TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Sep 15, 2023

A Federal Communications Commission (FCC) judge has rejected the agency's effort to strip the license of "Jammin" 99.7 FM/1040 WJBE, Knoxville's only Black-owned radio station. According to the Knoxville News Sentinel, the FCC initiated a license revocation hearing due to the owner's 2016 conviction for filing a false income tax return and failure to disclose the conviction in license renewal applications. Joe Armstrong, the owner, successfully defended the station with the help of the Institute for Justice, arguing that the conviction shouldn't disqualify him from operating the station. Armstrong says he plans to continue growing and serving the community through WJBE.