has led to the closure of local newsrooms, the elimination of investigative reporting staff, and the replacement of locally produced news with centrally distributed content. Communities across the country have lost the independent reporting that holds local government, law enforcement, and industry accountable. Reduction of Viewpoint Diversity. When a small number of corporations control a disproportionate share of media outlets, editorial decisions are concentrated in fewer hands. This reduces the range of perspectives available to the public on matters of civic importance, weakening the informed citizenry on which democratic self-governance depends. Barriers to Market Entry. Dominant media conglomerates leverage economies of scale, cross-platform bundling, and advertising market power to create barriers that independent and emerging media operators cannot overcome. This suppresses competition and innovation. Homogenization of Content. Consolidated ownership incentivizes cost-reduction through standardized programming, shared content across markets, and the prioritization of revenue-generating content over public-interest journalism. The result is a media landscape that serves shareholders more reliably than it serves citizens. Distortion of Political Discourse. Concentrated media ownership creates outsized influence over public opinion and political outcomes. When a single corporate parent can dictate editorial positions across hundreds of local stations, the appearance of independent local journalism becomes a vehicle for centralized messaging. SPECIFIC PROVISIONS TARGETED FOR REPEAL The petitioners call for the repeal or substantive reversal of the following provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and subsequent FCC rulemakings undertaken pursuant to the Act: Section 202(a)—National Radio Ownership. Repeal the elimination of the national cap on radio station ownership. Reinstate a meaningful national limit that prevents any single entity from controlling a dominant share of the national radio market. Section 202(b)—Local Radio Ownership. Restore stricter local market ownership limits that prevent a single entity from owning a disproportionate number of stations within a single designated market area. Section 202(c)—Television Ownership. Reverse the increase of the national television audience reach cap and any subsequent increases above the original pre-1996 limits. Eliminate the UHF discount and comparable regulatory mechanisms that allow conglomerates to exceed stated caps through technical loopholes. Section 202(d)—Cross-Ownership. Restore the prohibition on cross-ownership of broadcast stations and newspapers within the same market, ensuring that no single entity controls both print and broadcast outlets serving the same community. Section 202(h)—Periodic Review. Reform the biennial review process, which has been used as a mechanism for further deregulation, to instead require the FCC to evaluate whether ownership limits remain sufficient to protect viewpoint diversity, localism, and competition—and to strengthen them where they do not. REQUESTED RELIEF The petitioners respectfully request that Congress take the following actions: First, enact legislation repealing the media ownership deregulation provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, as identified above. Second, reinstate national and local ownership caps for radio and television broadcast licenses at levels that meaningfully prevent monopolistic concentration. Third, direct the Federal Communications Commission to conduct a comprehensive review of current media ownership structures and to implement divestiture timelines for entities that exceed reinstated limits. Fourth, establish statutory protections for local journalism, including requirements that broadcast licensees maintain locally staffed newsrooms as a condition of license renewal. Fifth, reform the FCC’s periodic review process to mandate that ownership rules be evaluated against measurable standards for viewpoint diversity, local coverage, and competitive market conditions. CONSTITUTIONAL AND DEMOCRATIC FOUNDATION The First Amendment’s guarantee of a free press was never intended to protect the right of a handful of corporations to dominate the channels of public communication. To the contrary, the Supreme Court has recognized that the government has a compelling interest in promoting the widest possible dissemination of information from diverse and antagonistic sources. The current media monopoly is not a product of market forces alone; it is a direct and foreseeable consequence of the legislative choices made in 1996. Those choices can and should be reversed.   WHEREFORE, the undersigned citizens petition the United States Congress to act with urgency to restore the structural safeguards necessary for a diverse, competitive, and democratically accountable media landscape.