Today the Federal Communications Commission issued their report to Congress about BusRadio. Parents and other citizens should read this report; school board members, superintendents, and pupil transportation directors NEED to read this report. Obligation urges every school district that still has BusRadio playing on their buses should suspend the playing of BusRadio until this report can be read and appropriate public forums can be set up to present the information in this report to the public for their comment.
By reading this report, school officials and the public will understand why there is so much controversy concerning BusRadio. Too many school officials, especially pupil transportation directors appear to believe whatever BusRadio says. That will no longer be the case after this report gets around the country.
You can use one of these links to view the full FCC report. The FCC never had jurisdiction over BusRadio because of a technicality: the programming is delivered via the Internet and not the airwaves. So the FCC was never going to take any action against BusRadio the company. What the FCC has reviewed all the issues that so many local schools never did before the “special” radios were installed.
Towards the end of the report (page 22) is a very important discussion about safety issues. BusRadio says they make buses safer. Obligation says the loudness of the radio and the content aimed at drivers (1) (2) all have the potential to diminish bus safety. The FCC rightly believes that this issue alone deserves more attention at the local level. “As these conflicting views demonstrate, BusRadio has the potential both to enhance and hamper the safety of bus passengers. Given the paramount importance of this issue for children who are or could be recipients of BusRadio, it would be beneficial for parents and other relevant stakeholders to engage in a timely and extensive dialogue about whether the safety benefits of BusRadio service clearly outweigh any potential harms.”
If you are a school official, the time is NOW to engage in a timely and extensive PUBLIC dialogue about BusRadio.
