The Stealth Plan to Silence Rush

The Heritage Foundation/ The Foundry ^ | January 30th, 2009

[Delacon]

Does President Barack Obama believe that the greatest threat to progress resides in Rush Limbaugh? Earlier this week while trying to sell his Trillion Dollar Debt Plan to Republican leaders, Obama said, “You can’t just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done.” Thankfully House Republicans listened to the hundreds of constituents calling their offices asking them to vote against the bill and not the guy who thinks he can buy their votes with a couple of cocktail and Super Bowl parties. Now we find out that Obama’s far left allies are upping the ante. The leftist umbrella organization American Untied for Change is pouring money into radio ads in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Nevada. The ads ask listeners, “Will you side with Obama or Rush Limbaugh?”

Clearly the left believe they can get Republicans to sacrifice their principles by demonizing and isolating Rush Limbaugh. So much for that new era of bipartisanship. But what if all of Obama’s old-school politics of division fails to win him any Republican votes? What is the next arrow in his political quiver?

FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell previewed what may be the Left’s next line of attack at a speech to the Media Institute in Washington this Wednesday. McDowell warned that when the left comes to silence Rush and other Obama critics, they will not be dumb enough to try and do it under the label Fairness Doctrine: “That’s just Marketing 101: if your brand is controversial, make a new brand.” Multichannel News reports that McDowell even suggested that a stealth version of the doctrine may already be teed up at the FCC in the form of “Localism” rules which empower community advisory boards to help dictate local

No one should be surprised by this development. Last year the brain trust for the Obama Administration, the Center for American Progress released a report entitled: The Structural Imbalance of Political Talk Radio. Here is what they said about already existing legal authority to implement Fairness Doctrine/Localism-type rules:

First, from a regulatory perspective, the Fairness Doctrine was never formally repealed. … the original Communications Act still requires commercial broadcasters “to operate in the public interest and to afford reasonable opportunity for the discussion of conflicting views of issues of public importance.” … Thus, the public obligations inherent in the Fairness Doctrine are still in existence and operative, at least on paper.

So what new policy recommendations does CAP advise?

The Fairness Doctrine was most effective as part of a regulatory structure that limited license terms to three years, subjected broadcasters to license challenges through comparative hearings, required notice to the local community that licenses were going to expire, and empowered the local community through a process of interviewing a variety of local leaders.
…
We recommend the following steps the FCC should take to ensure local needs are being met:

• Provide a license to radio broadcasters for a term no longer than three years.
• Require radio broadcast licensees to regularly show that they are operating on behalf of the public interest and provide public documentation and viewing of how they are meeting these obligations.

So under the old Fairness Doctrine, free speech on the radio was stifled by an FCC rule that required broadcasters to devote reasonable time to fairly presenting all sides of any controversial issue discussed on the air, with the government deciding the meaning of all the italicized words. Under the CAP Localism rule broadcasters must renew their licenses every three years instead of every eight and when they do so the must “show that they are operating on behalf of the public interest” with public interest being defined as whatever ACORN like community organizers the left can rustle up to help define “community needs.”

Whenever controversial issues come up that President Obama wants to avoid talking about, he calls them “distractions.” And the Fairness Doctrine/Localism Rule issue may be just that. Commissioner McDowell also said, through aides, Obama had signaled to him that he would not re-impose the Fairness Doctrine. If Obama wants to prove his desire to protect the First Amendment is deeper than his desire to silence Rush Limbaugh, then he should go on record and disavow both the Fairness Doctrine and its equally perniciousness cousin, Localism.

[Delacon]

So under the old Fairness Doctrine, free speech on the radio was stifled by an FCC rule that required broadcasters to devote reasonable time to fairly presenting all sides of any controversial issue discussed on the air, with the government deciding the meaning of all the italicized words. Under the CAP Localism rule broadcasters must renew their licenses every three years instead of every eight and when they do so the must “show that they are operating on behalf of the public interest” with public interest being defined as whatever ACORN like community organizers the left can rustle up to help define “community needs.”

[Delacon]

The “Fairness Doctrine” is The Censorship Doctrine

Media Research Center's Free Speech Alliance is a fast-growing coalition of organizations and individuals, who, like you, cherish free speech and who have proactively joined to ensure the misnamed “Fairness Doctrine” never returns to silence the conservative voice in America.

First enacted by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) in 1949, the Fairness Doctrine required radio stations give equal time to all sides on political issues. However, the result wasn’t equal time, it was zero time – as stations simply avoided topics that would fall under FCC equal time rules.

In 1987, President Ronald Reagan rescinded the Fairness Doctrine and since then, talk radio has flourished. Conservatives dominate it, and liberals can’t stand it. By re-instating the Fairness Doctrine, liberals would effectively silence the conservative leaders of the day including Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Laura Ingraham and others, and would essentially take control of all forms of media.

In recent months, the groundswell for reinstatement is intensifying. In fact, a growing number of liberal leaders in Washington, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, have openly stated their intent to do so.

As Americans, we cannot sit idly by while this gag order on conservative speech is resuscitated. The time to act is now—so when the time comes, we are mobilized and prepared to defend our Free Speech Rights.



Join the hundreds of thousands of citizens taking action now through MRC’s Free Speech Alliance, and our national petition opposing the re-instatement of the Fairness Doctrine. Media Research Center’s Free Speech Alliance goal is to mobilize 500,000 citizens to forever end the threat of the Fairness Doctrine and other attacks on Free Speech. Click on this link.
http://www.mrcaction.org/517/petition.asp?PID=18645182

 

Freepmail me if you want to join my fairness doctrine ping list.

[Badeye]

the Democrats miscalculations are beginning to add up, and they’ve only had full power for two weeks.

I’m positively encouraged by these insane missteps, brought about by old fashioned liberal arrogance, and hatred.

The ‘worst’ that could happen is Rush goes to XM/Sirius, but I don’t see that happening.

If there is one true Conservative with the ‘cash on hand’ to tie up the Liberals in charge in the courts FOREVER its Rush.

[mgc1122]

I must have missed their spellbinding (tingling ?) report entitled: The Structural Imbalance of Political Talk Television.

[sit-rep]

All anyone with a half a brian has to do is listen to Rush for a half hour and they’ll be on his side. This is doing nothing but giving Rush more publicity... Which in this day and age, probably is a good thing...

[WOSG]

The leftist umbrella organization American Untied for Change is pouring money into radio ads in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Nevada. The ads ask listeners, “Will you side with Obama or Rush Limbaugh?”

LOL!! Let them spend millions tearing down a guy who isn't even a politician! Yet who has a more balanced and sensible plan than the Democrat bill.

Rush has done it again. I dont believe they will silence him - they are just building him up.

[techno]

Rush is the Mozart, the Tiger Woods, the Michael Jordan of American public discourse.

[screaminsunshine]

El Rushbo vs The Universe. He kine of reminds me of John Paul Jones.

[Thinkin]

mark for later

[Logical me]

If this attempt to silence Rush, it will be the final realization that Obama is a Chicago type thug and is a Communists. America will be under one rule, Obama. The insurrection will begin. Not just because of this, but the realization that this machine must be stopped.

[rightwingintelligentsia]

Or “The Structural Imbalance of Newspapers,” or “The Structural Imbalance of Academia,” or . . .

[Darkwolf377]

President Obama has shown more defiance and hatred toward Rush Limbaugh than he has toward terrorist prisoners who were captured while fighting our soldiers.

Fact.

[massgopguy]

Bring it on Obama.

[raptor29]

In a battle between Obama and Limbaugh, it will be Limbaugh left standing. Bring in on, homey.

[N. Theknow]

The leftist umbrella organization American Untied for Change

Dyslexics Untied Against Shur Limbahug.

[BellStar]

Does anyone besides me, think o’bama is a tad childish with this Rush Limbaugh thing? Americans United for Change, a liberal group, will begin airing radio ads in three states Obama won — Ohio, Pennsylvania and Nevada — with a “tough” question aimed at the GOP senators there: Will you side with Obama or Rush Limbaugh?

[TornadoAlley3]

Don't Doubt Me

[Carry_Okie]

McDowell even suggested that a stealth version of the doctrine may already be teed up at the FCC in the form of “Localism” rules which empower community advisory boards to help dictate local

This can be killed by simply calling these "boards" what they are, namely, "Soviets."

O'man has really overplayed his hand here. This is a terrific opportunity to preclude the same gambit where our media opportunities are not so well developed. By educating the public that establishing a government of local soviets is what they really plan, it will be much harder to sneak it by in other venues. If somebody could forward this to Rush, I'd bet he could use it.

[Dan(9698)]

If there is one true Conservative with the ‘cash on hand’ to tie up the Liberals in charge in the courts FOREVER its Rush.

He doesn't have as much money as the Government.

Liberals control the Government.

[Delacon]

“In a battle between Obama and Limbaugh, it will be Limbaugh left standing. Bring in on, homey.”

Remember the days when Clinton just got elected to his first term and everyone was saying that Rush had been proven wrong and was marginalized?