When liberals like Al Crapton (he calls Limbaugh "Lumbar," so I call Sharpton, "Crapton") shout about conservatives having no right to talk on public airwaves, it means liberal talk radio is getting its ass kicked by conservatives.
When irrelevant nobodies like the Reverend or any MSNBC ranter talks like this, no one even takes notice anymore. Their audience can fit in a port-o-potty.
But when a government official proposes such dangerous and un-American absurdities, it's time to sit up and take notice.
FCC Commissioner Michael Copps is proposing all radio and TV stations that broadcast over public airwaves submit to a "public values test."
Copps had suggested that the test would make a broadcaster's license renewal contingent upon proof that they meet a prospective set of federal criteria. (Hillicon Valley – FCC Push)Local boards packed with angry, agenda-driven liberals would sit in judgment on radio and tv stations, using government-approved criteria such as "Diversity Compliance." Gotta have the government recommended daily amount of one legged lesbian church bishops, gay soldiers, peace-loving Muslims and of course the stupidest species in America: The White Male Father and Husband!
Progressives cannot win in the free marketplace of ideas so they propose to use the coercive power of the state to shut it all down.
Media outlets would be required to submit to the Ministry of Truth disclosure reports and programming plans proving their worthiness and "meaningful commitment to public affairs and news programming." Progressive toadies and bullhorn-wielding activists at the local level will be the foot soldiers in this Obama-approved Hush Rush campaign.
And make no mistake, Copps and his fellow statists want to expand their purview to all communications outlets, including cable and internet. Here is Der Kommissar in his own words:
"What we've had in recent years is an aberration where we have had no oversight of the media.Is this guy crazy? We've got news coming out our ears. Yes, much of it is sports and celebrity-driven frivolity, but serious news and analysis is as close as your computer keyboard or local library periodicals section.
It's a pretty serious situation that we're in. I think American media has a bad case of substance abuse right now. We are not producing the body of news and information that democracy needs to conduct its civic dialogue [...] we have to reverse that trend." (Copps quoted at NewsBusters)
All Palin, All the Time
Maybe he has in mind a press that flocked to Alaska for synchronized Sara Palin dumpster dives? This same press corps spent more time investigating an Ohio plumber than they did the Democratic nominee for president. Is this the news media dereliction the FCC Kommissar seeks to stamp out? I doubt it.
The IBD editors ask the most important question:
Who is Copps to make such demands? And why does a man who thinks like a tyrant hold such a high-ranking position in the U.S. government?
It's reasonable to ask, as Republican Rep. Joe Barton of Texas did in a letter to Copps this week, if the commissioner means to give the federal governmentthe power to determine what content is available for Americans to consume. (IBD)Indeed. The federal government and its batwinged gargoyles like Copps are not neutral. They are biased and are therefore unfit to be the arbiters of what free men and women can or cannot read, see and hear. We're smart enough to figure it out on our own without a paternalistic statist holding our hand. MSNBC's ratings are in the toilet; America knows crap when they see it.
14 comments:
Yesterday, an anchor on CNN apologized for an guest's use of the word "crosshairs." Sheesh.
FCC Commissioner Michael Copps is proposing all radio and TV stations that broadcast over public airwaves submit to a "public values test."
This is quite interesting on another level.
For decades, the Left has been promoting the idea that values are subjective. Furthermore, the Left has been beating the drum of not opposing one particular set of values on anyone else.
So, what is the FCC's definition of public values? How do we determine that such a set of values is worthy of being imposed on the entire nation?
AOW: The left is unhinged and unbalanced. They have no business sitting in judgment on anyone.
The Freedom Doctrine: because liberalism cannot compete in a free market economy.
The anti-net neutrality folks are being anti-capitalist, anti-free market, anti-liberty, anti-American. It is such a terrible shame that you guys can't think for yourselves, and allow sleazy scumbags like Glenn Beck et al to do you thinking for you.
JMJ
Jersey, you're one of those people that if you were in an Orwell novel you would believe the Ministry of Truth really was about truth, because the government told you so.
There is nothing capitalist, free-market, or pro-liberty about government inserting itself into a market and telling people what they can and cannot say.
Nothing like the government rushing to fix a problem that does not even exists. The FCC has become as bad as DHS.
If people walk away from Copps shaking their heads, it is probably because of this statement: "What we've had in recent years is an aberration where we have had no oversight of the media.” Our First Amendment makes this argument absurd. If anyone believes we need media oversight, it is because they wish to silence the people with whom they do not agree. If I find Keith Olbermann offensive (which I often do), I don’t need government regulation to silence him: I can just switch channels.
Mr. Jones obsession with Glenn Beck should prompt Beck into hiring a bodyguard. And speaking of chronic mental illnesses, Chinese President Hu told journalists with a straight face today, “China is always committed to the protection and preservation of human rights.”
None of you see a problem with internet carriers, the few and barely productive of them, filtering search results for maximum, immediate, personal gain? None of you?
God. Are you stupid?
JMJ
I think I've voiced my opposition over deep packet inspection by ISPs... but what does that have to do with this article?
The article is about proposed FCC broadcast content restrictions:
"Copps had suggested that the test would make a broadcaster's license renewal contingent upon proof that they meet a prospective set of federal criteria."
I don't see a lack of choice between liberal and conservative radio... but would love to find a station that simply reports the facts of the news, not their opinion of it.
Are not the American people capable of deciding what they want to listen to? And vote appropriately with their dial?
MSNBC is in the toilet. That's proof enough America knows crap when it sees it.
As to net neutrality: Where there is true competition you won't have businesses doing stupid things. In a free market, stupid businesses go out of business.
Rumors of comcast slowing down streaming content caused me to go with Qwest hi speed internet. We watch netflix with nary a hiccup.
If comcast can prove to me they can do it cheaper and faster, I may be persuaded.
And I figured it all out without big daddy government holding my hand.
I am by no means a fan or advocate of government regulation, but:
Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) hardware continues to sell, with ABI Research now estimating that vendors will move $1.3 billion of the stuff in 2015, up from $207 million in 2008. According to Infonetics Research, DPI will be a $1.5 billion business—by 2013.
The time is now to draw a line in the sand regarding the privacy of data transferred over the internet. Legal rulings on privacy stem from either an objective or subjective expectation of privacy. Cede this ground now and you can reasonably expect to have no expectation of privacy for data transmitted over the internet.
Your presumption that stupid businesses go out of business is based upon the assumption that you know what they are doing.
While I support network controllers instituting data caps, bandwidth limitations, etc. I think it unreasonable to have them actually looking at the signal internals. You also make the assumption that the only one doing this is your ISP. As you well know, you have no idea how your data is routed across the network or who may be looking at it. Even if you perform a traceroute, there is no guarantee that any two packets will follow the same route.
Cheers!
I know all that Finn. What you're talking about is standing up for a fundamental privacy issue, which I support 100%.
This is exactly why the FCC is so nefarious. They go after speech control and personal freedoms, while ignoring issues such as the ones you raise.
The most insidious part of your point is that of "reasonable expectation" of privacy, which is a key term in deciding privacy cases.
For privacy purposes, it seems that many want to treat the internet as a public sidewalk, instilling the mindset that you have no privacy on the internet.
Copps also said he expects a media that strengthens our democracy and a media that looks and sounds like America.
I suppose he and the Commission will be the deciders.
I believe the will take licenses all over the U.S. and give them to minorities and women. You are so right, Silver. It is just your bad luck to be a White Dad.
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