Radical Thought

Sometimes it works out this way: as I cobble together our weekly newsletter, the same topic ends up being addressed from different angles in different articles. (Around our office, we call that the “accidental topic of the week.”)

That’s exactly what happened this week, as two broadcasting luminaries took issue with two separate topics that define broadcast free speech—and free speech in general—in America.

I have posted them here as guest blogs:

• The Unfairness Doctrine by Bill O'Shaughnessy
• Are the Airwaves Really Public? by Erwin Krasnow

I read with great interest Erwin Krasnow’s article, because I have long advanced his argument; I have scoured the Radio Act of 1927 and subsequent legislation, and I have never been able to find any mention of the fact that the airwaves belong to the public. Now we have validation from a prominent communications attorney, complete with lawyerly citations to back up his argument.

And then there’s our good friend Bill O’Shaughnessy, who rails against the Fairness Doctrine, arguing that this, too, is a suppression of our Constitutional right to free speech.

Both gentlemen make the same compelling argument—I’m paraphrasing here—that our government has hijacked our rights, not just as business operators, but as citizens of this land.

The governmental environment in which we operate presents far too many immediate threats for us to engage in frivolous philosophical discourse. But what Erwin and Bill are saying is far too important for us to ignore.

I am enough of a realist to realize that sudden change is impractical, to say the least. But I do urge the leaders in our industry, as they wend their way through the halls of power, winning and losing skirmishes along the way, never to lose sight of the free-speech freedoms Constitutionally guaranteed to all Americans—and to find a way to reclaim them in the long run.

Virtually all the leaders in our industry to whom I’ve talked are resigned to a tightening regulatory environment, regardless of which party takes the White House in November. But both candidates are preaching change. I can think of no better way to demonstrate the sincerity of that sermon than to make right a great wrong that has plagued our industry—and the public—for far too long.

Memo to Messrs. Rehr, Haley, Newberry et. al.: As we stay on message, speaking in One Voice for Radio, let’s make restoration of free speech a central part of the message.