Nominate NBC for the Darwin Award

Keith Olberman’s firing represents an example of why corporate America cannot be allowed the privileges of moral beings in governance (as in the Citizens United v. FEC decision). The problem is not the virtually anonymous and certainly soul-less bean-counting of soul-less executives reviewing polls and Nielsen ratings. After all, could any of us pick Phil Griffin, Steve Capus, or Brian Roberts out of a lineup?  Rather, the problem rests in unaccountability for mindless decisions like this. There has clearly been a conscious effort among MSNBC executives to REFUSE TO THINK, a sin condemned by luminaries from Plato to Ayn Rand.
In attempting to abandon what they perceive as the sinking ship of rationalization, these rodents expect to subsist on the leavings of the Becks and Limbaughs. There is simply no room in the caboose of that train to accommodate any more under-achievers in the broadcast industries.

Needless speculation abounds as to whether Olberman’s firing was related to his earlier reprimand for “unauthorized” campaign contributions, or, because of Comcast’s consumption of the last vestiges of clearly articulated liberal thought in America’s network media. It really doesn’t matter if the narrow-mindedness of the executives at MSNBC, or, Olberman’s deliberate flaunting of company policy is to blame for his departure. If you need further assurance about the dangers inherent in such executive decisions, consider Griffin’s characterization of NBC’s “no political donations without permission policy”. In a NY Times blog, Griffin is said to refer to this pathway to fascism as a company standard. STANDARD! Look it up!

The simple truth is that the limited liability of corporate executives, and, the limited responsibility of the corporations themselves, leads very naturally to a reduction in diversity of thought. The “bottom line”, universally revered by corporate executives and stockholders alike, is too simple-minded an objective to permanently engage the creative thinking of genuinely imaginative people.

Why does all this matter to an informed public?  Because the public is becoming increasingly less able to be informed! There is already a very limited range of opinion being expressed by our news media from all sources combined. Print, cable, satellite and internet access to information are already subscription services, requiring cash outlay for citizens to be informed about what is happening. The broadcast media, traditionally “free” radio and television, have abandoned journalism for info/entertainment, glutting prime time public offerings with “reality” fantasies, and titillating gossip about the misadventures of besotted celebrities.

Hark back to the time when the FCC, cognizant of limited frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum, carefully parceled out precious wavelengths to public broadcasting. After slicing and dicing said spectrum to provide for military use, emergency services, telephones, and garage door openers, little was left to distribute among broadcasters, so assignment of frequencies was not only judicious, but carried with it a responsibility to adhere to defined standards (defined in its traditional sense) of accuracy and decency. With the emasculation of the FCC (among a host of other agencies) by the fantasies of Reagonomics, we are left with a plethora of broadcasters in the subscription services, elected not by ballots, but by remote controllers. Where, in the corporate charters of these entities is there a requirement for balance, or, even opposite extremes, of opinion? If we try to remedy this condition by subscribing to them all, are we accepting the insidious notion that the spectrum of opinion being offered is broad enough to encompass all viewpoints? It is not, and, we’re all the poorer for it.

So our spectrum of political commentary has suffered a staggering blow at the hands of corporate whim. Short of re-arranging our workdays so we can all watch Rachel Maddow, nowhere in sight is there a remedy that will reliably ensure that our menu of political opinion will not be solely the result of Americans’ appetites for beer or medications for “erectile dysfunction”.

Thank goodness for NPR. Enjoy it while you can.

Thalweg--Cross-posted to the Renaissance Post