Writing in the Boston Globe, guest columnist Steve Almond asks, “Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Fairness Doctrine?”

“OF ALL the Big Lies told by the pooh-bahs of talk radio, opines Almond, “The most desperate and deluded is this: that the so-called Fairness Doctrine would squash free speech.”

Almond believes this to be, “Nonsense.”

He may be right — but he’s wrong in thinking that:

1) There’s a snowball’s chance in hell the hoary old FCC doctrine will ever return; and
2) That the return of the Fairness Doctrine, adopted in 1949 by The Federal Communications Commission to ensure that licensees devoted “a reasonable amount of broadcast time to the discussion of controversial issues,’’ and that they did so “fairly, in order to afford reasonable opportunity for opposing viewpoints,’’ T is any kind of 21st Century answer to what ails America’s talk show airwaves now.

Almond says, “The real shock is that journalists haven’t supported the Fairness Doctrine,” and posits that “mainstream media’’ outlets… dine on the same fears and ginned-up wrath as talk radio.”

It’s true, as Almond writes, that, “This is how fake controversies (death panels, the birther movement, etc.) have pushed aside real issues,” and further that, “It’s quite a racket. Talk radio hosts foment ignorant rage, then their ‘mainstream’’ brethren cover this ignorant rage as news.”

It’s just not true that the return of the Fairness Doctrine will put an end to the shock jock racket!