Forum Post: Occupy the TV stations- Surround the stations-Don't let them come or go until they tell the truth

None of this would be possible without the complicity of the Corporate media. They do not own the public airwaves, we do.

From the NYTimes http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/02/opinion/02copps.html?pagewanted=all

"It doesn’t have to be this way. America lets radio and TV broadcasters use public airwaves worth more than half a trillion dollars for free. In return, we require that broadcasters serve the public interest: devoting at least some airtime for worthy programs that inform voters, support local arts and culture and educate our children — in other words, that aspire to something beyond just minimizing costs and maximizing revenue.

Using the public airwaves is a privilege — a lucrative one — not a right, and I fear the F.C.C. has not done enough to stand up for the public interest. Our policies should reward broadcasters that honor their pledge to serve that interest and penalize those that don’t.

The F.C.C. already has powerful leverage to hold broadcasters to their end of the bargain. Every eight years, broadcasters must prove that they have served the public interest in order to get license renewal. If they can’t, the license goes to someone else who will."

Worth repeating----"broadcasters must prove they have served the public interest in order to get license renewal. If they can’t, the license goes to someone else who will"

In Egypt, protesters surround the TV stations...and GOT RESULTS!!

"Egypt's anti-government protesters have laid siege to the state television headquarters, surrounding army barricades and blocking access to the building.

"These people are presenting an alternative reality; even as the country is swept by revolution, they remain inside telling lies," said Samir Abbas, a 37-year-old former tour guide who had joined the crowds outside the Maspero building.

"Just as the presidential palace is a symbol of regime power, so is Maspero. We will stay peaceful, but we won't let their deception continue."...

(then it worked!!!)

"This week state TV channels have begun to shift the tone of their coverage, offering air time to protesters and in some cases hailing the occupation of Tahrir square as a positive step. On Monday state-run Al-Ahram – the Middle East's biggest daily newspaper – carried a frontpage editorial praising the "nobility" of the revolution, though it stopped short of calling for the president to step down.

"There's domestic pressure from protesters and outside pressure from Washington to liberalise editorial control, and that's what we're now seeing," claimed Amin. "Nobody inside Maspero is really happy about the government's response to the protests, they're just following orders."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/11/egypt-protests-state-tv-building

Besides occupying the TV stations, we can occupy the FCC: The FCC leases space in the Portals building in southwest Washington, D.C. and demand they revoke the license of Fox and others for not serving the public interest.

Broadcasters must prove they have served the public interest in order to get license renewal. If they can’t, the license goes to someone else who will.

Three recent studies have show Fox 'news' views are less informed than if they watched no TV at all. This is proof they are not serving the public interest. The rest of the corporate media is really no better. They all sold the war in Iraq, and they are all selling cuts to Social Security and war in Iran now. They are liars and it is absurd we are allowing this to continue.