Big Brother is here: FCC to test placement of monitors in U.S. newsrooms

[thisnumbersdisconnected]

Redstate.com: Why is the Obama Administration Putting Government Monitors in Newsrooms​

The Obama Administration’s Federal Communication Commission (FCC) is poised to place government monitors in newsrooms across the country in an absurdly draconian attempt to intimidate and control the media.

Before you dismiss this assertion as utterly preposterous (we all know how that turned out when the Tea Party complained that it was being targeted by the IRS), this bombshell of an accusation comes from an actual FCC Commissioner.

FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai reveals a brand new Obama Administration program that he fears could be used in “pressuring media organizations into covering certain stories.”

Remember Pravda? Same thing.

The United Socialist States of America has arrived:

 

[poncho]

You know what say, "give em an inch . . ."

 

[Revmitchell]

If one has never thought Obama was evil this should be proof enough.

 

[poncho]

I told you all this would happen when you were so bound and determined to give George W. Bush a unitary presidency.

I distinctly remember saying "whoa wait a minute let's think about granting the president all these new powers of warrantless wire tapping and spying, we might have a democrat in office after George that'll use them against us."

Nope I was a traitor and danger to the country I was even told I was siding with the terrorists to even mention it back in those days.

Bet you never thought you'd be reaping this crop when you were sowing the seeds did ya? Can't say I didn't warn ya.

Note by "you" I mean all the devout republicans and neoconservatives that defended all George Bush and the neocon's power grabs. Not speaking to any one poster in particular.

 

[saturneptune]

I told you all this would happen when you were so bound and determined to give George W. Bush a unitary presidency.

I distinctly remember saying "whoa wait a minute let's think about granting the president all these new powers of warrantless wire tapping and spying, we might have a democrat in office after George that'll use them against us."

Nope I was a traitor and danger to the country I was even told I was siding with the terrorists to even mention it back in those days.

Bet you never thought you'd be reaping this crop when you were sowing the seeds did ya? Can't say I didn't warn ya.

Note by "you" I mean all the devout republicans and neoconservatives that defended all George Bush and the neocon's power grabs. Not speaking to any one poster in particular.

You are correct. Our arguments have centered around the 2008 and 2012 Presidential elections over the years. In fact, I will be the first to admit my guilt in this area, and have come to regret many of the comments during those time periods. I suppose that during these two cycles, my mind was focused on the only hope to defeat the Democrat candidate, that being the Republican candidate.

Looking back, defending John McCain and Mitt Romney was not a high calling. Yes, I ended up voting for both of them, and going back further, I voted for the second Bush twice. In fact, in 13 Presidential elections, I have only voted for a Democrat three times. Carter was one.

Anyway, one can see the erosion of civil liberties during the terms of both parties. It really does not matter if it is the subject of this op, or the Patriot Act under Bush. It degrades our freedom and liberty.

It is like the frog in the slowly boiling pot of water. Not even noticeable at the time.

So do you think there will ever be a time when there will be two major party candidates that are positive on the Constitution and not two that are determined to destroy our way of life, the only difference being a matter of degree.

 

[saturneptune]

Redstate.com: Why is the Obama Administration Putting Government Monitors in Newsrooms​

Remember Pravda? Same thing.

The United Socialist States of America has arrived:

I do not know if you had a CB back in the 70s or not, but I can remember the FCC hammering folks over that big time for having too much power.

 

[thisnumbersdisconnected]

I do not know if you had a CB back in the 70s or not, but I can remember the FCC hammering folks over that big time for having too much power.

I do remember that, but had forgotten about it. Talk about ironic ...

 

[thisnumbersdisconnected]

I told you all this would happen when you were so bound and determined to give George W. Bush a unitary presidency.

I distinctly remember saying "whoa wait a minute let's think about granting the president all these new powers of warrantless wire tapping and spying, we might have a democrat in office after George that'll use them against us."

Nope I was a traitor and danger to the country I was even told I was siding with the terrorists to even mention it back in those days.

Bet you never thought you'd be reaping this crop when you were sowing the seeds did ya? Can't say I didn't warn ya.

Note by "you" I mean all the devout republicans and neoconservatives that defended all George Bush and the neocon's power grabs. Not speaking to any one poster in particular.

The powers granted Bush should, in retrospect, been subject to a "sundown" clause, you're right. I'll give you that one. I won't back off supporting the need for the Patriot Act at the time of the terrorist threats against the nation, but I believe you are saying here that the Great Marxist has decided to greatly expand the provisions of national security, and has in fact turned them against us, as I'm guessing you were saying years before I joined this board. You were right, and I agree, that is precisely what this traitor we've elected to Oval Office has done.

 

[Don]

Did y'all hear that loud "thud"?

That was me falling out of my chair over the realization that TND and Poncho agreed on something....

:godisgood::laugh:

 

[poncho]

Did y'all hear that loud "thud"?

That was me falling out of my chair over the realization that TND and Poncho agreed on something....

:godisgood::laugh:

I think we've always agreed on the basics Don. I don't like what Obama and the democrats have been doing to this country anymore than he does. I think we just disagree when it comes to what we each tend to focus on.

I'm tired of the all the leftie vs rightie mind games being played on us all, conservatives and liberals alike. It tears me up to see how we keep letting these clowns in government and the media keep us divided and arguing amongst ourselves while they're busy stealing our eye teeth and our children's future.

The left loves to hate the right and the right loves to hate the left. We've been going about this business of hating each other for decades and where has it got us?

I'm sick of seeing everyone play by these sickos rules. It doesn't have to be like that. Does it? It shouldn't be that way. Should it?

I know we'll never agree on everything. That's not the point. We can debate all that later. There has to be some kind of starting point, some common ground that we can find to unite against tyranny as a nation. We're all in this together aren't we? We're all losers in this game being played on us, democrats and republicans alike and it's not going to change until our focus does.

We're all going down the same road to national destruction screaming and hollering at each other about who's better suited to lead us there. I don't know maybe it's just meant to be like I keep hearing from some others here. Maybe it's not in our power to make a difference. I don't know. All I know and I don't even know if I know this anymore.

We'll never know if we can make a difference unless we try. I'm just sick of all the mind games and bickering. I'm an American, you're an American, democrats are Americans, republicans are Americans and we're all letting a bunch of boobs in three piece suits and bullet proof limos turn us into mindless bickering factions while they rob us blind and set us up to be their slaves.

I don't know about you all but the idea of being a slave to a bunch of psychopaths in fine clothes we keep empowering by playing by their rules doesn't much appeal to me.

I don't know anymore. Maybe I am as crazy as people say I am for thinking this way.

But I'll say it one more time anyway. Wake up people. Climb out of the false left vs right paradigm that's been pulled over our eyes and take a good look at who is really pulling all the strings.

Call it a conspiracy or just call it human nature the people at the top of the power structure have always taken advantage of the people's trust in them.

And we've always known that.

 

[OldRegular]

Redstate.com: Why is the Obama Administration Putting Government Monitors in Newsrooms​

Remember Pravda? Same thing.

The United Socialist States of America has arrived:

Obama promised to fundamentally change America. This is just one more step toward a Fascist State. Some took exception when I called Obama a skinny dictator. This is just one more example of his complete disregard for the Constitution.

 

[thisnumbersdisconnected]

Looks like this may have finally awakened at least some of the media to the Little Marxist Dictator's agenda.

Fox News: Critics want FCC media study thrown on ‘trash heap,’ skeptical of changes​

Critics of a proposed Federal Communications Commission study that would send researchers into newsrooms across America say the new chairman's vow to tweak the plan doesn't go far enough -- with one leading media group calling on the agency to scrap the study entirely.

"Where it really needs to go is onto the trash heap," Mike Cavender, director of the Radio Television Digital News Association, said in a statement.

The FCC drew the ire of free-press advocates and lawmakers after proposing a "study of critical information needs," which one dissenting commissioner said would let researchers "grill reporters, editors and station owners about how they decide which stories to run."
---
Cavender was unsparing in his criticism of what he called an "ill-conceived study." He said that regardless of the agency's motives, "even the concept of a study like this is enough to chill every journalist and every station which prides itself on journalistic independence."

"Why does the FCC need this information and what possible use can it be to the regulatory body that impacts every broadcast station in this country? We think it's clearly an overreach by the Commission," he said. "... The FCC should scrap the entire idea and leave any concerns about news coverage to the professionals in the newsroom-not the regulators in Washington."

The irony is that it was another FCC commissioner, Ajit Pai, who revealed the true nature of what new FCC chair Tom Wheeler's proposal was, as the article called it, a revival of the discredited Fairness Doctrine, long since repealed. As I said yesterday, I fear it is far more than that, nothing short of an attempt to institute censorship by government fiat.

 

[Gina B]

Did y'all hear that loud "thud"?

That was me falling out of my chair over the realization that TND and Poncho agreed on something....

:godisgood::laugh:

Oddly enough, we received an oddball warning that we could get hailstones, despite no rain, there a high risk of fire, and there are possibly damaging winds.

I wondered what was going on!

 

[poncho]

I'm wondering how this will effect the US Army's "Training With Industry" program that embeds active duty psychological-operations personnel at local TV stations.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/upshot/army-embeds-active-duty-psyops-soldiers-local-tv.html

WRAL and WTOC are not alone among media outlets that the U.S. military has sought to learn from through Training With Industry. The Upshot has previously reported that the Marine Corps placed public affairs officers with the Chicago Tribune for several years in order to better understand how to influence and work with the news media, and CNNMoney.com hosted an officer in 2007 and 2008, despite the network's embarrassment over the program in 2000.

 

[OldRegular]

I'm wondering how this will effect the US Army's "Training With Industry" program that embeds active duty psychological-operations personnel at local TV stations.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/upshot/army-embeds-active-duty-psyops-soldiers-local-tv.html

WRAL and WTOC are not alone among media outlets that the U.S. military has sought to learn from through Training With Industry. The Upshot has previously reported that the Marine Corps placed public affairs officers with the Chicago Tribune for several years in order to better understand how to influence and work with the news media, and CNNMoney.com hosted an officer in 2007 and 2008, despite the network's embarrassment over the program in 2000.

Did you know the Homeland Security Dept now has a Police Force. Could this be the start if that 'Civilian" Force Obama was talking about in 2008?

 

[JohnDeereFan]

You know what say, "give em an inch . . ."

"If you like your 1st Amendment rights, you can keep your 1st Amendment rights."

 

[poncho]

Did you know the Homeland Security Dept now has a Police Force. Could this be the start if that 'Civilian" Force Obama was talking about in 2008?

From what I've been seeing in the news for quite some time OR Obama's "HSD" is more advanced than most people know about or care to admit. From federalizing the state and local police forces through "fusion centers" and training the Boy Scouts of America to take part in "counter terrorism" operations like putting down disgruntled "anti government" Iraqi war veterans. Not to mention all the military and police "combined forces" drills dealing with "civil disturbances" since the early 1990's which may be be in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act.

It seems the term "anti government" has become a kind of psychological tool used to trigger a vision of apocalyptic destruction in the minds of democrats and republicans alike when in fact most of the people charged with being "anti government" are just in opposition to the government's numerous power grabs.

My biggest concern is Obama actually claims the authority to indefinitely "detain" (euphemism for imprison) and/or execute American citizens without due process. Evidently congress agrees as it has voted in favor of the NDAA that grants this authority at least twice that I know of. Who says there isn't enough bipartisanship in congress?

"If you like your 1st Amendment rights, you can keep your 1st Amendment rights."

Right and we can take that to a to big to fail bank.

 

[Revmitchell]

This will assure a GOP victory in the next elections.

 

[JohnDeereFan]

This will assure a GOP victory in the next elections.

Sadly, no. It will be swept under the rug and long forgotten by the next election because the Republicans in Congress are too spineless to do anything about it.

 

[thisnumbersdisconnected]

Fox News: FCC backs off newsroom survey plan​

The Federal Communications Commission announced Friday that it was putting on hold a controversial study of American newsrooms, after complaints from Republican lawmakers and media groups that the project was too intrusive.

FCC spokeswoman Shannon Gilson said Chairman Tom Wheeler agreed with critics that some of the study's proposed questions for reporters and news directors "overstepped the bounds of what is required."

The agency announced that a proposed pilot study in South Carolina will now be shelved, at least until a "new study design" is finalized. But the agency made clear that this and any future studies will not involve interviews with "media owners, news directors or reporters."

As to that last paragraph, yeah, ok ... unless Wheeler decides to "reinclude" those questions in the "redesigned" survey.