An FCC order finding Verizon unlawfully marketed to departing phone customers was unusual in many respects, some of which may provide fodder to a potential appeal by the company (CD June 23 p2), said agency and industry officials. The 4-1 vote, with Chairman Kevin Martin dissenting -- finalized late Friday but publicized Monday -- is the only time in recent memory when any chairman was in a minority of one, they said. Also unusual was the leak of the impending vote on the restricted proceeding by an FCC official acting at the behest of Martin, which included information on how Commissioner Robert McDowell would vote before he voted, they said.

Challenges to the FCC’s media ownership order will be reviewed by the 9th U.S. Appeals Court in San Francisco to determine whether to keep the case or send it elsewhere, said a participant in one of the cases. During a conference call with litigants Monday, a representative of the 9th Circuit said motions to transfer the case are due July 19, according to Media Access Project President Andrew Schwartzman. Oppositions are due Aug. 4, replies Aug 14. After that, the court will decide whether it will consider broadcaster and public-interest groups’ appeals of the easing of cross- ownership restrictions or send the case to federal appeals courts in Philadelphia or Washington, D.C., said Schwartzman.

Accepting corporate money is almost universal among think tanks and advocacy groups vocal on media, telecommunications and Internet issues, our analysis shows. The biggest donors include Verizon, AT&T, Comcast and Google, though group officials declare that funding sources don’t affect their analyses. Critics, however, note that corporate money helps keep some groups afloat, and amplifies some voices.

Accepting corporate money is almost universal among think tanks and advocacy groups vocal on media, telecommunications and Internet issues, our analysis shows. The biggest donors include Verizon, AT&T, Comcast and Google, though group officials declare that funding sources don’t affect their analyses. Critics, however, note that corporate money helps keep some groups afloat, and amplifies some voices.

A draft FCC order denies a challenge to its 3-2 approval of Tribune’s sale (CD Dec 4 p6) by media consolidation foes, said agency officials. The order dismisses a petition for reconsideration of the $8.2 billion deal by Benton Foundation Chairman Charles Benton, the Media Alliance and United Church of Christ, they said. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin circulated the order May 1, when he voted for it, but it may be a while before it’s voted on by all members and publicized, they said.

Documents in a suit against the FCC over its media ownership order were moved to the 9th U.S. Appeals Court in San Francisco, in a Thursday order by the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia Circuit. On Newspaper Association of America v. FCC, the D.C. Circuit said motions to unconsolidate challenges to the partial lifting of a ban on common ownership of a paper and radio or TV station in the same market aren’t overridden by the possibility of exclusive jurisdiction. The appeal of cross-ownership rules will stay at the 9th Circuit (CD March 12 p13) at least for now, said Media Access Project President Andrew Schwartzman, a participant in the case. Once the 9th Circuit gets other courts’ paperwork on the case, some being sent by the D.C. Circuit, it will decide whether to keep the case or send all or part of it back to D.C. or the 3rd U.S. Appeals Court in Philadelphia, he added.

Tribune’s suit against the FCC was put on hold Wednesday by the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia Circuit. The case will held in abeyance until the FCC acts on petitions for reconsideration of FCC approval of Tribune’s $8 billion sale to Sam Zell and employees, said a court order. It ordered the agency to file status reports every 60 days. Tribune sued the FCC over agency enforcement of a ban on a single company owning a daily newspaper and radio or TV station in the same market (CD Dec 7 p12). In putting the case on hold, the court granted a request by the Media Alliance and United Church of Christ, Media Access Project President Andrew Schwartzman, representing the groups, said. They contend the court can’t hear the case because it only has jurisdiction when the commission blocks a license transfer. The agency approved the deal 3-2 Nov. 30. The court’s request for more information on jurisdiction is “quite significant” and “indicates that it considers the question non-frivolous and worthy of oral argument,” said Schwartzman. A Tribune spokesman declined to comment.

Two prominent Democratic lawmakers asked the FCC to probe networks’ use of military analysts to see if the analysts properly disclose ties with the Defense Department and companies that do billions of dollars in business with it. The probe was sought in a letter released late Tuesday by House Commerce Committee Chairman John Dingell of Michigan, and Connecticut’s Rosa DeLauro, chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, the FDA and Related Agencies. The letter, sent to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, expressed “deep concern” about an April 20 New York Times report on the practices of 75 retired officers who appeared as “analysts” on cable and broadcast network news shows.

The FCC Thursday released a revised consumer handbook on radio and TV station regulatory duties, said a public notice. The Public and Broadcasting was updated by the Media Bureau after a commission localism proceeding found that people don’t understand broadcaster obligations and how the FCC enforces its rules. The publication explains how to assess whether stations serve their communities and how to alert the agency to concerns. Every station’s public inspection file must contain a copy of the handbook, and broadcasters must mail a copy to anyone requesting one, the agency said. It named two broadcast information specialists in the bureau to deal with public inquiries, one for radio and one for TV, but didn’t name the employees. Media Access Project President Andrew Schwartzman, a frequent critic of media consolidation, said the update shows FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is “attentive to the commission’s obligations to the public.” The guidebook is at www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/decdoc/public_and_broadcasting.html.

The 9th U.S. Appeals Court has suspended acceptances of some filings on appeals of the FCC’s media ownership rules, said an order Thursday from the clerk of the court. The order doesn’t say when the court again will accept such submissions. The 9th Circuit was picked to consolidate challenges to the order (March 12 p13), which commissioners approved 3-2 on Dec. 18, allowing some combinations of daily papers and radio or TV stations in top-20 markets. By stanching the tide of filings, the 9th Circuit order buys time to get documents from 3rd U.S. Appeals Court in Philadelphia and U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia, where appeals also were made, before filings resume, said Media Access Project President Andrew Schwartzman.