FCC puts gov propaganda disclosure burden on media

[Moses]

BROADCASTERS MUST REVEAL VIDEO CLIPS’ SOURCES, FCC SAYS - FRANK AHRENS (WASHINGTON POST, APRIL 14): Television broadcasters must disclose to viewers the origin of video news releases produced by the government or corporations when the material runs on the public airwaves, the Federal Communications Commission said yesterday. Some members of Congress say greater disclosure is needed. Sens. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) plan to introduce an amendment to a junk fax bill today that would require government agencies -- such as the Department of Health and Human Services, whose video news release on Medicare and Medicaid was deemed propaganda by the Government Accountability Office last year -- to tell viewers that a clip was produced and paid for by the U.S. government.

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www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A51375-2005Apr13.html

[nana]

FCC issues warning about fake news
Last Updated Thu, 14 Apr 2005 18:20:31 EDT
CBC Arts

www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/04/14/Arts/fcc050414.html

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission warned broadcasters on Wednesday not to ignore the rules that govern video news releases.

The FCC, the federal agency that regulates the airwaves in the U.S., has received complaints about media outlets that air government-made video reports without identifying their source.

In a public notice to broadcast licensees and cable operators, the FCC said its rules "are grounded in the principle that listeners and viewers are entitled to know who seeks to persuade them" with television programming.

The FCC has been asked by tens of thousands of people to investigate the use of the reports.

Although previous administrations pioneered such methods, they have been especially prevalent with George W. Bush in the White House.

The reports look and sound like real news stories. A narrator sometimes identified as "Karen Ryan," for example, narrated a story on U.S. drug policy – without identifying that the report originated from the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. The same voice has also reported on health-care policy.

Tapes of the reports were supplied to local stations, some of which aired them on news programs as if they were real journalism.

In its notice, the FCC said broadcasters "generally must clearly disclose" to the audience at home the "nature, source, and sponsorship of the material."

Violating the rules is punishable with a $10,000 US fine and a prison term of one year.

The Bush administration came under fire earlier this year for paying columnists, like conservative pundit Armstrong Williams, to promote its agenda.

* FROM JAN. 17, 2005:
www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/01/17/Arts/armstrong050117.html
FCC investigates pundit's deal with Bush administration

It is against U.S. law to pay for propaganda with taxpayer money.