Much attention has been paid to KSFY (Sioux Falls, S.D.) anchor Nancy Naeve’s recent on-air rebuke of viewers who complained about the station breaking into regular programming to report on a tornado in the area on May 11. It has been heartening to see that a vast majority of those weighing in on the subject have supported broadcasters putting their public safety commitment above all else.
The video of Naeve is just the latest example of broadcasters being credited for educating the public about staying safe when danger is approaching. Tupelo, Miss. residents have praised WTVA meteorologist Matt Laubhan for saving their lives during a tornado outbreak in April, after his on-air evacuation order to station personnel led many viewers to seek shelter.
Radio and television broadcasters are serious about our roles as “first informers.” We do not take lightly a decision to preempt regular programming with live reporting regarding emergency situations. Broadcasting is very often the first place residents, and many first responders, turn to for information when danger is headed towards a community.
However, the recent order from the FCC on the incentive auction could significantly interfere with television stations’ ability to keep their audiences informed.
The incentive auction order proposes changes to the methodology and software that determines the coverage area of a broadcaster’s signal and the potential elimination of TV translators that could result in millions of viewers being left without access to the local television programming that they currently rely on. As NAB has made clear to the Commission, these proposed changes dramatically alter broadcasters’ coverage areas and the population they serve today. In more densely populated areas where TV stations are located in cities closer together, viewers may be able to receive signals from other nearby broadcasters. That’s an option that may not exist in lesser populated areas where TV stations are farther apart, such as in Sioux Falls. That could be the difference between life and death for some.
The tornado that KSFY reported on that sparked the complaints touched down in Hospers, Iowa – about 70 miles from the station’s base of Sioux Falls. Under the FCC’s proposed signal contour methodology, those residents in the path of the storm might not have seen the lifesaving emergency information KSFY provided. In many areas of the country, particularly rural states, broadcast stations may be unable to reach significant portions of the populations due to terrain or geographic reasons. Translators allow broadcasters to fill in gaps in this coverage by transmitting their signal. Americans should not be put at risk to natural disasters because the translator service they used to watch broadcast TV was not protected by the FCC.
NAB is supportive of a broadcast spectrum incentive auction that is truly voluntary. We believe in a future that is both broadcasting and broadband, a partnership that can be particularly beneficial when it comes to public safety. It appears our friends in the wireless industry believe so as well.
CTIA-The Wireless Association recently tweeted an article about a cellphone alert awakening Charlotte, N.C. residents to an approaching tornado. The alert directed residents to tune into their local broadcast television station for more information. It is a perfect example of how broadband and broadcasting can work hand-in-hand to save lives.
As the FCC proceeds with creating a framework for the incentive auction, it must refrain from instituting rules that jeopardize the pledge broadcasters’ have made to serve their communities during times of need. We take that pledge seriously. We hope the FCC does too.
