FCC Updates Children's Programming Rules

This article announces the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC)'s unanimous approval in September 2004 of rules requiring television stations that air more than one digital channel to show additional children's programming - in some cases up to 18 hours of kids' shows a week. Prior to the ruling, the FCC required a broadcaster to air 3 hours of children's shows each week on its main analog channel. With digital signals - and under the new rules - a broadcaster could have as many as 6 channels.

Author Jennifer C. Kerr claims that children's advocacy groups praised the decision, saying parents and their children will benefit from more educational programming. For one, the new rules require both analog and digital stations to carry the electronic marker "E/I" - for educational and informational programming - somewhere on the screen throughout the entire show. As context: More than 1,300 local TV stations air both analog and digital pictures. By 2007, all of the nation's 1,700 broadcast stations are expected to make the transition to digital.

As the article states, "Some children's groups had pressed for a ban on interactive ads, which would allow kids watching a TV show to touch the screen or click on a character and be taken directly to an Internet site for the program. But the agency concluded that such a move would be premature since 'this technology is not yet in use in children's programming.'"

The new requirement for children's programming on digital TV will become effective one year after the rules are formally released, which were expected to be released later in September 2004.