E-mail this story to a friend Have comments? Send them to the editor. Printer Friendly Version Subscribe for Free! Other Columns by Cliff Kincaid Cliff Kincaid Bio

The Free Congress Foundation on Friday, April 13, is hosting a panel discussion on liberal attempts to bring back the Fairness Doctrine in order to intimidate, harass and censor the conservative media. I am pleased to participate because the threat is a real one. In a new report posted on the AIM website, we document how leading Democrats and their allies have no compunctions about using the full force of the federal government to manipulate media coverage in their favor. The Fairness Doctrine would put bureaucrats from the Federal Communications Commission in charge of managing editorial content on radio and TV networks, channels and stations.

The organized left-wing campaign against Fox News, in order to keep Democratic presidential candidates out of any debates sponsored or co-sponsored by the channel, is a taste of what is to come. The left-wing campaign against Fox News is one reason why the channel hired former liberal Democratic Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. as a commentator and analyst. In fact, Ford had been a favorite of the channel during his run for the Senate, and he had received campaign contributions from Rupert Murdoch, chairman of the Fox News parent company, and other News Corporation executives. The channel has been feeling the heat.

Of course, the notion that the channel is a conservative Republican mouthpiece is completely absurd and is offered only for the purpose of intimidating its executives and news personalities and moving it further to the left. AIM has put forward a very detailed critique of the channel on conservative grounds, noting its timid coverage of Senator Hillary Clinton and its backing away from asking important questions about Senator Barack Obama's mysterious past. Many of these concerns can be found in our Fairness Doctrine report.

This brings up the other serious problem that we face - self-censorship. Tragically, the conservative media, which we now depend on for alternative news and information, have been very disappointing in their coverage of a number of key controversies and issues of public importance. In the face of a campaign to return the Fairness Doctrine, the natural reaction of many in the conservative media might be to bend over backwards to an even greater degree, in order to accommodate the left.

North American Union

One example is the reaction to evidence that U.S. officials are laying the groundwork for a North American entity, sometimes called a "North American Community" or "North American Union" of the U.S., Canada and Mexico in economic and other spheres. I attended a Washington conference devoted to developing a North American legal system that included literature outlining the creation of a North American Supreme Court. Lou Dobbs of CNN had me on his show recently to talk about it. "It's clear that you're as astounded as I am and as my colleagues are that more people in the media are not focusing on this issue," he said. Indeed, it is a story with dramatic implications for the survival of our nation as a sovereign entity. Yet, Dobbs is the only major media figure to consider the issue newsworthy. Conservative radio host Michael Medved openly ridiculed those who are covering the issue, and Fox News won't touch it.

>> Continued -- Page 1 2 3 4