Media bias doublespeak

Has anyone else noticed the contradiction here?

If the media has such a liberal bias - as conservatives claim - how come conservatives are the ones who are fighting so hard against the Fairness Doctrine? Isn't this an admission that the media actually has a conservative bias?

(Sound of a pin dropping.)

The Fairness Doctrine applied to American airwaves from 1949 to 1987. It said radio and TV stations had to present both sides of controversial issues. Some folks said it restricted editorial freedom, but the Fairness Doctrine was based on the true premise that the airwaves belong to the public.

One of the first things you learn if you study communications in college is that stations are licensed to use the public airwaves based on the "public interest, convenience, and necessity." That credo loomed large until the government's gimme to the corporate media in the '90s.

Now Republicans have introduced a bill to bar Congress, the President, or the FCC from reviving the Fairness Doctrine. Bringing back the Fairness Doctrine isn't an utmost priority for me, because right-wing media bias doesn't just take the form of avowed conservatives on talk radio but also a web of lies spun by news outlets that claim to be neutral. The Fairness Doctrine would do little to stem the latter (although the FCC used to crack down on stations that deliberately distorted news).

The Republicans' action though is based on numerous flawed premises. (Imagine that!) For one, they complain that the Fairness Doctrine would put talk radio out of business - which is practically an admission that talk-shit radio has a right-wing bias.

Further, it indicates that they never took broadcasting or journalism in college. If they did, they weren't paying attention and were probably just shooting spitwads the whole time. If they gained anything from class, they'd know the airwaves are a public trust with limited space, so licensees have to act in the public interest.

They also don't know a damn thing about separation of powers or why we elect representatives in the first place.

But that doesn't stop the right-wing hypocrisy. In cosponsoring the bill to block the Fairness Doctrine, Sen. Jim "I'm A Loon" DeMint (R-South Carolina) cried, "Freedom of speech is under attack in this country." Yes it is, Jim - by you. DeMint is the asswipe who wanted to deprive the city of Berkeley of its freedom of speech and defund all its services because of its politics.

Rep. Mike Pence (R-Indiana) whimpered, "Bringing back the Fairness Doctrine today would amount to government control over political views expressed on the airwaves." As if the 1996 telcom law that the Republicans supported doesn't? The '96 law has effectively subsidized corporate interests to amplify the right-wing noise machine's propaganda.

When weighing this issue, you have to remember that these are the guys who actually think the 1996 Telecommunications Act was good.