Free Republic

President-elect Barack Obama intends to nominate his technology adviser, Julius Genachowski, to head the Federal Communications Commission, a Democratic source close to the Obama transition team said.

It was an important and impressive vote in the Senate.  By a vote of 87-11, the Senate approved an amendment by Senator Jim DeMint which prohibits the FCC from reinstating the Fairness Doctrine and requiring broadcasters - including Christian broadcasters - always air both sides of a controversial issue.While this is an important victory, it is Round One.  Also in the Senate yesterday, an amendment by Senator Dick Durbin was approved by a much closer vote, 57-41 - an amendment that attempts to promote 'diversity' in media ownership.That amendment is still of concern to those who support broadcast freedom -...

Good news. Kind of. The Senate voted Thursday in favor of an amendment to the District of Columbia voting-rights bill that would prohibit the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from reinstating the so-called Fairness Doctrine, which critics say would decimate conservative talk radio…Republicans have introduced the Broadcaster Freedom Act in the House as well, but Democrats are not expected to allow a vote on the bill…The amendment, sponsored by Senate Republican Steering Committee Chairman Jim DeMint (S.C.) and Senate Republican Conference Vice Chairman John Thune (S.D.), would block the FCC from reviving equal-time requirements by enacting the Broadcaster Freedom Act....

The Senate today moved to ban the Federal Communications Commission from reintroducing the Fairness Doctrine, stuffing the measure into legislation that would give the District of Columbia its own congressman.The Fairness Doctrine required broadcasters to offer equal time to differing viewpoints. It was abolished by the FCC in 1987 but conservative radio talk shows have regularly stirred up concern it would be revived by the FCC under a Democratic administration. Democrats haven’t made such a move and say they have no plans to do so.The amendment to block the FCC from acting was one of several amendments added to the...

Remember the “Fairness Doctrine”? It was the FCC mandate that required equal representation of viewpoints on the airwaves in the 1970s and 80s. If a given radio channel aired three hours of conservative talk radio, it had to balance those out with three hours of liberal talk radio. President Ronald Reagan struck this down in 1987 and the popularity that conservative talk radio has garnered since has some members of the House and Senate calling for the doctrine’s reintroduction. I have only one question: “Would the legislators who are pushing for the reinstitution of the ‘Fairness Doctrine’ be willing to...

OPINION FEBRUARY 20, 2009 Mr. President, Keep the Airwaves Free As a former law professor, surely you understand the Bill of Rights. By RUSH LIMBAUGH Dear President Obama: I have a straightforward question, which I hope you will answer in a straightforward way: Is it your intention to censor talk radio through a variety of contrivances, such as "local content," "diversity of ownership," and "public interest" rules -- all of which are designed to appeal to populist sentiments but, as you know, are the death knell of talk radio and the AM band? You have singled me out directly, admonishing...

All this talk about the "Fairness Doctrine" is obscuring the real danger to America's freedom of the press. The real issue is the Obama administration's desire to steal television broadcasting licenses from the current station owners and give them to his radical friends such as ACORN and the labor unions. This is not some "black helicopter" conspiracy. It's very real, and like Obama's other most-dangerous plans, can be implemented by the simple stroke of the pen. First, a little background on the real value of television stations. In the words of Fred Friendly, television stations really exist only for one...

Obama: FCC Policies Must Encourage Media Ownership Diversity Monday, October 22, 2007 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Amy Brundage, 202 228 5511 FCC Rule Changes Must First Assess and Address Minority Media Ownership WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) today sent the following letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin J. Martin, calling on him to launch an independent review panel to develop proposals to further promote media ownership diversity. According to press accounts, following an insufficient 30-day review, the FCC intends to modify existing ownership rules by allowing greater media market consolidation. This would allow large media...

The House Democrats' $825 billion legislation released on Thursday was supposedly intended to "stimulate" the economy. Backers claimed that speedy approval was vital because the nation is in "a crisis not seen since the Great Depression" and "the economy is shutting down." That's the rhetoric. But in reality, Democrats are using the 258-page legislation to sneak Net neutrality rules in through the back door. The so-called stimulus package hands out billions of dollars in grants for broadband and wireless development, primarily in what are called "unserved" and "underserved" areas. The U.S. Department of Commerce is charged with writing checks-with-many-zeros-on-them to...

President Obama signed a bipartisan bill on February 11 decreeing that analog television will remain until June. If you were unaware of the national conversion to digital TV, you’re not alone. “Backers of the delay feared that 20 million mostly poor, elderly, or rural households” were unprepared for the conversion, reports Reuters. Nevertheless, by next week 681 stations will have abandoned analog, according to the Federal Communications Commission. The FCC might even forbid stations from meeting the very deadline originally set by the government. In 2005, Bush signed the Digital Transition and Public Safety Act, setting the deadline for this...

Just 38% of U.S. voters think that the government should require all radio stations to offer equal amounts of conservative and liberal political commentary. Forty-seven percent (47%) oppose government-imposed political balance on radio stations, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Fifteen percent (15%) are not sure which course is better. These findings are a dramatic nine-point drop-off in support for the Fairness Doctrine from a survey last August when 47% said the government should require all radio and television stations to offer balanced political commentary. Only 26% of voters believe conservatives have an unfair advantage in the...

Obama Senior Adviser David Axelrod today, on Fox News Sunday, would not rule out the Obama Administration pursuing the so-called "Fairness Doctrine" to silence conservative Talk Radio. When asked about it by Chris Wallace, Axelrod said he did "not have an answer now," because he would leave that for the new FCC head and President Obama to talk about. That is not exactly a clear denial that they will attempt to silence the free speech rights of conservatives on radio. I really think they are going to pursue some form of censorship to stop people like Rush Limbaugh and Sean...

Remember when the Left laughed at conservatives’ concerns over the Fairness Doctrine? Barack Obama already said he opposed the reimposition of the FCC rule, they said. After all, Obama’s campaign gave this definitive statement in June 2008: “Senator Obama does not support re-imposing the Fairness Doctrine on broadcasters,” said press secretary Michael Ortiz in an e-mail to B&C late Wednesday. “He considers this debate to be a distraction from the conversation we should be having about opening up the airwaves and modern communications to as many diverse viewpoints as possible,” said Ortiz. As our friend Jim Geraghty reminds us, all...

(CNSNews.com) – Acting Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Copps says he doesn’t support bringing back the controversial Fairness Doctrine, but he does think government has a role in enforcing media “diversity.” That role includes re-examining licensing and other regulations for radio stations -- including AM stations dominated by talk radio -- to make them “more reflective” of public interests.

U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, is pushing for return of the Fairness Doctrine even as some of his Democratic colleagues are quietly backing off the idea. Originally instituted in 1949 by the FCC, the Fairness Doctrine required broadcasters over the public airwaves to give equal time to opposing political views.

FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell had a message for Democrats, or anyone else contemplating trying to re-impose the fairness doctrine: The move could undermine the justification for existing localism and children's TV regulations, and could be used against public radio. He also suggested it would not come back wearing a big sign saying, "it's me, the fairness doctrine," but would likely instead be rebranded. Those were some of the observations McDowell provided Wednesday in a speech to The Media Institute in Washington, which is a strong opponent of the doctrine. A copy of the speech was supplied to B&C. In the...

Get ready for an unprecedented government assault upon the First Amendment. President Obama will be at the heart of it. using his version of the “Fairness Doctrine”. In 1949, the Federal Communications Commission created the “Fairness Doctrine,” which mandated that federally-licensed radio and television stations “provide a reasonable opportunity for the presentation of contrasting viewpoints” on “vitally important controversial issues.” Rather than be deluged with demands for air time by aggrieved listeners, the broadcasters generally opted not to cover controversial issues, thereby leaving the public less informed. In 1987, President Reagan’s FCC jettisoned the Fairness Doctrine, and conservative talk radio...

McCain-Feingold and the Fairness Doctrine hurt more than speakers’ rights.We usually think of freedom of speech as involving the right of speakers to speak, whether through public addresses, in writing, or over radio and television airwaves. But the courts have recognized an additional dimension to First Amendment free speech rights: the right to listen and watch. This right takes center stage in a current challenge to the McCain-Feingold campaign-finance law and could play a role in the debate about the Fairness Doctrine. Every circuit appeals court has acknowledged the right to listen and watch. For example, in 2003’s Rossignol...

Those of us who fear a revival, directly or indirectly, of the Fairness Doctrine need to be aware of the following exchanges that occurred during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s January 15th confirmation hearing for Attorney General-Designate Eric Holder. The first comes from the senior Republican on the panel, Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania: SPECTER:  Mr. Holder, there had been suggestions for a revival of the so-called Fairness Doctrine, and my question to you is do you think that as a matter of public policy, the so-called Fairness Doctrine ought to be reinstated? HOLDER:  Senator, that's a toughie. I've not given an...

Washington-- President Barack Obama on Thursday named FCC Democrat Michael Copps as acting chairman, replacing Kevin Martin two days after he resigned on the final day of the Bush administration.