ALERT: Federal Government to Put "Monitors" in Newsrooms

ALERT: Federal Government to Put "Monitors" in Newsrooms

ALERT: Federal Government to Put “Monitors” in Newsrooms

In what could easily be mistaken for a passage from George Orwell’s “1984,” the federal government plans to install its own “monitors” into various national newsrooms in order to and address “critical information needs” of Americans.

The federal government is passing this off as a “study” with the supposed intentions of “understand[ing] the critical information needs of the American public.” (Who cares about freedom of the press? This is for science!)

The government would go so far as to asking news managers and staff members what the “philosophy of the station” is and “who decides which stories are covered.” It’s so bad that FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai wrote a dire warning for the Wall Street Journal wherein he said that“the government has no place pressuring media organizations into covering certain stories.” 

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 According to Mediaite, newsrooms would have the choice of whether to let these so-called monitors conduct their so-called study, but opting out “would not be a wise decision for any news outlet that wants an FCC license.”

Coupled with Obama’s habitual disregard of the Constitution, planting government “monitors” to go behind the scenes to inspect what type of news gets reported further demonstrates that, as Rep. Justin Amash said, “Obama is setting the stage for something very dangerous.”

Upon learning about this assault on the First Amendment, the American Center for Justice and Law (ACLJ) immediately set up an online petition, calling for “no government monitors in newsrooms.” It already has nearly 50,000 signatures.

The ACLJ explains:

The Obama Administration is seeking to put monitors in the newsrooms of every major media outlet in the country.

One FCC commissioner says he fears these monitors would be used in “pressuring media organizations into covering certain stories.”

It’s exactly as dangerous as it sounds, and it could be used to cripple free speech and freedom of the press in America.

The federal government has no place attempting to control the media, using the unconstitutional tactics of repressive regimes to squelch free speech.

We cannot allow this Administration to trample the First Amendment. Speak out now before it’s too late.

Of course, we can expect the Obama Administration to perform mental gymnastics in an effort to justify this infringement on the First Amendment for the “public good” just as they’ve done with everything else, but bear this quote in mind: “Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing.” (You guessed it; that’s from 1984.) What better way to “tear minds to pieces” and reassemble them than for the government to dictate which news stories get covered and how?

If you agree that the Obama Administration’s efforts to essentially be the “thought police” is a disgrace to the freedom of speech, help us spread the word by sharing this article on Facebook and Twitter — and don’t forget to sign the ACLJ’s petition!