SOLD DOWN THE RIVER: THE DEATH OF FAIRNESS
Just three weeks ago, we concluded one of the ugliest and costliest off-year elections we've ever known, thanks to right-wing droogies like John Kasich and Scott Walker. No sooner is that done than here comes a flood of new advertising aimed at the 2012 vote. Looks like we're gonna get media-blasted for a solid year.
So far, most of the 2012 ads I've been subjected to have been not from candidates but from PAC's, special interest groups, and corporations -- all well-heeled, all conservative, all pro-Republican. Their one-sided messages are uniformly deceptive and misleading, and in many cases are blatant lies. Truth, apparently, is not sexy, does not sell, and is therefore used sparingly.
Once upon a time, the FCC had a rule known as "The Fairness Doctrine". Dating to 1949, it held that broadcast licenses were a public trust and licensees should fairly present both sides of issues. But it was policy, not law. So Ronald Reagan decreed that the Fairness Doctrine violated 1st Amendment free-speech rights, and the FCC revoked its own rule. In 1987, Congress passed an actual law restoring the Fairness Doctrine. Reagan vetoed it. Congress did it again in 1991, and George H.W. Bush vetoed it. It hasn't been tried since.
The FCC still administers a law known as "The Equal Time Rule", part of the 1934 Communications Act. Equal Time really boils down to equal opportunities. It says broadcasters must give equal treatment in selling or providing air time, and must make reasonable air time available to any federal candidate who requests it. But it doesn't say that time is free. The opportunity may be "equal", but the ability to pay is probably not, and so neither are the requests. The reality is that money buys more opportunities and more ad time.
The conservatives on the Roberts Supreme Court have given us the Citizens United v. FEC decision, which validates the absurd proposition that corporations have the same free speech rights as individuals. This has unleashed corporate money into our political system to a degree never seen before. And it will only increase.
So what's wrong with all this?
1. The average American voter is a dolt-ish sheep, easily manipulated, and liable to believe all sorts of lies, if repeated frequently. (Death panels! Obama's a Muslim!)
2. Advertising works, especially low-road negative attack ads, and even more so if the spots are run in heavy rotation. With enough exposure, the sheep can be persuaded.
3. Heavy advertising takes heavy money. And where is the big, big money? In big, big corporations.
4. Above all else, corporations want what is best for their bottom line, not what is best for the public at large. They will pay generously to obtain every possible advantage. And the GOP has taken their blood money and sold out to Big Business in a big way. "Whatever you want, guys. Just keep those checks coming."
I'm not anti-business. Hell, I'm in business myself. But this is getting ridiculous. The playing field is nowhere close to level. My campaign contribution is $50. GE's is $5 million. The unfettered influence of corporate wealth in our society and in our politics is unhealthy and undesirable. And unless we do something about it, there's no end in sight. We'll be through the looking glass, never to return. They'll keep shoveling shit at us and telling us it's chocolate ice cream. And millions of morons will happily spoon it up.
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