Television Research Paper
My One Nation Under Television class requires a 15+ page term paper on any topic related to television in America. After much consideration (and sifting-through of topics), I've decided to discuss whether the Fairness Doctrine should be re-adopted by Congress and/or the FCC. When I first read about the Fairness Doctrine last semester in my telecom policy class, I was pretty sure that its demise was a good thing. In just a few weeks of class since then, I've reversed my opinion almost completely, and I'm actually looking forward to doing some research into the topic.
For the SMAD-savvy among you: what do you think?
February 12, 2004 - 11:25 AM
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While I haven’t looked into the issue extensively, I think it would certainly be an interesting experiment to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine. I don’t necessarily agree that the scarcity argument holds true anymore, as the FCC stated in their Fairness Report (1985); however, I don’t believe that scarcity of media outlets is the issue of today. Rather, I would contend that concentration of media outlets, in the form of conglomerates, is creating a disturbing trend towards conservatism in mass media, which stifles the distribution of information and diverse viewpoints.
Another thing to think about today is that there are plenty of lawyers out there who make their living finding loopholes. The Doctrine would have to be very carefully worded to avoid this, or the media companies would just take advantage of it.
Steve: What loopholes, specifically, would you have in mind? What if it was worded as simply as “Cover controversial topics, and cover several perspectives?”
Well, and correct me if I’m wrong, it’s been a while, but didn’t the anti-smoking companies sue the smoking companies for airing ads, and win a lot of money or win the right to air anti-smoking ads? I know that this was a good loophole, but I feel like other companies can come along and exploit the reverse of this. In retrospect though, a few days after making that comment, it doesn’t seem all that likely and/or probable. It’d be worth a paragraph mention, though.