NAB Joint Board Chairman Steve Newberry, testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday, holds up an RIAA-certified plaque presented to a local radio station recognizing the station's promotional role in helping sale 9 million copies of 'Confessions', the 2004 album from Usher.

Also speaking out at the hearing was Sen. Al Franken. No stranger to the radio world, the former Air America Radio host seemed to be sympathetic to both sides of the argument with his comments. Franken noted that he was familiar with the struggles of broadcasters from his involvement with Air America, but also said that some of the NAB's arguments about radio's promotion for artists didn't always hold up, citing that the estate of Roy Orbison doesn't really benefit from concert promotion.

James Winston, head of the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB), spoke about the financial troubles facing minority broadcasters, bringing Arbitron's PPM methodology into his argument. "It is my hope that once you understand the current plight of minority broadcasters, you will understand why it is impossible for us to pay additional copyright royalties," Winston said. "The damages to minority broadcasters are not theoretical, they are real, quantifiable, and devastating."

Sens. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), sponsors of the Performance Rights Act, both were on hand and confident the legislation would move forward. Leahy said, "This is legislation that's going to move. The time to sit down and talk is now," according to Congress Daily.

Other Senators put in their two-cents, including Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), whose suggestion that artists can be put on a do-not-play list for radio was quickly dismissed as impossible and unfeasible. Bob Kimble, EVP of Real Networks, spoke up on the Internet radio front, calling for parity on the royalty rates between all forms of radio.

Video of the entire hearing is archived on the Senate's website and can be found here.