About two weeks ago, congressional negotiators agreed to a proposal from Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) to prohibit the Bush administration from issuing “video news releases” (i.e., fake-news segments) that do not clearly identify the government as the source. There was, however, a catch: the ban expires at the end of September.
To get a permanent policy restricting Bush’s fake-news segments, Sens. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and John Kerry (D-Mass.) introduced the Truth in Broadcasting Act, which would require the administration’s “stories” to disclose the source of the material forever more. The problem, at least at first, would be finding some Republican support for the proposal. Yesterday, Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) not only embraced the initiative, but suggested it would sail through his committee with broad support.
A key Senate committee chairman said yesterday that he would support a permanent requirement that federal agencies disclose to viewers the origin of prepackaged news stories they produce.
Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) said there is widespread support in the Senate for ensuring that such video news releases, which are designed to resemble broadcast news stories, include a disclaimer in their scripts or audio revealing that they were prepared by a federal agency.
It’s not yet a done deal — Stevens suggested he’d like to wait until the FCC finishes gathering public comments about video news releases in July — but he agreed to help Lautenberg and Kerry make the Byrd provision permanent. That’s encouraging news.
No word yet on whether the Bush administration will lobby against the effort.