A number of Christian radio stations across the United States have joined together to file a discrimination lawsuit against the government, alleging that the rates they are being charged for royalties effectively suppress their religious speech.
The lawsuit follows a 2021 ruling by the US Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) which made Christian religious broadcasters pay standard royalty rates on songs they play during broadcasts.
Christian Radio Lawsuit
A lawsuit filed in February pits the National Religious Broadcasters Noncommercial Music License Committee against the Copyright Royalty Board and Librarian of Congress of the United States.
Previously, religious noncommercial radio stations enjoyed a lower royalty rate for music that they play but the lawsuit alleges that Christian stations having to pay standard rates is unfair.
Secular Versus Religious
The lawsuit pointed out the discrepancy between a secular radio podcast like NPR and a Christian one in terms of what they have to pay.
“The Copyright Royalty Board sets default royalty rates for webcasting sound recordings. Recently, the Board adopted rates requiring noncommercial religious webcasters to pay over 18 times the secular NPR-webcaster rate to communicate religious messages to listeners above a modest 218-average listener threshold,” the lawsuit said.
Commercial Level Cost
Rory Gray with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) feels that the government singling out religious broadcasters to pay higher rates is unfair.
“Noncommercial religious broadcasters are now paying rates at a commercial level,” said Gray, who serves as counsel for the National Religious Broadcasters Noncommercial Music License Committee in the case. “They just want to pay a fair rate, the same rate that the secular NPR stations are paying.”
Suppressing Religious Speech
Gray takes the argument a step further, insisting that the government ruling that increases streaming costs for religious radio amounts to suppression of religious speech.
“The government is charging religious broadcasters a significantly higher rate,” said Gray.“It suppresses religious speech in the public sphere.”
Two Tier Structure
The lawsuit alleges that the ruling has in effect created a two-tier system that elevates secular programming but punishes religious programming.
“The result is a two-tier noncommercial rate structure with secular NPR stations at the top and religious stations on the bottom…This discriminatory treatment elevates secular content and suppresses religious speech online, putting religious stations at a severe disadvantage in the marketplace of ideas,” the lawsuit says.
Feelings of Artists
Some Christian artists take a different perspective on the changes in royalty agreements since it means they will be able to receive a better profit from their work.
The lower royalties for Christian artists created a system where Christian artists would make much less than their contemporary mainstream music peers.
It’s a Big Business
Critics of lower royalty rates disagree with some Christian radio stations trying to frame themselves as the little guy against the government just because they take viewer donations.
“This is a far cry from the small volunteer-run community stations the CRB rates are meant to protect,” said chief operating officer for SESAC Music Group Malcolm Hawker about KLOVE, a popular Christian music radio station that has more than $1 billion in assets. “I believe that it’s inherently unfair for these networks to exploit the CRB rate structure that’s available to educational radio stations given their financial profiles and the significant amount of money they raise using music to build a large audience.”
Right to Pay Less
The crux of the disagreement comes down to whether non-commercial Christian stations have a right to pay artists less or if the higher rate they pay compared to NPR stations amounts to discrimination.
Supporters of the higher rates argue that stations like NPR provide high-quality educational content that should be rewarded with lower rates, while Christian stations are under no such educational obligation.
Free Speech Discrimination
John Bursh, senior counsel for the ADF, feels like the First Amendment is clear on this issue.
“Religious broadcasters should have the freedom to exercise their faith and free speech without discrimination, but government officials are forcing them to pay exorbitant fees or have their constitutionally protected speech suppressed,” Bursch said.
Online Streaming
The rise of online music streaming has thrown a wrench into consideration for Christian radio stations, who increasingly have to use it to reach listeners.
Experts in the radio industry have long predicted that the future of radio will be online, which makes the fight over royalty streaming rights even more important.
Future of Radio
Lee Abrams, former Chief Programming Officer of XM Satellite Radio is convinced that the future of radio will move towards online streaming.
“The future is via the internet, it’s a new environment. It’s where brilliant new ideas that resonate with both the new and old mainstream can happen. It’s where new ways of creation and distribution will flourish. Apple, Amazon, Spotify and others yet-to-emerge can dominate the ‘radio’ experience as they do with music consumption,” Abrams said.
