May 21, 2016 2 min read

There is a need for intelligent debate.

After World War II, our leaders found that propaganda used by the Nazis and the Soviet Union limited access to the truth. They created the Fairness Doctrine to prevent that from occurring here. It was meant to ensure that the general public heard both sides of an argument. The biggest mistake made by the Reagan administration was the systematic dismantling of this Fairness Doctrine.

Since then, the ability to have an intelligent debate has slowly devolved into screaming matches of opposing opinions. Look at Congress – it has become less and less effective, especially since Newt Gingrich was the U.S. Speaker of the House in the 1990s. There has been more party-line voting in Congress since then. Prior to this, there was something called compromise. Although there are plenty of members that are objective and willing to work towards the common good, their political lives are at stake if they go against the party. This could be seen in Republican senators like Arlen Specter (who later became a Democrat), Mark Hatfield and Olympia Snowe.

All of this stems from the eradication of the Fairness Doctrine. We need to demand that the Fairness Doctrine to be updated and restored.

Tom McConnell

Washington