A: What happened to the new FCC regulation that would lower the volume of TV commercials to the level of regular programming?
-- Mort Koppel, Duluth
Q: In accordance with the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation Act, the Federal Communications Commission will require commercials to have the same average volume as the programs they accompany as of Dec. 13, 2012, according to its website. The FCC adopted this rule Dec. 13 and said broadcast stations and pay TV providers have one year to become compliant. The FCC encourages viewers to report commercials that seem louder than the programming before the new rule takes effect. Reporting commercials to the FCC will help it identify possible problem areas and evaluate the efficiency of the rule. To file a complaint, call the FCC's Consumer Call Center at 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322) or 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322) TTY, fax it to 1-866-418-0232, or mail it to: Federal Communications Commission, Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau Consumer Inquiries & Complaints Division, 445 12th St. S.W., Washington, DC 20554.
Q: When is Nancy Grace going to keep her promise and give the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children the $250,000 she promised them?
-- Michael Scanlon, Pauma Valley, Calif.
A: Grace, host of her own HLN show, has already sent a check to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, an HLN representative told Q&A on the News in an email. She had said she would donate her earnings from appearing on "Dancing With the Stars" to the center, according to ABC.com.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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