Senate to question FCC on broadcast decency

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TBN's Acquisition Of 'Holy Land Experience' Theme Park Seeks To Change More Lives

June 9, 2007 ORLANDO -- Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), the world's largest religious broadcaster and America's most-watched faith channel, hopes to change more lives through its addition of the "Holy Land Experience" theme park in Orlando, Fl., to the TBN family. Through the acquisition, TBN will bring an integration of the powerful living recreation of ancient Jerusalem with a cutting edge facility that will be used for television production, dramas, musical concerts, special events and movies.

"This marriage will bring an unprecedented synergy to both ministries and the production that is done there will be seen by a worldwide audience. TBN's involvement made sense, because both ministries are about changing and effecting people's lives. We've been doing that for 34 years," said Paul Crouch, Jr., TBN Vice President of Administration. "We believe this opportunity was heaven sent because it bought TBN an Orlando-based facility to fulfill it's local programming obligations for WGTL CH-52 and it will provide "The Holy Land Experience" with much needed promotion to bring more people to the theme park and Orlando as a whole."

The Holy Land Experience could well be considered Orlando's most inspiring destination as visitors experience a full day of discovery that takes them 2,000 years back in time to the world of the Bible. It brings to life ancient Israel as a unique, thriving world filled with fascinating exhibits and venues. Visitors learn about the Wilderness Tabernacle and the Great Temple; discover the amazing history of the Bible; explore the city of Jerusalem in miniature; see re-enactments of Jesus' ministry, His life, death, and resurrection; and feel the power and passion of our original musical productions.

WGTL TV, Channel 52, has a reach of over four million viewers in the Orlando and Cocoa Beach metropolitan areas with TBN's wide range of innovative faith-based programming. In October of 2006, TBN celebrated the inaugural broadcast of WGTL Ch-52 in Orlando with a dedicatory service attended by TBN founders Paul and Jan Crouch, Pastor Benny Hinn, Singer and Preacher Judy Jacobs hosted by Pastor George Cope and Calvary Assembly in Winter Park, Fl.

The combination of the production facilities and the Holy Land Experience offers Orlando visitors a powerful and unique faith based experience that can be promoted worldwide through the TBN network. The promotional capability can drive visitors to the complex.

"Some of the staff was asking what is going to be the immediate effect here at the park and my answer was 'I'm planning on you having more people coming through the turnstiles this summer,'" said Crouch. "Universal Studios does the same thing. We want the 'Holy Land Experience' to be a faith-based version of that."

About TBN
TBN is the world's largest religious network and America's most watched faith network. Each day TBN offers 24 hours of commercial-free inspirational programming that appeals to people in a wide variety of denominations. Beginning in 1973 as a single UHF station in southern California, TBN now reaches every major continent via 65 satellites and more than 12,500 television and cable affiliates worldwide. In the United States, TBN is available to 92 percent of the total households. Its website receives more than 27 million visitors monthly. For more information on TBN, visit www.tbn.org

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WDC MEDIA NEWS
Christian News and Media Agency

Senate to question FCC on broadcast decency

2007-02-01 -- WDC Media News --

(OneNewsNow.com) - A media watchdog with the Parents Television Council (PTC) says U.S. Senate Democrats plan to grill Federal Communications Commission chairman Kevin Martin and four other FCC officials on issues such as media consolidation, Internet access and broadcast decency standards at a hearing today before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.

Senator Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, who chairs that committee, has vowed to keep a close eye on the federal regulatory agency headed by Bush-appointee Kevin Martin. Dorgan has also promised that "the running room of the FCC is going to be limited."

Dan Isett, director of corporate and government affairs for the Parents Television Council (PTC), says since the departure of former FCC chairman Michael Powell, the Commission has made some progress in cleaning up the airwaves. And now, he notes, the new Democrat-controlled Congress will probably exercise more oversight of the federal regulatory commission than their Republican counterparts have over the past 12 years.

Isett believes that scrutiny may be necessary to keep the Commission accountable. "The FCC released a raft of indecency findings close to a year ago, in March of last year," he acknowledges; "but unfortunately, even with this improving set of circumstances at the FCC, the FCC is still largely far behind on where it needs to be" in confronting broadcast indecency.

The commissioners need to have their feet held to the fire on this issue, Isett suggests. And that is true, he insists, regardless of whatever litigation network attorneys have filed to oppose federal enforcement or to push spurious First Amendment claims.

"And, by the way," the media watchdog points out, the broadcast networks actually have filed lawsuits against the FCC "claiming the 'right' to air unlimited profanity at any time of day on the public airwaves and have even filed a suit that says somehow the Janet Jackson incident wasn't indecent." Such lawsuits indicate "just how out of touch these networks are," he says.

However, Isett asserts, "just because they're arguing these things in court doesn't mean that the FCC is off the hook for enforcing the law." The FCC must continue to uphold the broadcast decency law, he says, "and we're going to hold them accountable for that."

There are "literally hundreds of thousands of outstanding indecency complaints that have been filed by the American people that remain unadjudicated by the FCC," the PTC's corporate and government affairs director notes. "This process takes far, far too long," he contends.

At today's hearing, the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee is expected to question the FCC officials closely on a number of issues, Isett observes. In addition to inquiring about broadcast decency enforcement, he says Dorgan and the rest of the Senate committee will likely press the commissioners on controversial media ownership rules the FCC sets up to govern how many and in what places media properties can be owned by different companies.

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