FCC warrantless searches?

According to this story, an FCC agent investigating a possible pirate radio station in Boulder, Colorado this month, posted a note quoting FCC policy at the residence suspected of hosting an unlicensed transmitter.  The statement apparently said, “Whether you operate an amateur station or any other radio device, your authorization from the Commission comes with the obligation to allow inspection.”

This statement alone has spurred concerns by citizen groups that FCC officials might, at some point, engage in warrantless searches of private residences.  It doesn't seem so.

While the statement might look to be asserting authority that transcends Fourth Amendment protections, one should consider the intended audience of this notice and the actual practices of government enforcement officials.  I don't think we're talking about baby monitors rated in miliwatts of transmitting power or devices that generate minimal levels of RF interference.  If a cop asserts some official-sounding administrative rule in order to trick a subject into consenting to search, that's an entirely different matter.

Yes, the Fourth subjects the government to a probable cause standard in the case of private homes.  It seems plausible that if there's an unlicensed station operating on the premises, probable cause is met and a warrant could be issued on that home and its occupants.  If the station is licensed, then it seems that implied consent to inspect is already established.

However, is a warrant even necessary if we're talking about a business, which is generally held to be open to the public during business hours?

And by broadcasting to the public over the public's airwaves, is one holding himself out as a radio station (which is a business operation), therefore no longer a private residence?

One essential question is, does a private residence lose its Fourth protection when it looks and acts like a radio station?  The FCC's position has been that radio stations are open for business during all hours of operation.

If an inspector (or firefighter or rescue worker) observes the presence of contra ban, they can report it to law enforcement.  I believe the Supreme Court has maintained that this is probable cause to issue a search warrant.

Lauren Zakrin interview at 105.1 Channel Q in Ames

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Lauren Zakrin talks to Tony Tarbox of 105.1 Channel Q in Ames, Iowa about the theatrical musical production of Legally Blonde at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines through February. Lauren has been playing Belle and will play other roles thoughout the musical's tour.

Lauren Zakrin interview

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Lauren Zakrin speaks with CJ of Kiss 107 FM in Des Moines, Iowa about the theatrical musical production of Legally Blonde at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines through February. Lauren has been playing Belle and will play other roles thoughout the musical's tour.

ADS: Media struggles to monetize wares

A Time article suggests that CNN, AOL/Time/Warner, etc., aren't making a go of it online and their bean counters are marking down the value of their companies -- in some cases to zero + hard assets.

This is a horrible time to judge the value of content in an advertising environment that has lost 30% of revenues...and more. The ugly truth is that media companies and businesses in general don't understand the new media enough to leverage its major strength, which is to highly target consumers in a meaningful way -- both with bona fide content and advertising.

Companies, with guidance from Madison Avenue, should be partnering with social media developers to find the best way to localize their message, learn all it can about the online creature, and finally stop being so annoying.

Media still thinks in terms of channel brands and they should be focusing on the quality of their individual products.

We need a watch dog on the school board

There are six school staff for every student listed on the books, a cost ratio of $87k. It costs $14,500 per student, whether active or inactive. That's $80 per day. For that kind of money, students should be eating gourmet meals and enjoying the safety of steel-reinforced bunkers while receiving the best, most intense education in the world. But they're not getting that because the money goes to administrative BS and world-class salaries instead.

On top of that, the sense among many of us is that the school board approves questionable big money deals and its members have questionable ties to notorious crooks.

So as taxpayers and parents, we need a watch dog to follow the money and hold the school board's feet to the fire. Sure, I'd rather have someone who could effectively communicate with parents instead of making unsubstantiated claims or feeding us shovels full of incomprehensible drivel, but Jon Narcisse is all we've got.

Bob Vander Plaats (R-Sioux City)

Bob Vander Plaats (R-Sioux City) announced his forming of a candidate committee to organize and raise money for the 2010 Gubernatorial race in Iowa on Jan Mickelson's program on WHO Radio (Des Moines) this morning and we caught up with him in the afternoon on Steve Deace's show.  Watch the video below.

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Grassley to meet with Des Moines "Tweeps"

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) wants to meet with members of the social networking web site "Twitter" in what's called a "tweet-up", a physical gathering intended for discussion and networking. This town hall-style "#dmtweetup" is scheduled for Friday April 17, 2009 from 3:45pm to 4:45pm at Impromptu Studio, 300 SW 5th St, Suite 220, Des Moines, Iowa.

Communism is here

The Associated Press reported that an Iowa state trooper pulled over Michael Spahlinger of Cleveland Heights, Ohio on Thursday. According to the story, the trooper pulled the vehicle over on Interstate 80 near Council Bluffs to perform a routine search and eventually discovered 48 pounds of pot.

Without getting into the whole drug debate, let's stick with the Constitutional issue, specifically the Fourth Amendment, which supposedly protects citizens from unreasonable search and seizure. The part of the story that bugs me is the phrase "routine search". As near as I can tell, any systematic searching of vehicles would be prohibited by the Constitution.

Fourth Amendment -- "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

In the years since this was written, the probable cause requirement has been somewhat weakened by the courts. A cop no longer needs probable cause of a crime to search your car without your consent. Now if an officer has reasonable suspicion that you may be armed and dangerous, he may do a weapons check without asking your permission.

Let's assume the trooper asked Michael Spahlinger if it'd be okay if he looked around. The Supreme Court has said that without reasonable suspicion, the trooper cannot demand to search the vehicle unless the driver consents. So at that point, Spahlinger could say simply that he doesn't consent to any searches.

At that point, the trooper either has to let Spahlinger get back on his merry way or call in a drug-sniffing dog within 20-30 minutes of the traffic stop.

For the most part, they've done away with road blocks for the purpose of detecting drugs, although they still get by with them for finding drunk drivers. But even then, cops would have to have a good reason for searching you or your car; they can't arbitrarily search anyone they feel like because they think they might find contraband.

I'm not an attorney, but I've studied the law and court cases regarding search & seizure issues as a hobby.

ADS: Trust between an AE and an advertiser matters

Here's an example of trust breaking down at an important moment, during the production of a radio commercial.

I've been hearing a spot for a service company on the radio recently that I find alarming from an imaging standpoint. The problem is that the client isn't enunciating well throughout the spot, particularly in stating the name of one of his primary products. I don't mean a slight enunciation error, but a whopper! In fact, "airgsher" is how it comes out.

If you heard the spot, you'd probably know what he meant by its context, so you might think I'm nit-picking a bit, but the problem is that the spot makes the business owner seem like a dolt.

I don't want to beat up on the concept of business owners voicing or appearing in their own commercials because history proves they can gain fame and fortune doing their own. Wendy's founder Dave Thomas, popcorn magnate Orville Redenbacher and KFC's Colonel Harland Sanders come to mind immediately as huge success stories. And you might remember local celebrity and college ballplayer Bill Reichardt as the man who owned Reichardt's Menswear -- or Jack from Irwin’s Bike for promising no pressure or hype ever.

But these were successes for specific reasons that have nothing to do with their ability to deliver the intended message; they were great communicators with solid reputations.

At issue is branding, the thing that influences consumers' emotions about things like the professionalism of a particularly business, contributing to overall company image. If you don't exhibit effort to speak clearly while showcasing your products in front of your prospective customers, how hard will you try to perform their installation? Or address service issues after a sale?

Lack of professionalism can become an intrinsic part of your brand; any positive image you hoped to gain from your ad can be lost because your consultants let you sound like dolt.

In this case, I suspect both the account executive and producer both held their tongues while their customer massacred his lines. They should have stepped up and respectfully recommended the client re-read those portions. In all likelihood, he would have done so graciously.

Being afraid to offend a client and risk a cancellation is no excuse for allowing his brand (and the station) to take a hit. The bigger risk is that your client discovers the trust he put in you to help bolster and grow his brand was misplaced. When that happens, he'll never darken your production studio again.

E-mail 'drafts' on Glenwood death kept secret

A couple things:

1) There's a death at a state-regulated care facility and the state regulators appear to be asleep at the wheel; and

2) The Des Moines Register reports that, during this period of time, the governor and his family are on holiday in Florida, at the residence of their longtime family friend of nearly 40 years, Bill Knapp, who coincidentally happens to have donated $112,500 to Culver's '06 campaign and at least $25,000 toward his re-election.

Well, three things, counting the comments readers posted.

3) Wow, commenter JackDM, you sound like a government insider. But like many people who post comments on the Des Moines Register's web site, you perpetuate ignorance. And by the way, if you want to refer us to a law, just give us the code chapter and section so a few of us can at least try to follow along, instead of ensuring none of us can because you don't have the digital fortitude to paste a functioning web address.

As a member of the free press, I feel the Register has an obligation to get to and report the facts regarding the handling of public government matters, just as any other citizen. As regular citizens, we should encourage their efforts to shed light on matters of public interest.

After all, public employees and elected officials have no right to privacy in their government jobs and offices, except in narrow and well defined circumstances. Nearly every action they take should be known or knowable to the public. If they act reasonably in their dealings, then they have little cause for concern. This issue isn't remotely related to the right of privacy we enjoy as citizens in our own homes. Public business on taxpayer time isn't protected.

So to the state, I say open up and be transparent; own your actions, whether right or wrong. People have a tendency to forgive honest errors in judgment, but lack of honesty and integrity is shameful.

And to the person that said court records aren't available online, check the state's judicial web site, if you have the brains, and you'll see they are!

If the story's true, I say good job Register!

People as brands

I hadn't been paying attention close enough to really embrace that people could be brands, although I think we all understand the power of certain individuals (Oprah).

The amazing thing about this dynamic is that there are actually individuals with active audiences. Large audiences. And extremely active. One person has 30,000 people that follow his tweets. When he makes a remark, tens of thousands of people get it, as if he were a walking, talking radio station. And he is, with his wireless device.

There's more about this in this really nice free mini-seminar by David Armano...


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