The Scene: A Television Newsroom, where, out of the range of the cameras, sits an official Government Monitor, assigned the job of controlling which stories will be given air time that evening,and “the news” which will be seen by the country’s citizens.
Are we looking inside a Newsroom in China? Russia? North Korea? a Modern Version of Hitler’s Third Reich, as was portrayed in one of the episodes of the original “Star Trek”?
Ummm…no.
The newsroom is in America…in the not too distant future…if the Obama Administration has their way.
Fox News reports that
In a controversial move, the Obama administration is looking to send the FCC in to investigate how the media chooses stories. Shannon Bream reported this morning on the plan, which is quickly drawing criticism as a possible infringement on the freedom of the press.
The Multi-Market Study of Critical Information Needs (CINs) initiative was proposed last May. The FCC explained that it wanted information from television and radio broadcasters “to ascertain the process by which stories are selected, station priorities (for content production quality, and populations served), perceived station bias, perceived percent of news dedicated to each of the eight CIN’s and perceived responsiveness to underserved populations.”
The FCC has identified eight CINs, or key topics that the government believes should be covered.
The study was supposed to start this week in Columbia, South Carolina, but stations there say no FCC representatives have shown up yet.
Republican lawmakers have urged the FCC to abandon the project. Others are voicing concerns that the government could try to influence what stations cover, pointing out that the FCC grants licenses to stations.
This comes on the heels of Reporters Without Borders ranking the United States 46th in its World Press Freedom Index.
Rush Limbaugh had an interesting take on this situation on his program yesterday:
There’s an outline of the FCC’s questionnaire that the monitors would ask of local station management. Here are some questions for station owners and managers or human resources executives: “What is the news philosophy of your station? Who is your target audience? How do you define critical information that the community needs? How do you ensure that community gets this critical information?”
Now, you put a monitor inside a local TV or radio station or a network newsroom asking these questions, and this is almost identical to what used to be called public ascertainment in local stations: Interview the local community librarian, sewage director, you name it. You just have to go through the motions of ascertaining what leaders in the community thought was important ’cause they’re public airwaves. “How does community input influence news-coverage decisions?
“What are the demographics of the news management staff? What are the demographics of the on-air staff? What are the demographics of the news-production staff?” These are the questions that the Regime’s monitor is going to be coming and asking of station owners and managers. Here are the questions for corporate general managers, news directors, and editors: “What is the news philosophy of your station? Who else in your market provides news? Who are your main competitors?
“How much does your station air every day? Is the news produced in house, or is it provided by an outside source, as in a syndicated radio show? Do you employ news people? How many reporters and editors do you employee? Do you have any reporters or editors assigned to topic beats? If so, how many, and what are the beats?” This is none of the government’s business. There’s a First Amendment clause devoted to freedom of the press. They’ve got no business asking this.
But this is exactly what local stations used to have to answer every three to five years. Now they want to put monitors in there. I am telling you that you’re not going to hear any objection from the journalists. (interruption) No, they won’t. No. (interruption) No. No. (interruption) You’re missing the point entirely. (interruption) F. Chuck Todd will not stand up in opposition to this. David Gregory will not stand up in opposition to this.
Brian Williams will not stand up. Take your pick, they will not stand up to it. This is the Obama administration. If the Republicans would do this, then they would stand up, oppose it, destroy the administration, call up the Constitution. That’s my point: Since it’s Obama doing it, these people are groupies. These people are only interested in Obama succeeding. These people want access to Obama. They want to play golf with Obama.
They want to be on the inside. They want to be in the inner circle. They want to be in the clique. If you’re gonna have a monitor from the Regime in your newsroom who is gonna be reporting back to the Regime, and you are a current journalist in the current administration, you’re gonna do your best to even suck up to the monitor so the news gets back to the Regime about what a great team player you are.
Once Obama got elected, he and his handlers decided that his personal charisma and masterful use of the teleprompter could overcome any political foes or issues that his presidency might face. What ol’ Scooter did not count on was the tenacity of Roger Ailes and his Fox News Staff in maintaining their “Fair and Balanced” promise.
And, now that Obama has failed at every single thing he has done as president, and is currently ruling by diktat, doing an end run around our Constitutional System of Checks and Balances, he has become even more petty and petulant than he has been in the previous years of his Administration, acting rather like the Bad Witch in The remake of “The Wzard of Oz, “The Wiz”.
Can’t you just picture him singing,
Don’t nobody bring me no bad news!?
The sycophantic servitude of the Main Stream Media is about to come back and bite them in the hindquarters, if Obama and the FCC get their way.
And, it serves the propagandists masquerading as “Broadcast Journalists”, right.
That being said, allow me to take a moment to tell an allegorical tale.
Have you ever heard the old story of The Scorpion and the Frog? A Scorpion and a Frog were standing at the bank of a river. The Scorpion said to the Frog, “If you’ll give me a ride across the river, I promise not to sting you.” The Frog said, “ How do I know I can trust you? If you sting me while you are on my back, we will surely drown.” The Scorpion said, “I know that. I won’t sting you. I promise.” So, they start across the river, the Scorpion riding on the Frog’s back. They are in sight of the opposite bank and, all of the sudden, the Scorpion stings the Frog. The Frog says, “You fool!. You stung me. Now we are both going to drown!” The Scorpion said, “I know. I’m sorry. I couldn’t help myself. It’s just my nature.”
No American, including the slavish Main Stream Media, should be surprised that Obama wants to take away our Freedom of the Press…
It’s just his nature.
Until He Comes,
KJ
Kingsjester's Blog 