April 28, 2006
Speak Up Now!
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Ms. Monteith, Congratulations on your new role as Chief of the Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau. You are stepping into a vicious battle against a fundamental American principle -- freedom of speech. I am asking you to do your part to restore free speech. In your role as the Chief of Enforcement, you must ensure that the FCC does not become -- or threaten to become -- the nation's de facto censorship board. While not every television program is appropriate for every audience, neither is it appropriate for a small segment of the population to determine what is or is not "indecent." Groups like the Parents Television Council have manipulated the media and the FCC's complaint process. They claim to speak for all American families. They claim to be the spokespeople for the "contemporary community standards" that the FCC is required to consider during indecency investigations. They DO NOT speak for me. I am here to tell you that the FCC upheld MY community's standards in recently rejecting over 40 indecency complaints. I urge you to continue this trend of denying frivolous complaints. You have the power to reverse this slide towards state-sponsored censorship. In your role as Chief of Enforcement, groups like the Parents Television Council will ask you to impose stringent fines against broadcasters for airing programs that conflict with the PTC's values. Ms. Monteith, the beauty of our country lies in the fact that, to a person, values differ. And that's okay. There is room in our society -- and on our airwaves -- for people to profess a wide range of values. As Chief of Enforcement, I ask you to protect that right, and to deny politically motivated indecency complaints. Statements and images that do not fit into my own personal system of values are not automatically "indecent." Tolerance of free speech is the ultimate patriotism -- especially when that speech contains ideas one disagrees with. Ms. Monteith, I ask you to uphold your duties to the First Amendment -- and to the standards of the contemporary community you represent. Thank you.
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