What it Was
The Fairness Doctrine was a regulatory policy instituted by the Federal Communications Commission in 1949 – a policy adopted during the Democratic administration of President Harry S. Truman.
It was abolished by the F.C.C. during the Reagan administration. In a nutshell, it was regulatory policy – not legislative law – which attempted to balance out points of view on the public airwaves.
What Eliminating it Did
When the Fairness Doctrine was abolished, it freed talk radio to provide only the programming listeners were willing to support. Soon afterward, Rush Limbaugh launched his nationally syndicated program which in effect saved the fiscal solvency of AM radio by supplying a struggling medium - pummeled by FM - with a unique revenue-producing syndicated show audiences were enthusiastic to support and stations were able to build upon.
At the time, the marketplace was open to anyone and Limbaugh used this vacuum to his advantage as did the affiliates who agreed to host his show. Station operators soon found that conservative programming attracted a large audience. Station revenues increased which prompted the development of even more conservative programming followed by subsequent successes.
Where We Are Today
20 years later, talk radio is dominated by conservative talk. There is only one reason: the marketplace – the listeners – have supported it. Conservative talk radio is a product. What has occurred here is a classic example of supply and demand.
As annoying and vexing as it may be politically to liberals and opponents of Limbaugh and conservative talk radio, their irritation really stems from a dislike for how the market has reacted to the products introduced to it. Liberal radio hosts have had equal opportunity to compete in the radio marketplace. If they haven't succeeded as robustly, it's not because they have had less opportunity. Rather, it's because their product has not been received as well.
If Burger Queen doesn't sell as many hamburgers as Burger Jack, whose fault is that in a free market? Well, Burger Queen's. Should the government step in and insist a certain amount of consumers buy Burger Jack's food? Of course not.
AM and FM radio stations are unique businesses. They are owned by the American people collectively yet licensed by the government to private individuals who operate them, usually for a profit. This puts stations into the marketplace with a few caveats, none of which stand in the way of a station operator running a station like a standard business.
That’s why any attempt to bring back The Fairness Doctrine, or anything which mirrors its regulatory ghost, is nothing more than an attack on free market capitalism.
