For Individuals and Groups:

COMPLAIN TO THE FCC about Hate Radio:

  • The FCC is there for the people. Unfortunately it is only for Broadcast and doesn’t cover Cable shows.

  • For Broadcast, complain to the FCC, either:
    Online: consumer complaints.fcc.gov or
    Phone: 888-225-5322 or mail them:

  • Or write to:
    Federal Communications Commission
    Consumer and Governmental Affairs
    Consumer Inquiries and Complaints Bureau Division
    445 12th St.
    Southwest Washington DC 20544

  • Support Independent Media.

  • Speak up. Don't let someone spouting lies or hatred be the loudest voice in the room. ASK FOR THEIR SOURCE. ASK FOR EVIDENCE. “SEND ME A LINK”. CHALLENGE THEIR “FACT” IF YOU HAVEN’T HEARD OF IT. YOU MAY NOT HAVE HEARD OF IT FOR A REASON!

  • Ask business owners to turn off Fox "News". #FoxIsNotNews #FoxOff ZERO TOLERANCE.

  • If you belong to a group, emphasize that media needs to be a huge part of the discussion. Without change in media, there won't likely be change in your issue.

  • Contact your local station and demand an end to hate speech and fake news.

  • Boycott advertisers or let them know that who they are advertising on and what they say. Sometimes they don’t know. Ask them if they support what the host says. Check out #StopRush.

  • Use fact checking websites and educate yourself on how to talk to people. Check out the pdf on HearYourselfThink.org.

  • Talk to as many people as you can about the role that right-wing media has played in dividing our country and families.

  • Form your own little media watchdog group.

  • Get as many people (especially young people) to watch THE BRAINWASHING OF MY DAD.

Grassroots organization, Defenders of Democracy Against Disinformation (DDAD) at stopdisinformation.org currently has three great campaigns going on:

1.     Change the Channel – a nationwide effort to ask public places to kindly change the channel from Fox to anything else. See their website for how to examples and leave behinds you can print out.

2.     Fix Fox Now – a shareholder resolution to ask Fox to register as a Public Benefit Media Corporation. This would put obligation for truth over profit. This will also help shareholders other parts of their portfolio since most portfolios are diversified.

3.     $2 for Truth Campaign – a little civil disobedience. Switch to any non-auto pay method and subtract the $2 from your cable bill that goes to Fox every month. Also just cut the cord with cable.

News Vouchers and Right to Respond

A new bipartisan idea called News Vouchers is catching on. Called the Local Journalism Sustainability Act (LJSA). There are two proposals: a tax credit to support journalism and a voucher system to support journalism. The tax credit has been proposed at the federal level in the LJSA. And the LJSA credit applies to all press outlets, not just nonprofits.

Instead of trying to revive the Fairness Doctrine instead implement a Right to Respond. Right now, right-wing media and commentary dominate the airwaves with no challenges.

Solutions being talked about by Stephan Lewandowsky, Ullrich Ecker and John Cook:

Technocognition: Designing technology in a way that minimizes the impact of misinformation.

  • Establish an international non-governmental organization that would create a rating system for disinformation, such as Climate Feedback, Snopes and Politifact.

  • Convey these rulings via technology. For example, Facebook could flag an article that's based on face information as an unreliable source and Google could give more weight in returning factually accurate news and information at the top of its search results lists.

  • Inoculation Technique:

    • Explaining the logical fallacy underpinning a myth. for instance show how an ideologically-friendly article has used fake experts. People don't like being tricked.

  • Enact a new Fairness Doctrine and extend it beyond TV and radio to cover the Internet.

  • Restore the Telecommunications Act to limit media consolidation.

  • Broadcasters should be required to clearly label news and commentary. For instance, Fox News should not be allowed to call themselves news.

  • Push for Media Literacy and critical thinking to be taught in schools.

Possible Legislation: