FCC to look at restarting data collection on broadcaster diversity
FCC commissioners have unanimously voted to collect input about restarting the collection of equal employment opportunity data belonging to broadcasters after a two-decade stall in doing so, according to an agency proposal unveiled Monday.
Key context: The vote could pave the way for the FCC to resume data collection on media workforce race and gender composition that many civil rights groups have argued is necessary to give the agency a clearer picture of the state of diversity among the media companies falling to the agency’s purview.
The FCC move comes amid heightened government scrutiny of diversity across industry sectors, including tech, media and telecom. Acting FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel last month announced plans to expand the FCC’s diversity advisory group to focus on both the tech and media sectors.
Why the data collection stopped: The FCC paused collecting this employment data in 2001 following court rulings skeptical of how such data was used and its constitutional implications. But the rulings didn’t question the collection of data itself, nor making it publicly available, as the commission now notes in seeking feedback.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) were among those pushing to restart such data collection in recent years, although broadcasters have signaled wariness of new mandates.
In an accompanying statement, Rosenworcel called the proposal “the first full-fledged effort to address this issue in more than a decade and a half” and said that the agency can “hopefully soon” collect the data itself.
What’s next: Parties of all sorts will likely weigh in at the FCC over the upcoming comment period. And if the FCC moves forward, collection of this data could be a precursor to more informed analysis or regulatory actions in the broadcast space — and potentially could play a role in any legal battles surrounding media ownership.
During a recent court fight over FCC media ownership rules, some advocates argued that there was a need for better data regarding how FCC policy changes could affect representation of minority and women owners.
Obtaining such marketplace employment data "will help us develop a better understanding of the landscape of our media workforce, and the failure to collect it has hampered our ability to determine what regulatory actions are necessary to ensure equal employment opportunities,” said Geoffrey Starks, a Democratic commissioner who has long pushed to collect such information.
