The Federal Communications Commission is about to launch a direct assault on the freedom of the media to cover news as it chooses. The program, called the Multi-Market Study of Critical Information Needs, involves requesting information from all radio and TV stations, as well as newspapers, about how they cover news, who decides what gets covered, and what criteria they use in the decision. The FCC will also conduct a “content analysis” of one week’s coverage to decide whether each of eight “critical” categories of news is being given adequate attention.

While the results of the study will not impose mandatory changes on the media’s news decisions, the “recommendations” from the FCC will carry the weight of law because all radio and television stations must come up for license renewal every eight years. Newspapers, which are clearly outside the jurisdiction of the FCC, are under no such constraint, but will be evaluated anyway.

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