Published in August '09-We're feeling the effect of treating Libel and Slander as protected Free Speech right at this moment!

My opinion on how the prospective return or permanent abolition of the Fairness Doctrine is being felt right now as birthers and paranoids are created by Right Wing Media

When the Democratic leadership caved in to demands not to reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, they set the stage for the onslaught of mad incoherence we're currently experiencing from social conservatives. For those of you who don't know, the Fairness Doctrine was a requirement for the licensees of public airwaves to present controversies in a manner that was fair, equitable, and balanced. This was in effect for decades with the only ill effect being that people like Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes couldn't turn licensed public airwaves into one sided opinion factories. It was the accepted way the broadcasting business operated for decades. It was not censorship.

And we need to be clear on the fact that libel, slander, and death threats are not protected forms of free expression. It is quite right that anyone who makes a death threat should get a visit from local law enforcement. And indeed, people have had to pay huge sums of money if they lose a slander case. It's a sad when we can sued for slander and lose our assets if we cannot afford enough legal muscle, but Fox News's daily broadcasts regarding Obama's birth certificate and "Death Panels" in the health care bill are considered to be true by many of our more easily deceived citizens.

Snopes.com did an excellent job of debunking both of these claims, by the way. The articles are: http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/birthcertificate.asp , http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/birthers/kenyacert.asp, and http://www.snopes.com/politics/medical/euthanasia.asp.

Sadly, too many people believe what they hear on A.M. Radio and Fox News.

People who are our friends and family are being taken in by a massive con job perpetrated by the some of the worst elements of our mixed capitalist system, the health care profiteers. They believe the talking points coming out of Frank Luntz's carefully practiced, extremely malicious and manipulative playbook. They watch Bill O'Reilly and Glen Beck and listen to Rush Limbaugh and believe what they're told regarding a government bureaucrat deciding life or death issues. The cruel irony that they won't see is that if they succeed in what they are attempting, the health insurers will thank them for their dutiful service protesting against progress by dropping coverage for the faithful when they get sick. I can hear it now-

"Thank you for being such a passionate anti-socialized-medicine activist, but that cancer's a pre-existing condition and we won't cover it!"

Propaganda and marketing are powerful tools and the extemely powerful and callous forces in charge of that part of our system are not going to ever voluntarily give up that power. This is the power to make good hearted old ladies, whose only mistake is trusting Glen Beck, show up at town hall meetings in favor of policies that increase emergency room waits, insurance executive compensation and infant mortality.

So here we are, Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress, and Democratic President in the White House, and the best we can do on two urgent needs (Health Care and Climate Change) that have overwhelming public support to take action on, is to come up with two weak, compromised and probably initially ineffective bills that have the potential to be important first steps in dealing with these problems. But because of the venomous right wing noise machine, recently empowered by the very Democratic Congress it routinely demonizes, we might not even be able to take those first steps.

We are seeing the damage slander and libel can do when it disguises itself as news and news commentary. And, to drive home a fact that should be obvious, libel, slander and death threats are not protected forms of Free Speech. I don't think a sitting President has ever sued commentators for slander, but if we can't get the Fairness Doctrine back, I think President Obama, Senator Reid, and Mrs. Pelosi should consider it!

This excrement on our airwaves would go away tomorrow if we had the Fairness Doctrine Back! So of course, Sen. Jim DeMint (R. S.C.) has proposed the Broadcaster Freedom Act of 2009 to protect large scale libel, slander and death threats by huge international telecom companies and their right wing commentators, and it is currently in committee. It would be a nail in the coffin for the Fairness Doctrine. But if Barry and Harry and Nancy can't even kill this atrocity of a bill in a Congress they control, and put an end to the nonsense we are seeing from gullible but vocal social conservatives, what hope is there for Democrats?

Or maybe they think that Glen Beck is about to treat them and their policies fairly in a little while, in a few minutes after his "joke" about poisoning Nancy Pelosi.