Orientation summary — a fast, cited starting point, not a substitute for reading the filings. Generated from the public ECFS record.
Public comments — 11,365 filings
Sentiment of the general public's web-form comments — separate from the industry positions. 11,365 comments, 232 distinct versions after grouping form letters.
Bottom line: Public comments run overwhelmingly opposed. This reflects the volume of public write-in comments — not the weight of legal argument, or the standard the FCC applies.
Estimated split: 100% oppose. Support = wants the FCC to adopt/keep the action; Oppose = wants it rejected; Unclear = neutral or off-topic.
How we know: 98% of comments are grouped form letters classified exactly; the rest are estimated from a random sample of 232 distinct comments.
Top themes
- streaming costs — 3,085 (oppose)
- local TV preference — 2,757 (oppose)
- ad revenue loss — 1,251 (oppose)
- subscription burden — 1,002 (oppose)
- streaming issues — 886 (oppose)
- exclusive rights worry — 596 (oppose)
- local access loss — 301 (oppose)
- streaming confusion — 286 (oppose)
What people wrote
- OPPOSE: “I am writing as a sports fan who is frustrated by how expensive and confusing it has become to follow my favorite teams. Games are now spread across multiple streaming services, each with its own cost, app and access rules. It should not be this hard or this expensive for fans to” — 3,085 filed this
- OPPOSE: “As a sports fan, nothing beats gathering around the TV with my family and friends to watch our favorite teams. Local TV stations bring us the biggest games, make it easy to find the action and share these moments together. But as more games move to exclusive streaming platforms, ” — 2,753 filed this
- OPPOSE: “Sports belong on TV. I’ve had to use apps to watch sports and the quality is terrible, and it’s extremely confusing. It takes me twice as long just to figure out how to watch. On top of all this, I end up having to pay for some new website that I have to figure out how to find, a” — 286 filed this
- OTHER: “dadad” — 21 filed this
- SUPPORT: “I support your efforts to make watching sports games on network tv more accessible. I live in a rural area and watch mainly network tv. I am only able to watch limited games of any sport. My main issue is that taxpayer dollars pay for statium construction and other related costs”
- SUPPORT: “Since the advent of streaming tv, it has become increasingly difficult to watch sports events without paid subscriptions, even major events like the MLB playoffs. I support FCC action to resolve this issue.”
How this sentiment is measured
We read the public express comments from the FCC's ECFS record, group identical form letters and count them exactly, then classify a random sample of the distinct versions and extrapolate to all 11,365 comments. This is public sentiment only; it is not a measure of the legal merits or how the Commission will rule.
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