Guest is former senator gordon smith who is president and ceo of the National Association of broadcasters. We certainly appreciate you coming into the studio for this interview. Always a pleasure. Thank you for having me. In this age of coronavirus, how has this affected broadcasters . In many ways it has affected us. I think perhaps it is unfortunate, but it seems the United States and our citizens become aware of broadcasting and its indispensable, in irreplaceable role, in the firmament of american life, when there are natural or other catastrophes and calamities that befall us. Because it is then that the architecture of broadcasting, a source to everybody and agreed in a geographic area. Without stress on the system, people realize how valuable broadcasting remains. Survey after survey continues to show that broadcasting remains the most important source of journalism. When people just want the facts. You know, the nab, since its founding, in 1923, has had a big tradeshow. Only one other time, i think it was the last year of world war ii, was the show canceled. That has had an impact on us. To do the thing that was in the interest of the health of our exhibitors, our attendees, our participants, we had to cancel that show this year. And that is a great injury for a lot of reasons. So this is this is had a huge impact on us. But americans are turning to broadcasting in very large numbers right now because they want the facts. And they know they will get them on a localized basis by going to broadcast channels. Have you seen an increase in viewership since the crisis began . Absolutely. That is the result of folks staying at home, and teleworking, like we are doing with our nab staff. And people want that local components as well as the national components. Both of which broke casting brings both of which broadcasting brings. They want the facts. They get them from broadcasting like no other source. Lets bring in jonathan he was the editor of communications daily. Hello and please to be here. Senator smith we have spoken before including on the show, but during more normal times. Wanted to ask you, what are the precautions and different steps that your members are taking now whether it is internally, work from home they mentioned at the association. Or changes theyre making and programming and such . Podcasters are also people who live in their local communities broadcasters are also people who live their local communities and they are trying to be good citizens. Our members at abc or cbs or nbc or fox are heeding the warnings coming from the white house and cdc about ways that we can dissipate in reducing the spread of the virus. So they are pulling resources. They are pooling resources and crews who go out in ways that you normally do not expect competitors to be doing. But ways that are lawful and wait very important right now. Because they want to stay on the air. At the heart of every broadcaster beats the heart of a public servant. We are the first informers. We continue to play our role. In a pooled fashion. Many of our studios are teleworking where possible. I noticed al rocher on the today show is broadcasting from his home, along with samantha is doing the same. Al roker. I saw the same on other networks. This is evidence of broadcasters who take seriously their community responsibility. Their local and their National Response ability to be part of the solution and not part of the problem. One thing ive not paid attention to what the interview today which this instant which this interview brought up is employing social distancing. Are a lot of interviews done like this were each person has their own studio . Yes. Like what cspan is doing here and i commend you for that. I miss being at the roundtable with you physically, but we are taking precautions. Internally and actually, to make sure we are part of the solution as they say. But this is happening all over america. And it is keeping your tv sets and radios working. At the same time you should know your broadcasters behind the mic, behind the camera. Could there be technological changes or fundamental changes to broadcast television because of this . It is possible but difficult to predict what this would be. In every crisis of this magnitude, such as 9 11, lessons are learned about precautions that can be taken. Social behaviors, where we are more attuned to staying home when we are sick and coughing into our slave or our jacket. Into our sleeve or jacket. And keeping distance that keeps others safe as well as ourselves. It is in our personal interest as well as our community and National Interest that we take lessons from this. Those in the end will keep us healthier and happier as a people. Senator smith can you talk about the Public Service announcements broadcasters are working on, and airing. What sort of scope are we thinking about what those . If you took the average tv station, how minutes per day . Theres a great deal of focus on this now. In the hopes that it is constructive and informative, educational, and not just frightening to people. We think that is very important. Even before, about a week and a half ago, i said to my staff, lets get up a psa, a Public Service announcement, about fundamental kinds of behaviors that we as broadcasters can remind the American People about. We produce those as, many of your viewers may have seen them already. This is even before we met with the white house. Our networks and myself, to talk about additional things we would do, in coordination with them. And the ad council. So that more types of messaging about social distancing and other good habits, and recovery efforts. These are Public Service announcements that will be produced in the future, for audio and video. And in english and in spanish. So that we are that central clearinghouse for information that will be essential to our people, to their health, our economy, and recovery. Can you tell me about working with other industries at these times . A couple of suggestions i have seen recently, one was from an fcc Emergency Communications and security committee, about broadcasters working with social Media Companies to coordinate the flow of news and sharing of news. Another might be, there were suggestions about not having socalled Television Blackouts during this time. Kenny tell us about that . Of course my member can you tell me about that . Are members on the tv side want to get good value for renting their signals out to other outlets that profit off them. But that sometimes involves tough negotiations. As has been the case whenever theres is a national emergency, broadcasters do not want to see Service Interruptions of any kind. Hopefully, our friends on the cable and satellite side as well will stand down until we get this behind us, and avoid Service Interruptions if at all possible. That is our history of doing that and i have no reason to believe that will not continue. As it relates to social media, unfortunately, social media is an relatively New Invention compared to other forms of communication. But sadly, they really do need what we have, which is solid factual journalism. Social media of late and hopefully not the future, but of late, it has been, where you go, they get fig news, halftruths, false witness, distortions, and outright lies. They seem to spread faster in the society than the coronavirus. So it is important that social media platforms begin coordinating with and working with traditional news outlets like broadcasting and newspapers, for their legitimate journalistic stories and facts. Because of the end of the day these calamities, people just want to the facts. They do not want to be spun. They do not want figure pointing. They want to know, what the problem is, where relief and recovery can be had. And all avenues of escape. An improvement. That is what real journalism provides. I am happy to say i represent an industry that is the central plank of real journalism now. Senator smith, you talk about standing down. Have you seen a hold on some of the issues that the National Association of broadcasters is concerned about . Such as media ownership or sec issues . Well the congress before christmas recess finally settled the stella or the fiveyear debate that goes on and they made it permanent. It needed to be made permanent. It was a law that was 30 years old, renewed every five years, and it became basically an attack on broadcasting by new entrants into telecommunications. But fortunately congress in their wisdom said this is a law that was begun to help a nascent satellite industry compete with cable. 30 years have gone by and now dish has covered all 210 markets. But unfortunately, my provider, at t, does not. They have left out 12 of the, frankly, very vulnerable rural markets where they do not want to serve in places like maine and montana. Even kentucky. I know for example the people in Bowling Green, kentucky, they would like to see the news about mitch mcconnell. Not about chuck schumer. Because they had been able to take distant signals from new york and bring them into the homes of those Bowling Green kentuckians. At a time like a national crisis, like a coronavirus, it is not help people in Bowling Green or missoula, montana, to be getting new york, to be getting local news from l. A. Or new york. They needed to be about their communities. That is why Congress Finally said ok, keep your words, serve all 210 markets. No longer can you import distant signals. We think congress to the right thing. And broadcasters who provide localism by giving American People the news and information they need in a crisis. Let me push about more details talking about broadcasters and the socalled mbpds, the tv operators not having disputes during this time. Is that something broadcasters are committed to . It strikes me that even if not both sides were committed to it, if broadcasters would agree we are going to keep programming going even if we do not come to a new carriage agreement, is that something your industry, your committed to it that there will not be blackouts of this time . I do not speak for each individual company, in the sense of their economic decisions. I know that i have heard on calls with our executive committee and individual members, that they recognize the public responsibility not to have Service Interruptions during this time. But in the end it does take two at the negotiating table. So we hope they mbpd also share that same public spiritedness and will help us to ultimately get fair value but also be highly attuned to the needs of our viewers and listeners. Ok and let me ask about working with social Media Companies. Theres been mentioned there with not just broadcasters but also m. V. P. Visas partly in the role as Internet Service providers. Are there concrete steps your members or your group are taking now to have those lines of communication open so as you say the social media platforms can be getting the factual current news . I think it is in the interest of social media to have xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx i think it is in the interest of social media to have relationships that have economic values but have relationships with the broadcasters and newspapers to get localism. Because they need to up the integrity of their platform because a lot of falsehoods, a lot of rumors and a lot of slander has occurred in ways which spread like a virus, misinformation and fake news. There needs to be a real focus on the value of real journalism. That is still alive in our country. But we need that to begin to migrate into social media, with more earnest effort, that has been the case. There is a bill in congress, i was pleased to see Majority Leader Mitch Mcconnell is on it, that creates a framework, for social platforms, to deal with local content providers, like newspapers and radio and television stations. And we hope that happens. Because i think for the importance of an informed citizenry, it is really important that we find market ways to support good journalism. People just want the facts. Today, if people want to watch something, they wont turn to netflix for news on coronavirus. They go to the broadcast signal. When youre on the radio, if you want news about what is happening in your community, you do not turn down to spotify, you turn to your local am or fm station that is in the business of providing information along with entertainment to keep them informed and improve the quality of life. Let me ask about social distancing. You mentioned some of it at your members and at your organization here in washington. Can you talk more about how that has affected both those constituencies . We saw the nab show postponed. What does mean for you and your members in terms of meetings . Is all virtual . Is anyone meeting physically . Are you yourself going to the office . Anything you like to share about that. We are, as an association, my nab staff, we are teleworking now. We are actually also moving from our Dupont Circle location to down bite Nationals Park, to a new building. To down near Nationals Park, to a new building, in early april. Social distancing and teleworking, it is happening all over. You can tell it by the lack of traffic. You can tell that we are probably going to have to learn a lot of new ways to communicate with distance. And maybe Going Forward into the future this will become more part of american life. Senator smith, go ahead. And when it comes to, for example, the nab show, this was an agonizing decision we made even before there was tremendous insistence by the government. We did cancel a week before it became an avalanche. We did it because of the community we represent. The nab show, exhibitors, our attendees, technology, content providers. This is where we all come together once a year and we make investments. We do business. We acknowledge great progress that has been made. It is a really important piece of american commerce. Even before this virus be set this nation, we had also begun to reform our nab show in a way that was not just a weeklong gathering in las vegas, but it was a yearround digital platform. We also have a new york trade show, the nab new york show. So we are looking at enhancements for that and also having Digital Opportunities for our exhibitors and their customers. And our members to engage with one another, 300 625 days a year, and not just the 365 days a year, not just a nab show. So we are trying to quit a more holistic and modernized system to do business and share informationcontent, technology and education and camaraderie that really is enjoyed by the community of technology in broadcasting. Gordon smith, the show was scheduled to be held in vegas. How many attendees and have you looked at the Economic Impact of that . We are still cap collating impact, peter. Were still calculating the impact. We normally have 100,000 visitors and attendees who come and look at one million square feet of exhibit space. Of course, it is a huge loss. We will do our best to replace that oneweek time with a digital platform that still makes their products available, and information out. And we hope with an enhanced nab show in october, where our attendees can kick the tires of the new technologies and content ideas, that that will be an enhanced show and we expect this virus, as happens with most viruses, that it will fade away as the weather gets warmer. And we can have a great nab show next april. But we are not going to forget the lessons we have learned through this terrible shutdown about our economy. One of the things on your agenda at the nab show was an interview with a jeep pie, the fcc chair. What did you plan ajit pai, the chairman of the fcc. What did you plan to ask him . He is a superb fellow and you certainly understood misunderstood. It is paying off now, the airplay civil importance of broadcasting in the firmament of telik medications for the American People the firmament of telecommunications. I plan to ask him about things like ownership restrictions on broadcasting, which does not apply to social media or other entrance. Only broadcasting is kept intentionally small. And sometimes we need scale to compete with new entrants in communications. But there a lot of issues. We were going to talk about the repack of the spectrum. The spectrum repack after the sale of a whole bunch of our broadcast spectrum. Where people need to rescan their television sets. We are literally in the last phase of that. It is supposed be over by this summer. Phase 10, which is on the horizon, already, chairman pai has said we will give you more flex ability if this virus gets in a way of deadlines. They have in real help and a partner and understanding as we have transitioned into this new world of reduced spectrum for broadcasting, digital compression. And i wanted to thank him and all of our commissioners who supported the voluntary introduction of what is called a tsc 3. 0. This is a transmission standard which will bring to the American People new optics, picture quality, even better than hd, immersive sound, tremendously mobile say can get video with an antenna you plug in or maybe Cell Companies will lie to get broadcast as well as digital streaming will allow you to get broadcast as well as digital streaming. Broadcasting will remain with this new standard. I think the cornerstone of american medications. It will because what we do american communications. What we do is unique. Localism is our franchise and ours alone. What we produce in times of crisis. A tsc 3. 0 will allow Emergency Alerts that are hyper localized about what the problem is, where recovery can be found, or rescue. Its going to be a tremendous addition to the Emergency Alert system. We have a little less than five minutes. Let me ask about the upcoming move. The fcc is moving two months after you are. When is the nab headquarters move planned and is it on track . It is on track and as i speak here in your studio we are moving from 1771 m street northwest two one m street southeast. We are a block away from Nationals Park and four blocks from the house side of capitol hill. It is going to be a wonderful change for nab and puts a stake in the ground that broadcasters are here and we are well and thriving. And we are here to fight for our piece of telecommunications. Because the American People need us not just to survive but to thrive. It is a beautiful new building and it will enhance our efficiency and put us closer to the business we are in. Our business is advocacy for the laws and regulations that allow broadcasting to continue to thrive in america. That building will be a part and parcel of that. A new location and a new effort. That is good to hear that the move is on and no changes there. You are talking about a tsc 3. 0 you mentioned the device makers, part of that broadcaster plans could be getting this new tv standard on cell phones. Any progress there . Again, this is where our telephone and tablet manufacturers, they need to add broadcast antenna to it. It is not much of an addition. And it is a great enhancement to the usefulness of your devices. Right now you can get a lot of video on your iphone or your samsung but it goes against your data caps and it is expensive and it is bandwidth hogging and so you get more and more people on broadband and it stresses the system and creates something of a traffic jam. You see that in buffering. Broadcasting has none of that. It is the most efficient transmission of video around. There is nothing like it in the world. That is going to be an important feature for one of the manufacturers who comes up with it and sees the competitive value of including it. When the American People understand how the mobility is enhanced by this 3. 0 standard, theyre going to want that. Whoever produces the first is probably going to sell a lot of devices when people look to renew or change their devices. And you have been watching the communicators. Guess this week, gordon smith, former senator from oregon and president of the National Association of broadcasters. Our guest reporter is jonathan mae, the executive editor of communications daily. Thank you for your time and putting up with our social distancing studios. This episode and others are available as podcasts. A standard on cell phones. Any progress . Again, this is where our telephone and tablet manufacturers, they need to add broadcast antenna to it. It is not much of an addition. And it is a great enhancement to the usefulness of your devices. Right now you can get a lot of video on your iphone or your samsung but it goes against your data caps and it is expensive and it is bandwidth hogging and so you get more and more people on broadband and it stresses the system and creates something of a traffic jam. You see that in buffering. Broadcasting has none of that. It is the most efficient transmission of video around. There is nothing like it in the world. That is going to be an important feature for one of the manufacturers who comes up with it and sees the competitive value of including it. When the American People understand how the mobility is enhanced by this 3. 0 standard, theyre going to want that. Whoever produces the first is probably going to sell a lot of devices when people look to renew or change their devices. And you have been watching the communicators. Guess this week, gordon smith, former senator from oregon and president of the National Association of broadcasters. Our guest reporter is jonathan mae, the executive editor of communications daily. Thank you for your time and putting up with our social distancing studios. This episode and others are available as podcasts. Television has changed since he cspan began 41 years ago, but our Mission Continues to provide unfiltered view of the government. The president ial impeachment process, and now the federal response to the coronavirus. If you watch all of cspan passes Public Affairs programming on television, online, or listen for free on the cspan radio app. Or, through our social media feed. Cspan, created by private industry as a Public Service, brought to you today buyer television provider. Your television provider. Washington journal, every day, news that impacts you. Weaknesses ofand washingtons response to the coronavirus outbreak. And then come up all will be on to talk about campaign for 20 and the latest on the pandemic. Live at 7 00 eastern sunday morning. Cuomo holds aw briefing on the coronavirus. He updated the number of cases in the state, respirator masks for health care
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