The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on Thursday (April 22) adopted a new rule on sponsorship identification requirements that would require radio or television stations to disclose when foreign governments or their representatives rent time on their broadcast channels. The new rule is seen as targeting foreign governments that are increasingly trying to promote a certain narrative in the United States, particularly the Chinese Communist Party and Russia.
Under the rules adopted Thursday by the Federal Communications Commission, any radio or television station that sponsors content broadcast by a foreign government or political party must make that clear at the beginning and end of the program.
The rule change increases transparency and ensures that audiences are informed when foreign governments or their representatives use radio and television to persuade the American public, the regulator said in a statement.
Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat and acting chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission, cited examples of Communist China and Russia sponsoring programming in the United States.
The regulator said foreign government entities are increasingly buying airtime on domestic U.S. radio and television stations despite U.S. laws restricting foreign governments and their representatives from directly holding broadcast licenses, and the agency’s rule adopted Thursday updates the commission’s rules on sponsorship identification that have been in place for more than 60 years. Specifically, the order requires disclosure of any entity or person broadcasting through a leased airtime agreement, i.e., a foreign government, a foreign political party, an agent acting on behalf of that entity, or a U.S.-based foreign media outlet based on the definitions of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 and the Communications Act of 1934.
The order also requires radio/TV stations that broadcast foreign government-provided programming under a lease agreement to disclose such information in an “online public inspection filing” with the FCC.
The FCC proposed changes to its rules for foreign government-sponsored programming last October. Then-FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, a Republican, said in September when urging the commission to propose the rule change: “American television viewers and radio listeners have a right to know that a foreign government is behind the programs they consume. Given that some stations have content from countries like China (Communist) and Russia, it is time to update our rules and bring these practices to greater light.”
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