September 24, 2013
Media Watchdogs, CA Common Cause to Urge
FCC to Yank License of Sacramento Radio Station
After Death of Listener in 'Hold Your Wee for a WII'
Stunt
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SACRAMENTO
– Media
Action Center, in conjunction with the Sacramento Media Group and California
Common Cause, is filing a petition to deny the broadcast license of KDND.
MAC's Director, Sue Wilson will personally deliver
the legal documents to the FCC at its open meeting in Washington DC October
22.
Details
will be released at the Wednesday news conference in Sacramento.
.
In 2009, a jury determined that Entercom was 100
percent responsible for the death of Mrs. Strange. Although the family – which
received a $16 million judgment for the wrongful death from Entercom – asked
the FCC to revoke KDND's license, the FCC has not taken any action. The
deadline for a legal challenge to the KDND license is Nov. 1, 2013.
.
"If we drive so recklessly that we kill someone, our insurance company will pay restitution, and the DMV will revoke our license to drive. When a radio station broadcasts so recklessly that it kills someone, its insurance company pays restitution, and the FCC must revoke its license to broadcast," said Wilson. "If ever there is a time the FCC should act on behalf of the public interest, it is now."
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"If we drive so recklessly that we kill someone, our insurance company will pay restitution, and the DMV will revoke our license to drive. When a radio station broadcasts so recklessly that it kills someone, its insurance company pays restitution, and the FCC must revoke its license to broadcast," said Wilson. "If ever there is a time the FCC should act on behalf of the public interest, it is now."
.
Wilson
said the staff knew the contest could be deadly (and) made fun of a water
intoxication death on the air a month before the contest, but purposely did not
give the contestants that information. Staff did draft a set of rules
explaining the hazards of the contest, but instead just gave the contestants a
generic release form to sign, one so vague a judge later ruled it was no waiver
at all.
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Throughout
the contest, concerned listeners called into the station to inform them of the
danger, but the DeeJays made sure the contestants could not hear those
calls. Contestant after contestant fell ill, suffering severe headaches
and vomiting into wastebaskets, all while the KDND staff laughed and took their
pictures. Even after the contest, when Jennifer Strange told the Morning Rave
crew she was too ill to drive home, they abandoned her to the station's lobby.
She died hours later at home of hyponatremia.
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More
information: www.mediaactioncenter.net
www.commoncause.org/ca/fccaccountable
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