NEWS
Federal Communications Commission
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This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action.  Release of the full text of a Commission order constitutes official action.
See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Cir. 1974).
News Media Information 202 / 418-0500
Internet: http://www.fcc.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:
November 28, 2014 Kim Hart, 202-418-8191
E-mail: Kim.Hart@fcc.gov
NEWPORT TELEVISION TO PAY $35,000 FINE FOR BROADCASTING PRIVATE TELEPHONE 
CONVERSATION
Newport admits violating FCC rules prohibiting broadcasters from invading consumer privacy and failing to 
respond promptly to investigative requests
Washington, D.C. – The Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau has settled an 
investigation of Newport Television LLC, former licensee of television station KTVX(DT) in Salt Lake City, 
Utah, involving the station’s recording and broadcast of a consumer’s telephone conversation as part of a 
news segment without first telling the person that the call was being recorded and would be broadcast.
Broadcasts of telephone conversations without such notice are prohibited by the FCC’s Telephone Broadcast 
Rule and threaten the privacy and reputation of consumers whose telephone conversations are broadcast to the 
public without their knowledge or consent.
“Consumers rightly expect that their phone conversations will not be surreptitiously recorded and broadcast to 
the public without their prior knowledge or consent,” said Travis LeBlanc, Chief of the FCC’s Enforcement 
Bureau.  “We hold broadcasters to high standards and will ensure that they fully respect the privacy rights of 
consumers.” 
The Commission’s Telephone Broadcast Rule protects the privacy of consumers when they answer the 
telephone.  Specifically, it requires broadcast licensees to inform any party they call of their intent to 
broadcast the conversation. It also prohibits broadcast licensees from actually broadcasting a telephone 
conversation without first informing the party to that conversation that it is being broadcast or recorded for 
later broadcast. In August 2012, KTVX(DT) twice broadcast in a news report a recorded telephone 
conversation with a consumer without prior notification to or the consent of that consumer.  In addition, 
Newport violated the FCC’s requirement to respond fully and promptly to requests for information from the 
Enforcement Bureau.  Under the terms of today’s settlement, Newport admits that it violated the Telephone 
Broadcast Rule and that it failed to timely respond to Enforcement Bureau investigative requests.  Newport
will pay a $35,000 civil penalty for these violations. 
For more information about the FCC’s Telephone Broadcast Rule visit 
http://transition.fcc.gov/eb/broadcast/telphon.html.
The Order and Consent Decree are available at:  https://apps.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-14-
1676A1.pdf 
-FCC-