S26-15 Do We Need a New Fairness Doctrine?
Class | Registration opens 3/2/2026 9:00 AM EST
Beginning in 1949, broadcasters felt an obligation — and were bound by FCC rules — to provide equal time to opposing political beliefs regarding issues of public interest. When legislators tried to codify the doctrine in the ‘80s, their efforts were vetoed by Pres. Ronald Reagan, who — as did many conservatives at the time and now — felt the doctrine infringed on free speech. After the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, people again began asking about some kind of regulation similar to the Fairness Doctrine — though the internet, where much of the planning for that attack occurred, remains highly unregulated. Now we have Fox News delivering information to conservatives, and MSNBC delivering information to progressives in a perfect News in a Bubble situation. Is it possible to regulate content without infringing on free speech?
Susan Campbell
Susan Campbell is an award-winning journalist who has written for Hearst newspapers, The Hartford Courant, Philadelphia Inquirer, Ms. Magazine, Salon, and The Guardian, among others. Her work was part of the Courant’s 1999 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news. She is a professor of practice in journalism at University of New Haven, where she also serves as faculty advisor to the campus newspaper, The Charger Bulletin, and the campus long-form journalism website, Horseshoe Magazine. She is the author of three books, and a contributing writer of four.