[BC] Fairness doctrine by another name? aka censorship?

[Bill Harms]

http://spectator.org/archives/2009/02/16/in-all-fairness/print

Senior FCC staff working for acting Federal Communications Commissioner 
Michael Copps held meetings last week with policy and 
legislative advisers to House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman 
Henry Waxman to discuss ways the committee can create openings for the 
FCC to put in place a form of the "Fairness Doctrine" without actually 
calling it such.

Waxman is also interested, say sources, in looking at how the Internet 
is being used for content and free speech purposes. "It's all about 
diversity in media," says a House Energy staffer, familiar with the 
meetings. "Does one radio station or one station group control four of 
the five most powerful outlets in one community? Do four stations in one 
region carry Rush Limbaugh, and nothing else during the same time slot? 
Does one heavily trafficked Internet site present one side of an issue 
and not link to sites that present alternative views? These are some of 
the questions the chairman is thinking about right now, and we are going 
to have an FCC that will finally have the people in place to answer them."

Copps will remain acting chairman of the FCC until President Obama's 
nominee, *Julius Genachowski*, is confirmed, and Copps has been told by 
the White House not create "problems" for the incoming chairman by 
committing to issues or policy development before the Obama pick arrives. 

But Copps has been a supporter of putting in place policies that would 
allow the federal government to have greater oversight over the content 
that TV and radio stations broadcast to the public, and both the FCC and 
Waxman are looking to licensing and renewal of licensing as a means of 
enforcing "Fairness Doctrine" type policies without actually using the 
hot-button term "Fairness Doctrine." 

One idea Waxman's committee staff is looking at is a congressionally 
mandated policy that would require all TV and radio stations to have in 
place "advisory boards" that would act as watchdogs to ensure "community 
needs and opinions" are given fair treatment. Reports from those 
advisory boards would be used for license renewals and summaries would 
be reviewed at least annually by FCC staff. 

Waxman and the FCC staff are also said to be looking at ways to ease the 
"consumer complaint" process, which could also be used along with the 
advisory boards. 

The House Energy and Commerce Committee is also looking at how it can 
put in place policies that would allow it greater oversight of the 
Internet. "Internet radio is becoming a big deal, and we're seeing that 
some web sites are able to control traffic and information, while other 
sites that may be of interest or use to citizens get limited traffic 
because of the way the people search and look for information," says on 
committee staffer. "We're at very early stages on this, but the chairman 
has made it clear that oversight of the Internet is one of his top 
priorities." 

"This isn't just about Limbaugh or a local radio host most of us haven't 
heard about," says Democrat committee member. "The FCC and state and 
local governments also have oversight over the Internet lines and the 
cable and telecom companies that operate them. We want to get 
alternative views on radio and TV, but we also want to makes sure those 
alternative views are read, heard and seen online, which is becoming 
increasingly video and audio driven. Thanks to the stimulus package, 
we've established that broadband networks -- the Internet -- are 
critical, national infrastructure. We think that gives us an opening to 
look at what runs over that critical infrastructure." 

Also involved in "brainstorming" on "Fairness Doctrine and online 
monitoring has been the Center for American Progress, a liberal think 
tank, which has published studies pressing for the Fairness Doctrine, as 
well as the radical MoveOn.org, which has been speaking to committee 
staff about policies that would allow them to use their five to six 
million person database to mobilize complaints against radio, TV or 
online entities they perceive to be limiting free speech or limiting 
opinion.