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                             Before the
                 Federal Communications Commission
                       Washington, D.C. 20554

In the Matter of                 )      MM Docket No. 93-177
                                 )
An Inquiry Into the Commission's )
Policies and Rules Regarding AM  ) 
Radio Service Directional Antenna)      RM-7594
Performance Verification         )                    


                              ORDER

   Adopted:  August 31, 1999             Released:  August 31, 1999

Comment date:  September 10, 1999
Reply comment date:  September 27, 1999

By the Chief, Mass Media Bureau:

     1.  We have before us a joint motion by the National Association of Broadcasters ("NAB"), AMFM
Inc., Clear Channel Communications, Inc., and The Walt Disney Company, on behalf of its subsidiary,
ABC, Inc., [collectively Movants] for a 60-day extension of the comment and reply comment periods in
the above-captioned proceeding.  For the reasons stated below, we are granting a 60-day extension of
time.

     2.  In the Notice of Proposed Rule Making, the Commission proposed to establish rules reducing the
regulatory requirements for AM Broadcasters using directional antennas.  The Notice established comment
and reply comment dates of September 10, 1999 and September 27, 1999, respectively.  

     3.  In support of its extension request, Movants assert that the additional time would be used to
convene a group of engineering consultants and broadcast engineers with expertise in the field of modeling
the performance of AM directional antennas with modern computer software.  Movants explain that this
group will enable NAB and the industry to develop a consensus regarding the performance of AM
directional antenna computer modeling programs and the degree to which they might permit certain field
measurements to be eliminated.  The additional time would also enable interested parties to investigate
a number of issues raised in the Notice - including the definition of critical arrays, validity of monitor
points, number of field strength measurement radials necessary for proof-of-performance, and relevance
of graphical and statistical analysis techniques - and to report the findings of the joint discussions on these
issues to the Commission.

     4.  We believe that a 60-day extension of the comment periods is appropriate.  We will therefore grant
the motion by extending the comment and reply comment dates to November 9, 1999 and November 24,
1999, respectively.  This extension will help us ensure a high-quality record and facilitate the ability of
parties to explore the complex technical issues in this proceeding.  It will also enable the Commission to
identify the range of potential issues that must be resolved in this proceeding.  

     5.  Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that the motion for an extension of the comment and reply comment
periods filed by the National Association of Broadcasters, AMFM Inc., Clear Channel Communications,
Inc., and The Walt Disney Company IS GRANTED.

     6.  IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the comment period in this proceeding IS EXTENDED to
November 9, 1999.

     7.  IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the reply comment period in this proceeding IS EXTENDED
to November 24, 1999.

                     FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION



                     Roy J. Stewart
                     Chief, Mass Media Bureau