Why Revive the Fairness Doctrine Now?
Just four years ago, Democrat Congresswoman Louise Slaughter introduced the Media Act of 2004 in an attempt to codify the Fairness Doctrine, but it died in the House. In 2007, Republican Congressman Mike Pence introduced the Broadcaster Freedom Act. If passed, this bill would permanently disable the FCC from having the authority to resurrect the Fairness Doctrine. However, not a single House Democrat signed his petition, which suggested to Republicans that there was a renewed interest in reviving the Fairness Doctrine sometime in the future. In June of 2008, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sparked controversy and reinvigorated the issue by expressing a need to resurrect the Fairness Doctrine while in an interview with the Christian Science Monitor. Speaker Pelosi was cautious not to elaborate too much on the Fairness Doctrine, but Congresswoman Louise Slaughter was not so shy in her interview with Bill Moyers in 2004. When discussing Talk Radio giant Rush Limbaugh, Slaughter expressed that
