Is the "Fairness Doctrine" Really Fair?
As President elect, Barack Obama, prepares to take office in a few months he may find himself dealing with an issue he did not see coming. Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi are pushing for a reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine, a doctrine that, in my opinion, goes against the very foundations for which this country was formed. Representative Mike Pence of Indiana is leading the Republican charge against such reinstatement.
So, what exactly is the Fairness Doctrine and how does it apply to this class? Here is a little background on the Fairness Doctrine: it was a policy established by the FCC under President Roosevelt that required licensed broadcasters to present both sides of an issue if that issue was of public importance. The Supreme Court sided with the FCC and this policy was upheld until the FCC decided to have it withdrawn. In 1987 both houses of Congress passed a law that would have legally enforced the Fairness Doctrine but it was quickly vetoed by then President Ronald Reagan. Reagan responded to the bill in this way, “This type of content-based regulation by the federal government is, in my judgment, antagonistic to the freedom of expression guaranteed by the Constitution.” Recently, some Democrats are seeking to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, not through the FCC, but through possible Congressional legislation, much like the bill vetoed by Reagan in ‘87. The Democrats catalyst for suggesting such action… talk radio.
As previously discussed in class, talk radio is a predominately conservative medium. In the document posted to the blog by Professor Kramer some reasons for this include: 1.) The American public is generally more Conservative, 2.) It developed as a result of the mainstream media which many Conservatives felt had a liberal bias, and 3.) The overwhelming segmentation of liberal audiences and relative homogeneousness of Conservative audiences. For these 3 reasons, liberal voices have been drowned out while Conservative voices like Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, and Sean Hannity have flourished on the airwaves.
A reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine would require FCC licensed broadcasters to provide programming that would balance out radio airwaves, making it mandatory for radio broadcasters to provide equal air time to every viewpoint. This means that Rush Limbaugh would have to be countered with a show expressing the liberal viewpoint.
I personally take issue with a possible reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine. Liberal views are allowed to be heard on the radio just as much as Conservative views. Liberals have only themselves to blame for their lack of presence on the airwaves. Liberal talk radio shows have not experienced success because they can not generate a large enough audience. Rush Limbaugh himself would never promote stifling Liberal views on the radio. In fact, he would probably welcome the competition.
Senator Dianne Feinstein, a supporter of reinstating the Fairness Doctrine, said on Fox News that talk radio “tends to be dwelling in hyperbole, its explosive, it pushes people to, I think, extreme views without a lot of information.” Senator Feinstein is promoting the passage of a law that would severely restrict our First Amendment rights. Talk radio, specifically political talk radio, does not do damage or harm to anyone. What Feinstein is really saying, is that it does damage and harm to the Democratic political agenda. It is no coincidence that Democrats are trying to stifle talk radio. They see it as a powerful tool for advancing the Conservative agenda.
When considering the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine it is important to consider what the Founding Father’s intended when they formed our great nation. The First Amendment was established to allow for the free expression of views. The Fairness Doctrine would restrict this freedom of expression. Liberals are allowed to express their views on the radio as easily as Conservatives.
This debate will continue to rage and eventually our new President may be forced to make an important decision on the issue. This is another example of an important issue the American people should be more aware of, but are not.
I guess this answer to the title of this blog post is "NO!" The Fairness Doctrine is not fair, because it would put restrictions on free speech, something all Americans are guaranteed.
So, what exactly is the Fairness Doctrine and how does it apply to this class? Here is a little background on the Fairness Doctrine: it was a policy established by the FCC under President Roosevelt that required licensed broadcasters to present both sides of an issue if that issue was of public importance. The Supreme Court sided with the FCC and this policy was upheld until the FCC decided to have it withdrawn. In 1987 both houses of Congress passed a law that would have legally enforced the Fairness Doctrine but it was quickly vetoed by then President Ronald Reagan. Reagan responded to the bill in this way, “This type of content-based regulation by the federal government is, in my judgment, antagonistic to the freedom of expression guaranteed by the Constitution.” Recently, some Democrats are seeking to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, not through the FCC, but through possible Congressional legislation, much like the bill vetoed by Reagan in ‘87. The Democrats catalyst for suggesting such action… talk radio.
As previously discussed in class, talk radio is a predominately conservative medium. In the document posted to the blog by Professor Kramer some reasons for this include: 1.) The American public is generally more Conservative, 2.) It developed as a result of the mainstream media which many Conservatives felt had a liberal bias, and 3.) The overwhelming segmentation of liberal audiences and relative homogeneousness of Conservative audiences. For these 3 reasons, liberal voices have been drowned out while Conservative voices like Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, and Sean Hannity have flourished on the airwaves.
A reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine would require FCC licensed broadcasters to provide programming that would balance out radio airwaves, making it mandatory for radio broadcasters to provide equal air time to every viewpoint. This means that Rush Limbaugh would have to be countered with a show expressing the liberal viewpoint.
I personally take issue with a possible reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine. Liberal views are allowed to be heard on the radio just as much as Conservative views. Liberals have only themselves to blame for their lack of presence on the airwaves. Liberal talk radio shows have not experienced success because they can not generate a large enough audience. Rush Limbaugh himself would never promote stifling Liberal views on the radio. In fact, he would probably welcome the competition.
Senator Dianne Feinstein, a supporter of reinstating the Fairness Doctrine, said on Fox News that talk radio “tends to be dwelling in hyperbole, its explosive, it pushes people to, I think, extreme views without a lot of information.” Senator Feinstein is promoting the passage of a law that would severely restrict our First Amendment rights. Talk radio, specifically political talk radio, does not do damage or harm to anyone. What Feinstein is really saying, is that it does damage and harm to the Democratic political agenda. It is no coincidence that Democrats are trying to stifle talk radio. They see it as a powerful tool for advancing the Conservative agenda.
When considering the reinstatement of the Fairness Doctrine it is important to consider what the Founding Father’s intended when they formed our great nation. The First Amendment was established to allow for the free expression of views. The Fairness Doctrine would restrict this freedom of expression. Liberals are allowed to express their views on the radio as easily as Conservatives.
This debate will continue to rage and eventually our new President may be forced to make an important decision on the issue. This is another example of an important issue the American people should be more aware of, but are not.
I guess this answer to the title of this blog post is "NO!" The Fairness Doctrine is not fair, because it would put restrictions on free speech, something all Americans are guaranteed.
posted by Erin Horvath | 12:23 PM
1 Comments:
The Fairness Doctrine is an issue that I am stuck on. I understand the reasoning for reinforcing it to show audiences both sides of issues so no one is ill educated on issues. However, I think that reinforcing it is somewhat unnecessary because I feel like for political talk shows, they will always have both sides (liberal vs Conservative) just to make a good show with arguing and disputing. Talk radio is probably one of the mediums that I understand why the Fairness Doctrine should be brought back. Talk radio is dominated by conservatives and I think that there should be more liberal talk shows just to give conservatives some competition.
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