Republican lawmakers in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate have reintroduced the Broadcaster Freedom Act, which would prohibit the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from reinstating the so-called Fairness Doctrine.

Congressional Democrats have threatened to reinstate the doctrine, which was put in place by the FCC in 1949 to force the nation’s TV and radio broadcasters to provide “balance” on controversial issues. It was dropped as new technologies offered an abundance of sources for information.

“Bringing back the Fairness Doctrine today would amount to government control over political views expressed on the public airwaves,” said Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., who reintroduced the bill in the House. “I believe it is dangerous to suggest that government should be in the business of rationing free speech.”

The Democrat effort to revive the Fairness Doctrine (probably under some other name) is an attempt to silence conservative voices like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham and local hosts like KFAQ’s Chris Medlock and Pat Campbell. Once the conservatives are silenced, liberals in the new administration could silence Christian talk radio (KCFO AM 970 in Tulsa).

Conservative talk radio succeeds because it make sense with most Americans. Liberal talk radio is a giant failure because it doesn’t resonate with people of common sense. The only thing that keeps liberals off the air is their own unpopularity.

Let’s hope fair-minded congressmen – Republicans and Democrats – keep the radio airwaves free and open to debate.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 22nd, 2009 and is filed under Editorials.