Description of document: Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Complaints about Saturday Night Live (SNL), 2019-2021 and Dave Chappelle, 11/1/2020-12/10/2020 Requested date: 2021 Release date: 21-December-2021 Posted date: 12-July-2021 Source of document: Freedom of Information Act Request Federal Communications Commission Office of Inspector General 45 L Street NE Washington, D.C. 20554 FOIAonline The governmentattic.org web site (“the site”) is a First Amendment free speech web site and is noncommercial and free to the public. The site and materials made available on the site, such as this file, are for reference only. The governmentattic.org web site and its principals have made every effort to make this information as complete and as accurate as possible, however, there may be mistakes and omissions, both typographical and in content. 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Federal Communications Commission Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau Washington, D.C. 20554 December 21, 2021 VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL FOIA Nos. 2021-000119 and 2021-000120 This letter responds to your recent Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests received by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC or Commission) and assigned to the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB). Your requests seek the following: 1) complaints filed during the time period 11/1/20 to 12/10/20 regarding Dave Chappelle; 2) complaints filed during the past three years about Saturday Night Live (SNL). Your requests have been assigned FOIA Control Nos. 2021-000119 and 2021-000120. We are responding to your requests electronically. CGB conducted a search of the databases containing informal complaints. CGB identified approximately 361 complaints responsive to your request.1 Records responsive to your request were withheld or redacted under FOIA Exemption 6. Exemption 6 protects “personnel and medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.” Balancing the public’s right to disclosure against the individual’s right to privacy, we have determined that release of this information would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.2 Therefore, certain personal identifying information, including the complainant’s name and phone number, has been redacted under Exemption 6. We have determined that it is reasonably foreseeable that a disclosure would harm the privacy interest of the persons mentioned in these records, which Exemption 6 is intended to protect. 1 Pages 348-357 of the attached are responsive to both requests. 2 5 U.S.C. § 552 (b)(6); see also 47 CFR § 0.457(f). The FCC receives many complaints and comments that do not involve violations of the Communications Act or any FCC rule or order. Thus, a complaint or comment does not necessarily indicate any wrongdoing by any individuals or entities named in the complaint or comment. We are required by both the FOIA and the Commission’s own rules to charge requesters certain fees associated with the costs of searching for, reviewing and duplicating the sought-after information. To calculate the appropriate fee, requesters are classified as (1) commercial use requesters; (2) educational requesters, non-commercial scientific organizations, or representatives of the of the news media, or (3) all other requesters. Pursuant to section 0.466(a)(8) of the Commission’s rules, you have been classified for fee purposes as category (3), “all other requesters.”3 As an “all other requester,” the FCC assesses charges to recover the full, reasonable direct cost of searching for and reproducing records that are responsive to the request; you are entitled, however, to be furnished with the first 100 pages of reproduction and the first two hours of search time without charge under section 0.470(a)(3)(i) of the Commission’s rules.4 Because preparing the response to your requests falls within these limits, the FCC is not charging you for processing the above requests. If you consider this to be a denial of your FOIA request, you may seek review by filing an application for review with the Office of General Counsel. An application for review must be received by the Commission within 90 calendar days of the date of this letter.5 You may file an application for review by mailing the application to Federal Communications Commission, Office of General Counsel, 45 L St NE, Washington, DC 20554, or you may file your application for review electronically by e-mailing it to [email protected]. Please caption the envelope (or subject line, if via e-mail) and the application itself as “Review of Freedom of Information Action,” and the application should refer to FOIA Nos. 2021-000119 and 2021-000120. If you would like to discuss this response before filing an application for review to attempt to resolve your dispute without going through the appeals process, you may contact the Commission’s FOIA Public Liaison for assistance at: FOIA Public Liaison Federal Communications Commission, Office of the Managing Director, Performance Evaluation and Records Management 45 L St NE, Washington, DC 20554 202-418-0440 [email protected] 3 47 CFR § 0.466(a)(8). 4 47 CFR § 0.470(a)(3)(i). 5 47 CFR §§ 0.461(j), 1.115; 47 CFR § 1.7 (documents are considered filed with the Commission upon their receipt at the location designated by the Commission). 2 If you are unable to resolve your FOIA dispute through the Commission’s FOIA Public Liaison, the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS), the Federal FOIA Ombudsman’s Office, offers mediation services to help resolve disputes between FOIA requesters and Federal agencies. The contact information for OGIS is Office of Government Information Services National Archives and Records Administration 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS College Park, MD 20740-6001 202-741-5770 877-684-6448 [email protected] ogis.archives.gov Attachments Cc: FCC FOIA Office 3 _____________________________________________________________________________ Ticket: # 1406519 - liberal bias on comedy shows Date: 1/19/2017 8:02:35 PM City/State/Zip: Harrisonville,, Missouri 64701 _____________________________________________________________________________ Description nearly every late now comedy show is biased against Donald Trump especially Saturday Night Live Alec Baldwin, they'd be silent if Hillary Clinton won, I hear nothing mocking the Democrat leadship, they are doing more to divide America than the President elect _____________________________________________________________________________ Ticket: # 1408823 - Bullying children Date: 1/21/2017 2:49:03 AM City/State/Zip: Victorville, California 92395 _____________________________________________________________________________ Description NBC encourages and allows its' signature series, Saturday Night Live writers and actors to personally insult the minor children of politicians. Referring to Barron Trump the 10 year old son of Donald Trump. Katie Rich, The comedy writer, tweeted on a public forum that Barron Trump would be “the next homeschool shooter”. Such irresponsibility should not be exhibited by a network with a broadcast license to broadcast into our homes over the airwaves. As a citizen of the United States I am greatly offended and feel that some action should be taken by federal authorities to assure that this type of behavior will not continue by a business that has a license issued by your agency. I know that this was done in a tweet on the internet that was deleted but are there no industry decency standards when it comes to children? https://twitter.com/(b) (6) /status/822570179293020160/photo/1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw _____________________________________________________________________________ Ticket: # 1410216 - Katie Rich Date: 1/22/2017 5:43:36 PM City/State/Zip: Anderson, South Carolina 29621 _____________________________________________________________________________ Description Katie Rich represents NBC as a writer for SNL. She has made a statement against President Trump's son Baron that is horrible. Never bully a child because you do not like their parent. Some type of action needs to be taken against her. _____________________________________________________________________________ Ticket: # 1410392 - SNL twitter kaitlin Rich Date: 1/22/2017 9:33:39 PM City/State/Zip: Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18017 _____________________________________________________________________________ Description Her twitter comment about president trumps son. _____________________________________________________________________________ Ticket: # 1410511 - Media Access / Sensorship during a national campaign and election (95-96) & (2015-16) Date: 1/23/2017 12:15:56 AM City/State/Zip: Opelika, Alabama 36801 Company Complaining About: All National Networks (nbc, Abc, Cbs, Fox, Pbs) _____________________________________________________________________________ Description There is an ongoing