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fairness doctrine
noun
: a tenet of licensed broadcasting that ensures a reasonable opportunity for the airing of conflicting viewpoints on controversial issues
Examples of fairness doctrine in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In the television era, the fairness doctrine laid that groundwork.
—Jaron Lanier, WIRED, 13 Feb. 2024
Consider the Federal Communications Commission’s fairness doctrine, a policy that controversial issues of public importance should receive balanced coverage, exposing audiences to differing views.
—Garriy Shteynberg, Discover Magazine, 24 Jan. 2024
Best of luck with the fairness doctrine.
—Michael Phillips, chicagotribune.com, 20 Sep. 2021
Bolstered by his dogged reporting and backed with an internal fairness doctrine most journalists only dream of, Wahl changed the field for women’s sports.
—Tara Sullivan, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Dec. 2022
The migration reminds her of the late Eighties and early Nineties — after the FCC fairness doctrine was repealed.
—Samantha Hissong, Rolling Stone, 4 Jan. 2022
The real disaster in the United States was the abandonment of the fairness doctrine in the Reagan era.
—Rodger Dean Duncan, Forbes, 1 June 2021
The fairness doctrine went out the window and there are consequences.
—Oliver Staley, Quartz, 27 Mar. 2021
Limbaugh replaced him and was soon developing his ad-lib style — but one constrained by the Federal Communications Commission's fairness doctrine.
—Star Tribune, 17 Feb. 2021
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Word History
First Known Use
1952, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of fairness doctrine was
in 1952
Dictionary Entries Near fairness doctrine
Cite this Entry
“Fairness doctrine.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fairness%20doctrine. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
Legal Definition
fairness doctrine
noun
: a doctrine requiring broadcasters to provide an opportunity for response to personal attacks aired by the broadcaster and especially for the airing of conflicting viewpoints on controversial issues
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