NAB Professional Standards & Competencies 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under FCC rules, a broadcast station's public inspection file must be made available to members of the public during what timeframe?
- Only during the last 90 days before license renewal
- Any time the station is open for business (Correct answer)
- Only weekdays between 9 AM and 5 PM
- Only upon written request submitted 48 hours in advance
Correct answer: Any time the station is open for business
FCC rules require that the public inspection file be available to any member of the public who requests it during regular business hours when the station is open.
Question 2: Which FCC regulation governs the requirement that stations must air programming responsive to community issues?
- The Fairness Doctrine
- Children's Television Act
- Public Interest Obligation (Correct answer)
- Equal Time Rule
Correct answer: Public Interest Obligation
Broadcast stations hold their licenses in the public interest, convenience, and necessity, requiring them to air programming responsive to community needs.
Question 3: A radio station program director is approached by a record label representative offering cash to play a specific song without disclosure. This practice is known as:
- Plugola
- Payola (Correct answer)
- Barter syndication
- Underwriting
Correct answer: Payola
Payola is the illegal practice of accepting payment to play music without disclosing it as a paid promotion, violating FCC sponsorship identification rules.
Question 4: The FCC's EEO rules require commercial broadcast stations with 5 or more full-time employees to do which of the following?
- File quarterly EEO reports directly with the Department of Labor
- Conduct broad outreach to ensure diverse applicant pools for job vacancies (Correct answer)
- Hire a minimum percentage of minority employees
- Submit annual affirmative action plans to the FCC
Correct answer: Conduct broad outreach to ensure diverse applicant pools for job vacancies
FCC EEO rules require stations with 5+ full-time employees to engage in broad outreach when filling vacancies and document those efforts in the public file.
Question 5: Under the Children's Television Act, commercial TV stations must air a minimum of how many hours per week of Core Educational and Informational (E/I) programming for children?
- 1 hour
- 2 hours
- 3 hours (Correct answer)
- 5 hours
Correct answer: 3 hours
The FCC's processing guidelines require commercial TV stations to air at least 3 hours per week of Core E/I programming to qualify for renewal.
Question 6: Which of the following broadcast content is absolutely prohibited at any time of day under FCC rules?
- Indecent material
- Profane language
- Obscene material (Correct answer)
- Graphic violence
Correct answer: Obscene material
Obscene content is prohibited at all times; indecent and profane content is only restricted to the safe harbor period (10 PM–6 AM).
Question 7: A TV station airs a program sponsored by a political candidate. Under FCC sponsorship identification rules, what must the station do?
- Place a crawl identifying the sponsor only at the end of the program
- Announce clearly that the program is paid for by the political candidate (Correct answer)
- File a political disclosure with the FCC within 24 hours
- Notify the opposing candidate before airing the program
Correct answer: Announce clearly that the program is paid for by the political candidate
FCC sponsorship identification rules require that paid political programming clearly identify the sponsor at the time of broadcast.
NAB Professional Standards & Competencies 2
Under FCC rules, a broadcast station's public inspection file must be made available to members of the public during what timeframe?