Propaganda should be identified with a disclaimer!

 Weekly Opinion Editorial

MISSING DISCLAIMER

by Steve Fair

     According to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) website: Any public communication made by a political committee or candidate must display a ‘disclaimer.’  Disclaimers must be clear and conspicuous and clear to the public, regardless of the medium in which the communication is transmitted.  The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requires sponsors of paid programs disclose who is paying for the program at the beginning and/or the end of the infomercial. 

     On Wednesday night, President Joe Biden addressed the nation for eleven minutes from the Oval Office.  He spent the vast majority of the time attacking President Donald Trump and aggrandizing Vice President Kamala Harris.  Following his address, the big 3 (ABC, CBS, NBC) main stream media announcers fawned over Biden’s homily, repeating his talking points and attacking Trump.   There was no pretense of fairness or neutrality.  All that was missing from Wednesday’s infomercial was a George Foreman grill, a Snuggie, Oxiclean and a disclaimer.  Three observations:

     First, government is constantly running political ads at taxpayer’s expense.  Millions are spent annually on so-called ‘education’ programs to secure an electoral advantage over the competition.  Elected officials use statements, slogans, and color schemes in their zeal to tutor the general public on their policies.  They develop a brand at taxpayer expense and then use it in their political campaign.  That’s why incumbents have an advantage in elections.  They use taxpayer money to self-promote and often attack the value system of the very people paying the bill.  That is likely not to stop, but taxpayers should be aware of the practice.

     Second, taxpayers own the airwaves.  Broadcast networks pay nothing for the privilege to use the airwaves.  They are granted a license to broadcast on an assigned frequency.  They develop programing and sell advertising, but pay nothing for the right to broadcast.

     In 1949, the ‘fairness doctrine’ was implemented by the FCC.  It required broadcasters to present controversial issues of public importance in a manner that fairly reflected differing viewpoints.  In 1969, the U.S. Supreme Court (SOTUS) ruled unanimously the ‘fairness doctrine,’ was constitution and essential to democracy.  “The public airwaves should not just express the opinions of those who can pay for air time; they must allow the electorate to be informed about all sides of controversial issues,” the SCOTUS ruled.  Equal time/fairness doctrine was in place until 1987 when the FCC abolished the ‘fairness doctrine,’  

     Conservatives greatly benefited from the ‘fairness doctrine’ repeal.  Rush Limbaugh revolutionized public radio starting in 1988.  Radio stations did not have to provide equal time for opposing views, advertisers flocked to Rush and the conservative message flourished.  There have been periodic calls for a return to the ‘fairness doctrine,’ but allowing the free market expression of ideas is a better idea.  So long as the media consumer recognizes editorializing, let ideology battle it out in the public square.

     Third, good journalism is important in a democracy.  What is missing in the media today is relative objectivity- a willingness to report/cover stores that are unflattering to a preferred candidate.  The ‘spin’ is in- by all types of media.  Reporting has evolved into editorializing without the disclaimer.  Principled, fair reporting has been missing from the 4^th estate for years.  A good start to help identify propaganda is by including a disclaimer as required by federal law when media is carrying water for a candidate.

     President Thomas Jefferson once said newspapers should have four sections labeled: (1) truth, (2) probabilities, (3) possibilities and (4) lies.  Jefferson sarcastically said the first section would be the smallest and the last the largest.  “Advertisements contain the only truths to be relied on in a newspaper,” Jefferson said. 

     FYI- the views expressed in this newspaper column are those of the author and the views expressed on broadcast media are seldom those of mainstream America.