The FCC policies do not violate equal protection since they bear the imprimatur of longstanding congressional support and direction and are substantially related to the achievement of the important governmental objective of broadcast diversity.
Metro Broadcasting, Inc. v. FCC, 497 U.S. 547 (1990), was a case decided by the
equal protection challenges to federal statutes using benign racial classifications.[1] The Court distinguished the previous year's decision City of Richmond v. J.A. Croson Co.,[2] by noting that it applied only to actions by state and local governments.[3]Metro Broadcasting was overruled by Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Peña, which held that strict scrutiny should be applied to federal laws that use benign racial classifications.[4] This opinion was the last authored by William J. Brennan Jr., the longtime leader of the Court's liberal wing.[5]
^"William J. Brennan". Oyez. Retrieved February 11, 2024. In Brennan's last vote as a Supreme Court Justice, he sided with the majority in Metro Broadcasting v. Federal Communications Commission (1990), upholding the constitutionality of two federal affirmative action programs aimed at increasing black ownership of radio and television stations.
