September 21, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 163 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Pages H4613-H4614]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 MEASURING THE ECONOMICS DRIVING INVESTMENTS AND ACCESS FOR DIVERSITY 
                              ACT OF 2020

  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 5567) to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to require the 
Federal Communications Commission to consider market entry barriers for 
socially disadvantaged individuals in the communications marketplace 
report under section 13 of such Act.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 5567

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Measuring the Economics 
     Driving Investments and Access for Diversity Act of 2020'' or 
     the ``MEDIA Diversity Act of 2020''.

     SEC. 2. CONSIDERING MARKET ENTRY BARRIERS FOR SOCIALLY 
                   DISADVANTAGED INDIVIDUALS.

       Section 13(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
     163(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(4) Considering socially disadvantaged individuals.--In 
     assessing the state of competition under subsection (b)(1) 
     and regulatory barriers under subsection (b)(3), the 
     Commission, with the input of the Office of Communications 
     Business Opportunities of the Commission, shall consider 
     market entry barriers for socially disadvantaged individuals 
     in the communications marketplace in accordance with the 
     national policy under section 257(b).''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. McNerney) and the gentleman from Montana (Mr. 
Gianforte) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on H.R. 5567.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5567, the Measuring the 
Economics Driving Investments and Access for Diversity Act of 2020, or, 
simply, the MEDIA Diversity Act of 2020.
  This bill promotes much-needed diversity in the communications 
marketplace, and I commend Representatives Veasey and Long and their 
staffs for all their efforts towards this bipartisan bill.
  I also, of course, want to thank Communications and Technology 
Subcommittee Chairman  Mike Doyle, full committee Chairman Pallone, 
Ranking Member Walden, and Ranking Member Latta for their work in 
bringing this bipartisan legislation to the floor.
  This bill requires the FCC to consider, with the input of its Office 
of Communications Business Opportunities, market entry barriers for 
socially disadvantaged individuals in the communications marketplace.
  When Representatives Long and Veasey first introduced this bill in 
January of this year, it was, of course, a different time. The murder 
of George Floyd has since led to protests across the country, 
highlighting decades of racial inequalities.
  Those inequalities exist in our communications marketplace. For 
example, the owners of broadcast and cable media outlets do not reflect 
our diverse population. These media outlets can influence people's 
opinions and perceptions through educational, political, entertainment, 
and news programming.
  Diversity in ownership of media outlets helps to ensure that 
programming offers different perspectives and that viewers have access 
to programming that is relevant to them.
  Experts have also found that ownership diversity can provide 
financial and competitive benefits. But in a concentrated 
communications marketplace, barriers for entry still exist, and the 
Federal Communications Commission is already tasked with studying what 
those barriers are. This bill simply asks the FCC to also consider 
market entry barriers for socially disadvantaged individuals.
  Creating ownership parity to reflect the country's diversity is a 
worthy goal, and this bipartisan effort is just a small step that can 
have a genuine impact in identifying market entry barriers.
  To be clear, there is so much more that we need to do, and the Energy 
and Commerce Committee, 2 weeks ago, reported out two additional bills 
that also take important steps to diversify our media market, one of 
which my Republican colleagues unfortunately objected to.
  I would call on my Republican colleagues to support those measures as 
well when they come to the floor. This is no time to say that our work 
is done. We must recognize that Americans need transformative change to 
meet this moment.
  While incremental steps are crucial, we must do more. These 
additional measures that were just reported by the committee, like this 
one, are modest changes that will help begin the task of comprehensive 
reform.
  I am proud of the good work done by the members of the committee, and 
I am proud of this bill. I hope we can come together as a committee and 
as a Congress and do the additional work that is needed.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support the MEDIA 
Diversity Act of 2020, and I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1730

  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5567, the MEDIA 
Diversity Act, introduced by my friend from Missouri, Representative 
Long.
  This legislation represents another step forward to uplift minority 
voices and promote media diversity. I understand how important it is to 
serve communities with local programming that accurately reflects a 
community's population.
  I have also seen the media industry make great strides to promote 
diversity and create new content to appeal

[[Page H4614]]

to communities that they serve. Many programs and initiatives have been 
established to promote opportunities for women, minorities, veterans, 
and other socially disadvantaged individuals to participate in the 
media marketplace.
  Of course, the media industry is only one small part of the vast 
communications marketplace that also includes mobile wireless 
providers, online video distributors, fixed broadband providers, and so 
on.
  There are also new entrants in the tech industry who are providing 
additional opportunities for minorities, women, veterans, and 
underrepresented groups that make their voices heard. There is still 
work to do to make sure these voices and underserved communities are 
represented in traditional media and all other areas of the large 
communications marketplace, and this legislation will help.
  I am glad to support this piece of bipartisan legislation that will 
allow the FCC to evaluate the market barriers socially disadvantaged 
individuals face in the communications marketplace.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important 
legislation to make sure all voices are heard, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. McNERNEY. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5567 promotes much needed diversity 
in the communications marketplace. As the Member who represents the 
most racially and ethnically diverse city in the country, Stockton, 
California, I want to make sure that the owners of broadcast and cable 
media outlets reflect our diverse population. H.R. 5567 is a step 
toward achieving that goal.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. McNerney) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5567.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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