{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.schatz.senate.gov/news/press-releases/schatz-blackburn-eshoo-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-help-expose-foreign-government-funded-propaganda-improve-broadcast-television-and-radio-programming-transparency", "Schatz, Blackburn, Eshoo Introduce Bipartisan Bill To Help Expose Foreign Government-Funded Propaganda, Improve Broadcast Television And Radio Programming Transparency", "2022-10-17", "2022", "2022-10", "Democrat", "Senate", "HI", "Brian Schatz", "S001194", "www.schatz.senate.gov", "schatz", "https://www.schatz.senate.gov/news/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 U.S. Senators Brian Schatz (D-Hawai\u2018i) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) have introduced the Identifying Propaganda on Our Airwaves (IPA) Act, bipartisan legislation to help disclose foreign propaganda on American broadcast television and radio. The bill authorizes the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to require that broadcasters check foreign media databases to better identify groups sponsoring programming. Companion legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by U.S. Representative Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.).\n\n\u201cForeign governments shouldn\u2019t be able to hide behind shell companies to fund misinformation and propaganda on American airwaves,\u201d said Senator Schatz, a member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. \u201cBy giving the FCC the authority to require disclosure of this foreign propaganda, our bipartisan bill will help stop this practice and improve programming transparency on TV and the radio.\u201d\n\n\u201cAmericans deserve the right to make informed decisions about the media they consume,\" said Senator Blackburn. \u201cUnder current regulations, the New Axis of Evil can use shell companies to broadcast regime-funded propaganda across American airwaves. This legislation will protect consumer transparency by requiring the disclosure of foreign government-sponsored content.\u201d\n\n\u201cIn July, the D.C. Circuit struck down a portion of the FCC rule that required clearer foreign sponsorship disclosures for radio broadcasters, claiming that the FCC did not have such authority. This was a disastrous decision. The rule required that broadcasters simply check two federal sources to verify an ad sponsor\u2019s identity, a rule implemented at my urging. The American people deserve to know when radio programming they hear on public airwaves is foreign government-funded propaganda,\u201d said Representative Eshoo. \u201cOur legislation unambiguously grants the FCC the authority to require broadcasters to conduct reasonable diligence to identify foreign agents and their shell companies so Americans will know who is funding the information on our public airwaves.\u201d\n\nIn 2021, the FCC unanimously issued rules requiring broadcasters to verify the real identity of programming sponsors by mandating they check the Department of Justice\u2019s Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) website and the Commission\u2019s U.S.-Based Foreign Media Outlets reports. These rules were designed to prevent foreign governments from funding propaganda through obscure shell companies. To take two examples showing how essential this verification is, \u201cRM Broadcasting\u201d and \u201cPotomac Radio Group,\u201d names of programming sponsors, are actually front groups for the Russian and Chinese governments.\n\nIn July, however, the D.C. Circuit struck down the FCC\u2019s authority to do this. The IPA Act re-implements this authority, requiring broadcasters check the sources to identify foreign agents and their shell companies when entering into and renewing airtime lease agreements for sponsored programming. The bill would not prohibit foreign governments from sponsoring content on U.S. airwaves, but would make local stations think twice before airing foreign influence operations.\n\n\u201cThe principle that the public has a right to know the identity of those who solicit their support is a fundamental and long-standing tenet of broadcasting,\u201d said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. \u201cConsumers deserve to trust that public airwaves aren\u2019t being leased without their knowledge to foreign governments. I appreciate the leadership of Senators Schatz and Blackburn, and Representative Eshoo for their efforts to increase transparency and ensure consumers know who is behind the information transmitted over public airwaves.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe fact that foreign governmental entities are covertly broadcasting on our television and radio stations is alarming. The American people have a right to know the identity of those using the public airwaves in order to be informed and make their own decisions in separating truth from disinformation. I thank Senators Schatz and Blackburn, and Representative Eshoo, for their leadership in ensuring that broadcasters do their due diligence to disclose the true source of foreign state-sponsored programming. The Communications Act \u2013 and fundamental notions of transparency \u2013 require no less,\u201d said FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks.\n\nThe full text of the bill is available here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T03:20:33Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.schatz.senate.gov/news/press-releases/schatz-blackburn-eshoo-introduce-bipartisan-bill-to-help-expose-foreign-government-funded-propaganda-improve-broadcast-television-and-radio-programming-transparency"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.8971259705722332, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}