FCC Weighs Comments in Latest Broadcast Ownership Review

The current review may be more consequential than past cycles.

FCC Weighs Comments in Latest Broadcast Ownership Review
Photo of Danielle Burt, a partner in the telecommunications, media and technology practice at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius

WASHINGTON, Jan. 27, 2026 – As the Federal Communications Commission reviews reply comments in its latest quadrennial broadcast ownership proceeding, legal experts say this cycle stands out from past reviews.

Danielle Burt, a partner at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, said the review is unfolding against the backdrop of multiple media ownership proceedings at the FCC, and the Eighth Circuit’s July decision in Zimmer Radio v. FCC, which ended the FCC’s long-standing “top-four” rule and affirmed Section 202(h) of the 1996 Telecom Act a deregulatory mandate.

Burt said the current review could present an opening for the FCC to reconsider its broadcast ownership rules more broadly.

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