Freedom of the Press: Broadcasting

As one of the five freedoms U.S. citizens are granted is the freedom of the press. This freedom is one of the fundamental aspects of our society. Without the freedom of the press, the fathers of our country would not have been able to state their opposition to Great Britain at the birth of our nation. In the past, these writers could not predict what technology would be like centuries after they had gone and what would be seen or heard by everyone with any device.

Limiting this right would bring us right back to square one. In the past, there has been several bills and written regulatory laws presented before the Supreme Court on the censorship of radio and television. It has been agreed that these two forms of broadcasting are much more readily available for anyone to stumble upon, including children. In the 1969 Red Lion Broadcasting Co. v. FCC case, it was ruled that stations would have to allow equal time on their respected stations for opposing viewpoints whether it be between political viewpoints or other hot topic issues. This fell under the FCC’s Fairness Doctrine.

This “spectrum scarcity” was used in several more Supreme Court cases including FCC v. Pacifica Foundation where stand-up comedian George Carlin’s Filthy Words monologue that was broadcasted during an afternoon program was seen as obscene. Ultimately, it was ruled that the monologue was indecent and not obscene.

The “spectrum scarcity” no longer exists. Cable-only television networks are free to air uncensored content because the public availability is to a smaller audience rather that networks like basic television channels and radio station. The Fairness Doctrine has a much more limited power. During the hours of ten p.m. and six a.m. stations have a looser framework that the can work with. This grants them more airtime for shows with profanity and graphic materials.

There is still an unspoken code of limitations referred to as the “Stealth Fairness Doctrine” that tries to enforce stations’ broadcasting equal amount of time to opposing viewpoints. Christian stations even have an issue with this because if they were to preach about what they believe then bring on a different personality with different opinions would undermine their religion and free expression.

Most of my experience with broadcasting has been on the radio. Even though our station, KSLU, is not under an FCC sanction, we still follow it. Part of this is because of our university, but the station also wants to be taken seriously. Eventually, we hope to gain an on-air frequency instead of our current online-only status. I would prefer to speak what I want more freely and especially play artists in the form that they originally intended for people to listen to.

I do understand the regulation of television more. Some scenes on programs and in movies that are on-air can be violent and graphic. The shows that do air uncensored shows are the more critically acclaimed shows because they show the full emotion and message of the content in the show.

All in all, the FCC should be more limited in the control they possess over broadcasting. Our audiences can be to conservative and sensitive. The ten p.m. to six a.m. gives broadcasting a little wiggle room, but broadcasters should not have to worry about what they express or say for their own beliefs and those they are reporting or playing.