Trinity Methodist Church, South v. Federal Radio Commission

Last updated

Trinity Methodist Church, South v. Federal Radio Commission
Seal of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.png
Court United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Full case name Trinity Methodist Church, South v. Federal Radio Commission
ArguedMay 3–4, 1932
DecidedNovember 28, 1932
Citation62 F.2d 850
Case history
Procedural historyUpheld administrative ruling by the Federal Radio Commission.
Holding
Due process was exercised by the Federal Radio Commission in refusing to renew a broadcasting license for radio station KGEF due to content that violated the public interest.
Case opinions
Majority Duncan Lawrence Groner, joined by Josiah Alexander Van Orsdel
Laws applied
Radio Act of 1927, First Amendment to the United States Constitution, Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution

Trinity Methodist Church, South v. Federal Radio Commission, 62 F.2d 850 (D.C. Circuit, 1932), was an early precedent on the enforcement of broadcasting law in the United States. The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld a decision by the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) to deny a broadcasting license for radio station KGEF, due to controversial content broadcast by Robert P. Shuler. The court held that the public interest in appropriate content on the broadcast airwaves can override free speech concerns under the First Amendment, and that the denial of a radio station license is acceptable if done per due process of law requirements under the Fifth Amendment.

Contents

Background

Trinity Methodist Church, South in Los Angeles, California was listed in documents filed with the Federal Radio Commission as the owner of radio station KGEF, which had first received a broadcasting license in 1926. [1] The commission determined that despite the church's name, the radio station was in fact owned and dominated by evangelist and political provocateur Robert P. Shuler, popularly known as "Fighting Bob", who used the station to broadcast political and religious opinions that created controversy in the community. [2] Shuler had become known for personal attacks on politicians and local police officials, [3] criticism of libraries and schools for teaching subjects like evolution, [4] and disparagement of Jews and Roman Catholics. [5]

The station applied for a renewal of its license in 1930, at which time chief FRC examiner Ellis A. Yost expressed misgivings about Shuler's "extremely indiscreet" broadcasts, but ultimately recommended approval. [6] A review by the commission's leadership concluded that the station's request should be denied, because it "could not determine that the granting thereof was in the public interest," because "the programs broadcast by its principal speaker were sensational rather than instructive and in two instances he had been convicted of attempting over the radio to obstruct orderly administration of public justice". [7]

Shuler and the church filed suit at the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, requesting a stay order on the FRC's denial of the license application, which the court initially refused. That action was then appealed and the dispute advanced to a full trial, with Shuler and the church citing violations of free speech and due process of law. The appellants also claimed that the license denial was arbitrary and capricious, which was prohibited under American administrative law [5]

Opinion of the court

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit largely avoided an analysis of the First Amendment in the case, stating that licensing of speech (or the refusal thereof) by government is only censorship if the affected party is also prohibited from expression via any other forum. [5]

The court instead analyzed the provisions of the Radio Act of 1927 to determine if the FRC had the authority to act as it did. Per precedent, government management of the use of spectrum frequencies by broadcasters had long been considered by American courts to be a type of regulation of interstate commerce. [8] This in turn is permitted by the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution, when such interstate commerce has implications for the public interest. [9] Hence, the court found that the FRC had concluded appropriately that Shuler's broadcasts on KGEF were not in the public interest, largely due to his verbal attacks against his political enemies, many of which included false accusations of crimes. [5]

The court held that denying or revoking a radio broadcast license, if doing so in the public interest, can override the free speech interests of the applicant. Such action was also permitted by Congress in the text of the Radio Act. [5] The court also held that such a licensing denial did not violate the Fifth Amendment prohibition of "taking of property" without due process of law. [10]

Shuler and the station appealed the decision to the United States Supreme Court, but their writ of certioari was denied and the lower court decision stood. [11] [12]

Impact

Trinity Methodist Church, South v. Federal Radio Commission has been cited as an important early precedent supporting American government regulation of pervasive broadcast frequencies, which may not always carry content that is in the public interest, or in the interests of some listeners/viewers, [13] particularly when discussions of religion generate controversy. [14]

On the other hand, the ruling has been criticized by opponents of media content regulation for setting a precedent allowing the Federal Radio Commission, and its successor the Federal Communications Commission, to ignore free speech protections for broadcasters while focusing on the public interest instead. [15] Notwithstanding his controversial behavior, "Fighting Bob" Shuler has been cited for his important impact on the history of American broadcasting law. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Radio Commission</span> Former government agency of the United States (1927–33)

The Federal Radio Commission (FRC) was a government agency that regulated United States radio communication from its creation in 1927 until 1934, when it was succeeded by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The FRC was established by the Radio Act of 1927, which replaced the Radio Act of 1912 after the earlier law was found to lack sufficient oversight provisions, especially for regulating broadcasting stations. In addition to increased regulatory powers, the FRC introduced the standard that, in order to receive a license, a radio station had to be shown to be "in the public interest, convenience, or necessity".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Communications Act of 1934</span> 1934 U.S. federal law creating the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

The Communications Act of 1934 is a United States federal law signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on June 19, 1934, and codified as Chapter 5 of Title 47 of the United States Code, 47 U.S.C. § 151 et seq. The act replaced the Federal Radio Commission with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). It also transferred regulation of interstate telephone services from the Interstate Commerce Commission to the FCC.

Federal Communications Commission v. Pacifica Foundation, 438 U.S. 726 (1978), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that upheld the ability of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to regulate indecent content sent over the broadcast airwaves.

The fairness doctrine of the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC), introduced in 1949, was a policy that required the holders of broadcast licenses both to present controversial issues of public importance and to do so in a manner that fairly reflected differing viewpoints. In 1987, the FCC abolished the fairness doctrine, prompting some to urge its reintroduction through either Commission policy or congressional legislation. The FCC removed the rule that implemented the policy from the Federal Register in August 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George E. Cryer</span> American mayor

George Edward Cryer was an American lawyer and politician. A Republican, Cryer served as the 32nd Mayor of Los Angeles from 1921 to 1929, a period of rapid growth in the city's population. During his administration, the Los Angeles City Hall and Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum were built, and the city's population surpassed 1,000,000. Prior and subsequent to serving as mayor, he was a lawyer. Between 1929 and 1931, Cryer became engaged in a widely publicized libel court case with the Reverend Robert P. Shuler, a radio evangelist who accused Cryer of being a "grafter" who had entered office a poor man and left office a millionaire.

The Radio Act of 1927 was signed into law on February 23, 1927. It replaced the Radio Act of 1912, increasing the federal government's regulatory powers over radio communication, with oversight vested in a newly created body, the Federal Radio Commission. It also was the first legislation to mandate that stations had to show they were "in the public interest, convenience, or necessity" in order to receive a license. The Act was later replaced by the Communications Act of 1934.

<i>Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC</i> 2019 United States Court of Appeals case

Prometheus Radio Project v. FCC is the general title of a series of cases heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 2003 to 2019. A media activist group, Prometheus Radio Project, challenged new media ownership rules put forth by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 2002. In the first court challenge in 2004, the Third Circuit overruled an attempt by the FCC to raise the limits of media ownership within markets and relax cross-ownership prohibitions, and determined that a diversity index used by the FCC had been formulated inconsistently.

Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. Federal Communications Commission, 395 U.S. 367 (1969), was a seminal First Amendment ruling at the United States Supreme Court. The Supreme Court held that radio broadcasters enjoyed free speech rights under the First Amendment, but those rights could be partially restricted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to maintain the public interest in equitable use of scarce broadcasting frequencies. As a result, the FCC's Fairness Doctrine was found to be constitutional.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. v. FCC is the general title of two rulings of the United States Supreme Court on the constitutionality of must-carry regulations enforced by the Federal Communications Commission on cable television operators. In the first ruling, known colloquially as Turner I, 512 U.S. 622 (1994), the Supreme Court held that cable television companies were First Amendment speakers who enjoyed free speech rights when determining what channels and content to carry on their networks, but demurred on whether the must-carry rules at issue were restrictions of those rights. After a remand to a lower court for fact-finding on the economic effects of the then-recent Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act, the dispute returned to the Supreme Court. In Turner II, 520 U.S. 180 (1997), the Supreme Court held that must-carry rules for cable television companies were not restrictions of their free speech rights because the U.S. government had a compelling interest in enabling the distribution of media content from multiple sources and in preserving local television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WLAP</span> Radio station in Lexington, Kentucky

WLAP is a commercial AM radio station in Lexington, Kentucky, serving the Central Kentucky region. It airs a news/talk format and is owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The studios and offices are on Nicolasville Road in Lexington.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert P. Shuler</span> American evangelist (1880–1965)

Robert Pierce Shuler Sr., also known as "Fighting Bob", was an American evangelist and political figure. His radio broadcasts from his Southern Methodist church in Los Angeles, California, during the 1920s and early 1930s attracted a large audience and also drew controversy with his attacks on politicians and police officials. In 1931, the Federal Radio Commission revoked Shuler's broadcast license due to his outspoken views. He ran for the United States Senate in 1932 on the Prohibition Party ticket and attracted more than 500,000 votes.

<i>Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod v. FCC</i> 1998 court case

Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod v. FCC was a 1998 D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals case involving the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) enforcement of the Equal Employment Opportunity Act and the Fifth Amendment. The FCC claimed that the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS) had violated the FCC's Equal Employment Opportunity requirements by not hiring enough minorities/women and by requiring a knowledge of Lutheran doctrine in order to be hired to work at its two FM and AM radio stations located in Clayton, Missouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harold A. Lafount</span> American businessman (1880–1952)

Harold Arundel Lafount was an American businessman who served on the Federal Radio Commission from 1927 to 1934. He was the father of Lenore Romney; the father-in-law of businessman and politician George W. Romney; and the maternal grandfather of businessman and politician Mitt Romney.

The Davis Amendment was a provision attached to the March 28, 1928 reauthorization of the Radio Act of 1927, which mandated an "equality of radio broadcasting service" within the United States. It specified an "equitable allocation" among five regional zones, in addition to assignments proportional to population among the states within each zone. Its implementation resulted in the development of a complicated quota system by the Federal Radio Commission, and although its provisions were carried over to the Federal Communications Commission by the Communications Act of 1934, it ultimately proved impractical, and was repealed on June 5, 1936.

CBS, Inc. v. FCC, 453 U.S. 367 (1981), is a United States Supreme Court decision finding that the Federal Communications Act of 1934 created a new, individual right to broadcast access for candidates for federal office. Under this decision broadcast media were found to have an obligation to allow any legally qualified federal candidate running for public office to purchase network time under section 312(a)(7) of the 1976 amendment to the Communications Act.

WCHI was a radio station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, that operated from January 1, 1925, until it was deleted in 1932. The station—owned by the Peoples Pulpit Association, a corporation of the Jehovah's Witnesses—was established as WORD in Batavia before moving to Chicago in 1930 and changing its call letters. At the time of its deletion, it was transmitting with 5,000 watts on 1490 kHz. Its license was revoked by the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) over its attacks on the medical profession and in order to allow another station full-time use of the 1490 kHz frequency.

The Federal Radio Commission's (FRC) General Order 32, dated May 25, 1928, notified 164 of the over 600 existing U.S. radio stations that their applications for continued operation would be denied unless they showed that they met the FRC's "public interest, convenience, or necessity" standard. The result was the elimination of more than 60 stations, plus numerous power reductions, that somewhat reduced the congestion of the broadcast band, in preparation for implementation of the General Order 40 reallocation later that year.

WMBB-WOK was a high-powered radio station located in Homewood, Illinois, United States, a suburb of Chicago. It was deleted by the Federal Radio Commission (FRC) on September 1, 1928, as part of its implementation of General Order 32, which was used to reduce of the number of U.S. radio stations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Carrell</span> American radio pioneer

Charles Lewis "C. L." Carrell was a Chicago-based theater and talent promoter. Beginning in 1925, Carrell became the licensee for seven portable radio stations, which were sent to small towns in the midwest for limited runs, normally of a few weeks, to provide entertainment to localities that did not have their own stations.

Federal Communications Commission v. Sanders Brothers Radio Station, 309 U.S. 470 (1940), was an early precedent on the enforcement of broadcasting law in the United States. The Supreme Court held that when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) makes spectrum allocation decisions regarding the use of broadcast frequencies by radio stations, such decisions should be made to serve the public interest, convenience, and necessity as defined by the Communications Act of 1934. Consequently, such decisions by the FCC do not need to consider the profitability or business interests of the companies assigned such frequencies, or those of their competitors.

References

  1. ↑ "New Stations", Radio Service Bulletin, December 31, 1926, page 4.
  2. ↑ Freedom of Speech by Radio and Television by Elmer E. Smead, 1959, page 6.
  3. ↑ Quentin Shultze (January 15, 1988). "The Other Bob Shuler: Protector of Public Morals". American Christianity.
  4. ↑ Domanick, Joe. "Cardinal's Secular Power Has Many Precedents". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 15, 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Trinity Methodist Church, South v. Federal Radio Commission, 62 F.2d 850 (1932).
  6. ↑ "Rev. Bob Shuler Wins Radio Plea", Washington (D.C.) Evening Star, August 11, 1931, Page B-5.
  7. ↑ "Trinity Methodist Church Case", Seventh Annual Report of the Federal Radio Commission (Fiscal year 1933), page 11.
  8. ↑ Western Union Telegraph Co. v. Pendleton, 122 U.S. 347 (S. Ct., 1887).
  9. ↑ Lottery Case, 188 U.S. 321 (S. Ct., 1903).
  10. ↑ "Third Crusader is Taken off the Air", Washington (D.C.) Evening Star, December 4, 1932, Part 4, page 5.
  11. ↑ Trinity Methodist Church, South v. Federal Radio Commission, 288 U.S. 599 (S. Ct. 1933).
  12. ↑ "Government Petitions Supreme Court To Review Ruling in WIBO-WPCC Case", Broadcasting, February 15, 1933, page 28.
  13. ↑ Marks, Leonard H. (March 1949). "Legality of Radio Giveaway Programs". Georgetown Law Journal. 37 (3): 334 – via HeinOnline.
  14. ↑ "Religious Control of Commercial Television". The Catholic Lawyer. 5 (1): 174. Winter 1959 – via HeinOnline.
  15. ↑ Wall, Thomas H. (November 1951). "Program Evaluation by the Federal Communications Commission: An Unconstitutional Abridgement of Free Speech?". Georgetown Law Journal. 40 (1): 1–40 – via HeinOnline.
  16. ↑ Orbison, Charley (Fall 1977). "'Fighting Bob' Shuler: Early Radio Crusader". Journal of Broadcasting. 21 (4): 471. doi:10.1080/08838157709363855 – via HeinOnline.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.