FCC is launching process to strip FOX News in Philly of its broadcasting license for pushing big lie

[onenote]

35. This is a completely misleading tweet from Occupy Democrats

I have practiced communications law before the FCC for over four decades and the Occupy Democrats tweet is misleading and and, in certain respects, false.

For starters, the tweet, dated October 22, says that "Today, the FCC announced that it is moving forward with its investigation by opening up an 'evidentiary hearing'" regarding the petition to deny the pending application for license renewal of Fox 29, the Fox broadcast station in Philadelphia. Well, October 22, 2023 was Sunday, and the FCC doesn't announce anything on Sundays.

What the tweet apparently is based on is a Public Notice that the FCC issued on AUGUST 23, 2023 announcing that it would treat the license renewal proceeding as one that is exempt from the "ex parte" rules, thereby allowing interested members of the public can submit comments on the petition to deny (either pro or con).
https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-23-752A1.pdf

Just because the FCC allows third party comments doesn't mean that it is conducting a full blown evidentiary proceeding. For example, in 2007, the FCC issued a nearly identical Public Notice with respect to the pending renewal of other Fox-owned stations. Those renewals ultimately were granted without having been designated for an evidentiary hearing. Moreover, while the petitioner asking the FCC to deny the renewal of Fox 29, The Media and Democracy Project, filed a motion in early October with the FCC asking for it to compel discovery of various documents in Fox's possession, the FCC has not acted on that motion.

And, finally, as others have pointed out, this proceeding, even if it eventually led to an evidentiary hearing and a denial of Fox 29's license (highly doubtful, in my opinion), it wouldn't impact Fox News, which is a cable network not licensed by the FCC.

It doesn't take much to get folks all excited about the idea that Fox is going to be shut down by the FCC. Misleading posts such as the one by Occupy Documents are knowing and intentional efforts to get folks worked up.