'Fairness' Follies

Staff Editorial

The Wall Street Journal

June 29, 2007

In case you haven't been listening to talk radio, the issue of the hour—no, every minute—is the attempt by Democrats in Congress to revive the "Fairness Doctrine." If Democrats want to mobilize conservative voters for the 2008 election, they should keep this up.

The Fairness Doctrine was codified in 1949 when the Federal Communications Commission required broadcasters to present controversial issues in a fair and balanced manner. The effect was that broadcasters avoided political discussions, lest they court government fines and perhaps the loss of a federal license. The doctrine was finally thrown out by the FCC in the 1980s after it had become widely recognized as a muzzle on political debate.

One result was that talk radio began to flourish, led by Rush Limbaugh. Radio airwaves aren't ideological, but conservatives tend to dominate the talk genre. Perhaps this is because conservative listeners have few other broadcast media outlets, or perhaps their leading radio lights are simply better. Liberal talkers have tried to compete but have mostly flopped, led by Al Franken and Air America.

This seems to frustrate Democrats, whose response is that if you can't join 'em, shut 'em up by restoring the Fairness Doctrine. California's Dianne Feinstein floated the idea on "Fox News Sunday" this week. And Dick Durbin of Illinois said the doctrine needs to be reinstituted because "I have this old-fashioned idea that when Americans hear both sides of the story, they're in a better position to decide."

Both sides? Does he mean this in the way both sides are presented on CNN, National Public Radio, PBS, the main broadcast networks, Hollywood, or nearly every major metropolitan newspaper in the U.S.? Does anyone honestly believe that liberals lack for outlets across the breadth of American media?

We don't always agree with conservative talkers, some of whom are perpetually angry. (One reason for Mr. Limbaugh's success is that he breaks that mold in being both funny and an optimist.) For all their complaints, Democrats also don't hesitate to use talk radio when it serves their purposes, as they did last year to back up their campaign against the Dubai Ports deal. But talk radio is only one of many media alternatives in the Internet age, and trying to suppress it is bad politics and worse government.