Posted by
Gary A McAvin on Tuesday, July 17, 2007 6:23:26 AM
In 1949, the FCC established the Fairness Doctrine as a policy which guaranteed (among other things) the presentation of both sides of a controversial issue. The Fairness Doctrine continued from 1949 until 1987, when it was discontinued by the Federal Communications Commission. This doctrine policy required broadcasters, as a condition of getting their licenses from the FCC, to cover controversial issues in their community, and to do so by offering some balancing views. For instance; if one broadcaster said oranges, it could be counter-balanced with another saying apples! Although the Fairness Doctrine was enacted to promote pluralism, eventually it produced an opposite effect. Declared in violation of the First Amendment, the Fairness Doctrine was repealed, and attempts to provide constitutional protection for the doctrine were vetoed by President Reagan in 1987. The FCC stated: "We no longer believe that the Fairness Doctrine, as a matter of policy, serves the public interests. Rather, we conclude that the Fairness Doctrine is no longer a necessary or appropriate means by which to effectuate this interest. Furthermore, we find that the Fairness Doctrine, in operation actually inhibits the presentation of controversial issues of public importance to the detriment of the public and in degradation of the editorial prerogative of broadcast journalists.”
In 1987 a bill to place the Fairness Doctrine into federal law passed the House by 3 to 1, and the Senate by nearly 2 to 1, but it was vetoed by President Ronald Reagan. President Reagan exhibited some common sense in vetoing this biased (basically one-sided) legislation. In 1989 the Fairness Doctrine easily passed the House again, but didn't proceed further as President George Bush threatened to veto it. Since these attempts to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, media ownership has passed into fewer and fewer hands.
Let’s be honest; who benefits most from the quasi Fairness Doctrine if implemented? The liberals and Democrats who actually want the light of truth to not shine directly on them! They want to operate in darkness and abstruseness while pursuing their devious agendas. They are against exposure by any means of the word or thought. Why do you suppose this is even an issue with the socialist, liberal, Democrats? They do not want the people of America apprized to their devious and wicked doings. You cannot put the people under control and institute Gestapo doctrines if they are aware of the plan, can you? When truthful talk shows or unbiased newspaper reporting is revealing their real purpose to the American people, the expose frightens and also angers these unscrupulous rejects!
Fairness Doctrine; I don’t think so! This push for the resurrection and passage of this antiquated assault on the First Amendment will only result in silencing the truth from those who are willing to speak it. Can we allow the stifling of one of the major points on which this nation was founded? Do you ever think about the reasoning it was (freedom of speech) in the FIRST amendment? “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.” And; liberals, fascists, socialists, the ACLU et al have used this amendment to qualify everything from nudity to petrified excrement in their expression of freedom of speech rights. And; now they want to muzzle and control what is said, and; by whom? What foolishness this will be; truly a double standard is at work to shut down truth!
Conclusion:
If this worthless doctrine of supposed fairness is resurrected and passed, the next step is loss of enormous proportionalities. Without freedom of speech, what is the next step; concentration camps? This is a downhill piece of junk legislation with no fairness attached whatsoever. This is a one-sided shut your mouth freedom of speech killing prevarication. The problem that most normal thinking people have with the liberal Democratic goose stepping talk agenda is this; they don’t want to hear it! And; that’s the problem for these control everything agenda driven misfits!