MMTC’S Achievements in 2009
Media and Telecom
We petitioned the FCC to extend the advertising nondiscrimination rule to all platforms, including cable and broadband.
We filed the MMTC Radio Rescue Petition: seventeen proposals to revise outdated and ineffective FCC engineering rules. The proposals would promote diversity, localism, and competition in the broadcast industry generally while bolstering minority and women broadcasters and helping to remedy the present effects of past discriminatory policies.
We engaged in advocacy efforts against performance royalty legislation, and estimated its impact as sufficient to drive a third of minority broadcasters into bankruptcy.
We urged the Commission to reform bidding practices and increase discounts to new entrants in order to restore opportunities for minorities in spectrum auctions.
We urged President Obama to aggressively renew efforts to promote diversity in federal contracting, advertising, emergency services, and education.
We produced an extensive list of legislative recommendations on advancing diversity in the media and telecommunications industries, including restoration of the tax certificate policy, relaxation of the localism and foreign ownership sections of the Communications Act to promote access to capital; an amendment to the FTC Act to prohibit racial discrimination in advertising placement and terms, and comprehensive oversight of the FCC and Executive Branch to ensure civil rights objectives are achieved.
We collaborated with Professors Cathy Sandoval and Allen Hammond of the Santa Clara University School of Law in Minority Commercial Radio Ownership (October 2009), documenting a 9% steady decline in minority radio ownership since 2007.
Broadband Entrepreneurship
We spearheaded the formation of the Broadband Opportunity Coalition (BBOC), a group of six of the nation’s leading civil rights organizations that addresses broadband literacy, entrepreneurship and adoption, and served as its General Counsel.
As part of the National Broadband Plan proceedings, we successfully urged the Commission to conduct staff workshops and broadband field hearings focused largely on the issue of minority entrepreneurship. In several sets of comments, staff workshops, and field hearings, we sought high priority for service for Tribal Lands and communities affected by credit redlining and other forms of discrimination, ensuring attractive and affordable service plans and equipment, and providing significant opportunities for minority businesses to participate in the execution of the National Broadband Plan.
We united 35 national organizations and 13 MBEs, the largest civil rights coalition ever assembled in a telecommunications policy proceeding, to urge the Commerce and Agriculture Departments to use the $7.2 billion in broadband stimulus funds to promote service to people of color through opportunities for minority business enterprises.
We developed “Best Practices for Engaging Minority Business Entities” for NTIA and RUS to use throughout the stimulus grant process. The best practices are modeled after the Maryland and California Public Service Commission’s memoranda of understanding framework for diverse supplier programs. We also published a list of minority broadband subcontractors, encouraging companies and municipalities filing applications for broadband deployment, computer centers, adoption, and mapping to consider these companies as subcontractors or partners.
Broadcast Station Sales, Acquisitions, and Training
MMTC Media Brokers is the only not-for-profit, full service media brokerage in the United States dedicated to increasing minority ownership of telecommunications facilities. Since 1997, MMTC has represented a variety of buyers and sellers of communications facilities. MMTC Media Brokers is the 15th largest of the nation’s 60 media brokerages, having participated in transactions valued at nearly $1.7 billion.
In January 2009, MMTC acquired its first radio station – WLCC(AM), Tampa, which was donated to MMTC by Adam Lindemann. Clear Channel Communications has announced the donation of four more radio stations to MMTC, which will use all of the stations for training of entrepreneurs, managers, and sales executives.
Fellowship Programs
Founded in 1997 and named after the United Church of Christ attorney who pioneered civil rights practice before the FCC, the Earle K. Moore Fellowship Program prepares lawyers and law students for careers in communications law. In December 2006, MMTC created the John W. Jones Fellowship Program, named after the late General Counsel of Radio One, Inc., who devoted his life to minority media entrepreneurship.
Annual Access to Capital Conference
In July 2009, we convened our seventh annual MMTC Access to Capital and Telecom Policy Conference. The Conference has become the largest minority media and telecom financial forum in the nation, attracting about 350 entrepreneurs, bankers and investors, as well as legislators and FCC commissioners.
Honoring Those Who Serve
Every year since 1997, MMTC has inducted distinguished industry and public interest leaders into the MMTC Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame inductees for 2009 were Bruce Chatman, Adam Lindemann, Jose R. Mas, Joseph Waz, and Lauren Williams. In addition, MMTC conferred its Extraordinary Service Award on its Section 307(b) Task Force: Parul Desai, Erin Dozier, Scott Goodwin, Frank Jazzo, Mark Lipp, Phil Marchesiello, Frank McCoy, Jack Mullaney, David O’Neil, Benjamin Perez, Julian Shepard, Melodie Virtue, Howard Weiss, and Scott Woodworth; a Distinguished Pro Bono Award on Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP; and its Excellence in Financial Services Award to Opportunity Capital Partners. MMTC presented its highest honor, the Everett C. Parker Lifetime Achievement Award, to FCC Commissioner Michael J. Copps.
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