fairness doctrine

Another Fairness Doctrine sighting this week. This one from Republican Commissioner Robert M. McDowell.

They may not agree on net neutrality or the Fairness Doctrine, advocacy groups from liberal to libertarian do concur on one issue: they hate Federal Communications Commission Chair Kevin Martin's proposal for a national broadband service with the porn filtered out.

A year and a half ago, there was this sudden burst of attention from some suggesting that the long-discredited and discarded concept of the "fairness doctrine" needed to be brought back.

The fairness doctrine is basically a requirement that whenever a TV station covers a controversial topic, it's required, by law, to give equal time to a "response." This, some people think, makes the coverage "fair." It does not.