Restore The Fairness Doctrine and Apply To ALL Programming – Are You Fraking Kidding Flap?

There were warnings about the restoration of The Fairness Doctrine after the election of Barack Obama and the overwhelming Democrat victory in the Congress. Although Barack Obama has said he opposes reinstatement of it, we all know how he can change his mind.

Also, Flap poo-pooed the idea because technology really had passed The Fairness Doctrine by.

Now, however, comes a new proposal by a California Congresswoman, Anna Eshoo which gives Flap pause.

Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, said Monday she will work to restore the Fairness Doctrine and have it apply to cable and satellite programming as well as radio and TV.

“I’ll work on bringing it back. I still believe in it,” Eshoo told the Daily Post in Palo Alto.

The Fairness Doctrine required TV and radio stations to balance opposing points of view. It meant that those who disagreed with the political slant of a commentator were entitled to free air time to give contrasting points of view, usually in the same time slot as the original broadcast.

The doctrine was repealed by the Reagan administration’s Federal Communications Commission in 1987, and a year later, Rush Limbaugh’s show went national, ushering in a new form of AM radio.

Conservative talk show hosts fear the doctrine will result in their programs being canceled because stations don’t want to offer large amounts of air time to opponents whose response programs probably wouldn’t get good ratings.

Eshoo said she would recommend the doctrine be applied not only to radio and TV broadcasts, but also to cable and satellite services.

“It should and will affect everyone,” she said.

She called the present system “unfair,” and said “there should be equal time for the spoken word.”

So, the government will be in the speech business? Even where they have no regulatory role or control, e.g. the internet, cable and satellite communications?

Think about this. A Congresswoman, believing that “there should be equal time for the spoken word”, is going to have the government step in and regulate what can be said on privately-owned communication systems, i.e., cable television and satellite radio. And at no point does it cross her mind that this would violate the First Amendment.

How fast do you spell violation of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution? And, the United States Supreme Court eviscerating the bill/law?

Someone needs to remind the Congresswoman that the government has NO ROLE in regulation of the freedom of speech.

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”.

Stay tuned……

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The Fairness Doctrine – Technology Has Passed it By

The Worry About the Fairness Doctrine