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This feels a little excessively cynical, you still might hate it, but it's specifically for the 250th Anniversary of America.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr today urged broadcasters to join a “Pledge America Campaign” that Carr established to support President Trump’s “Salute to America 250” project.

Carr said in a press release that “I am inviting broadcasters to pledge to air programming in their local markets in support of this historic national, non-partisan celebration.” The press release said Carr is asking broadcasters to “air patriotic, pro-America programming in support of America’s 250th birthday.”

Carr gave what he called examples of content that broadcasters can run if they take the pledge. His examples include “starting each broadcast day with the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ or Pledge of Allegiance”; airing “PSAs, short segments, or full specials specifically promoting civic education, inspiring local stories, and American history”; running “segments during regular news programming that highlight local sites that are significant to American and regional history, such as National Park Service sites”; airing “music by America’s greatest composers, such as John Philip Sousa, Aaron Copland, Duke Ellington, and George Gershwin”; and providing daily “Today in American History” announcements highlighting significant events from US history.

I don't know that "pledge" should be the right word, just maybe like encourage? And like way to speed run the death of broadcast television, but whatever.



> This feels a little excessively cynical, you still might hate it, but it's specifically for the 250th Anniversary of America.

> I don't know that "pledge" should be the right word, just maybe like encourage?

The article addressed this.

Although it’s described as voluntary, Carr said broadcasters can meet their public interest obligations by taking the pledge. This is notable because Carr has repeatedly threatened to punish broadcast stations for violating the public interest standard.

“If this were genuinely intended as voluntary, and genuinely about celebrating America, there is no reason to limit this to broadcasters,” Feld told Ars. “Cable operators are equally free to celebrate America, as are podcasters for that matter.”


The FCC has no jurisdiction over podcasters and no regulatory oversight on cable content.

Over the air content is something they have power over.

Oddly enough, this is the FCC staying on their lane… kind of


A request without power is a request. A request with power and context of threats may be a threat.


In isolation, it makes sense.

In context it comes off as a thin veneer of jingoism on top of an implied threat.


Sorry, i thought that this country took "freedom of speech" seriously. Being compelled to air anything of any description seems to contradict that.


'i thought that this country took "freedom of speech" seriously.'

What in god's name in anything that's happened in the past 10 years gave you that idea?


twitter's continued existence


Oh yes Twitter, bastion of free speech, not an extension of the censorship arm of the government at all.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunter_Biden_laptop_controvers...


In a time when the president’s face is on a giant banner hanging from the DOJ, it feels appropriately cynical.




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