Interep Applauds FCC Decision to Adopt the Ban on ‘No Urban Dictates and No Hispanic Dictates’

Interep’s (IREP.PK) Sherman Kizart, senior vice president of the company’s Urban Marketing division, said today his company applauds the Federal Communication Commission’s decision to adopt the ban on “no Urban and no Hispanic dictates” by advertisers and their agencies.

“This is tremendously important because it sheds light on the issue,” Kizart said. “Many people believe that ‘no Urban dictates and no Hispanic dictates’ are a thing of the past, but they most definitely are not. In fact, they cost Urban and Hispanic stations millions of dollars a year in ad revenue. By shining a bright light on the subject, the FCC is acknowledging that the problem still exists. Hopefully, this edict will be the beginning of the final chapter for ‘no Urban dictates and no Hispanic dictates.’”

Kizart said that Interep has been fighting “no urban dictates” for well over a decade. In the 1990’s Interep worked closely with the FCC on a report that detailed the scope of the problem. Interep also continues to work with advertisers and agencies on reversing “no Urban dictates and no Hispanic dictates” by demonstrating the value and spending power the Urban and Hispanic audience brings to the consumer marketplace. This effort is conducted through in-person meetings as well as via Interep’s annual Power of Urban Radio events and Power of Hispanic Radio panels held this past year.