James Lileks writes in the latest print edition of National Review about the call for a return of the federal government’s Fairness Doctrine for broadcasters.
… [F]ans were quick to note that not all viewpoints should be subject to counterpoints. Anti-vaxxers, flat earthers, science deniers, traditional-marriage supporters, people who don’t endorse abortion up to the moment of baptism — these were settled issues, and let’s not muddy the pristine waters of free thought by letting the crazies in.
The point of Fairness, after all, is a more just and equal world, and if you’re against the orthodoxies that define Fair, the Fairness Doctrine wouldn’t apply.
It wouldn’t be fair if it did.
What’s fascinating about the tweet is the idea that liberal voices somehow have no way to be heard amid the constant din of Fox. Don’t you guys have, you know, everything else? CNN, MSNBC, WaPo, NYT, Hollywood, everything on TV except Roseanne — oh, right, never mind.
But to the Left, those aren’t liberal. They’re just reflections of common sense and truth. Everything outside the Left’s bromides and shibboleths that leans to the right is craaaazy talk. Any ideas to the left of their own beliefs — everyone should get a free house and a guaranteed income and a pony! — is an “intriguing idea” that helps “redefine the notions of the possible” or some such warm mouthwash. …
… The Fairness Doctrine’s return wouldn’t be enough, of course; it would have to be applied to YouTube and Twitter and Facebook, so Wrong-Think could be hunted down no matter what hidey-hole it bolted into. C’mon, kids! There’s someone who disagrees about the eventual impact of human-caused global temperatures. Get that feckless dolt!
