House Defeats Media Deregulation Plan
By a vote of 400 - 21, the House today prevented the implementation of the media deregulation plan passed by the FCC on June 2.
The FCC voted to allow single companies to own TV stations reaching 45 percent of U.S. households. The House measure would return the cap to 35 percent.
``It's extremely rare to be able to reverse a regulatory decision that gives away the store to the big boys,'' said Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., chief sponsor of the provision to derail the FCC change.
The fight now moves to the Senate, where several lawmakers of both parties want to include a similar provision in their version of the spending bill. Broader rollback efforts also are being considered.
Grass roots efforts work.
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