The FCC is looking into whether Fox misled the Commission over the amount of news and educational programming it airs on WWOR, which is the MyNetworkTV half of the New York-area duopoly it owns.
WWOR is technically based in New Jersey.
Voice for New Jersey is an advocacy group that has been extremely critical of WWOR and has filed complaints about how Fox is running the station. On its website, Voice for New Jersey charges that WWOR now carries “less than 10% of the broadcast time” that other stations in the market devote to news. Fox, Voice for New Jersey said, has “grossly misrepresented” to the FCC the amount of news and public affairs programming that is on WWOR-TV.
Fox is also accused of not being forthcoming about the number of people who actually work at WWOR’s New Jersey facility.
At stake are Fox’s broadcast licenses for WNYW and WWOR, reports The Wrap.
Fox has 30 days to respond to allegations that it misrepresented the number of hours of public affairs and news programming it provides, the number of people it employs, and exaggerated the amount of programing focused on issues related to Northern New Jersey that it airs.
In a letter Wednesday to Fox Television Stations, FCC Media Bureau Chief William Lake wrote that the organization was investigating “…allegations concerning the accuracy, completeness, and truthfulness of representations…in certain communications with the staff of the Federal Communications Commission.”
Fox denies the charges.
“We look forward to responding to the FCC’s inquiry, and we are confident that upon review of all facts and applicable law, the FCC will recognize that these unwarranted claims hold no merit,” a Fox TV Stations spokesperson told TheWrap.
