FCC chair: Fairness Doctrine 2.0 not needed

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin will not reinstate the Fairness Doctrine, noting: "...with the continued proliferation of additional sources of information and programming, including satellite broadcasting and the Internet, the need for the Fairness Doctrine has lessened even further since 1987," when the FCC stopped enforcing the rule.

A number of Senate Democrats -- including John Kerry, Dick Durbin, Hillary Clinton, Babara Boxer, and Dianne Feinstein -- called for the rule's return following talk radio's vocal opposition to the recently defeated amnesty bill. Republican Trent Lott also echoed those sentiments before making a muddled retreat.

As I previously noted, it's curious that none of these august legislators called for government regulation of content on TV or in newspapers, both of which favor Democrats. Fortunately Martin has a made a sound, nonpartisan decision to reject federal oversight of a specific medium and instead stand up for freedom of the press.